Indoor BBQ Chicken

Happy Sunday to you (or actually, this post is publishing at like midnight so it’s technically Monday)! The weather here in Virginia is just gross. The weather men promised us warmth and sunshine, but all we’ve had in Williamsburg is grey gloom and doom. It makes me really crave summer and all the food that comes along with it. Like barbecue!

I’m kind of a traditionalist when it comes to barbecue (I am from the South after all) and really don’t love the idea of barbecue that’s not “real”. To me, real barbecue is cooked outside over hot coals with lots of smoke and love and time. But when it’s freezing outside, or if you don’t have a grill, the oven will have to do. This Soul Food Sunday I’m going to show you my technique for indoor barbecue.

This is about as close to the real deal as you can get without stepping a foot outside.

For BBQ chicken I start with a homemade dry rub. It’s a blend of delicious seasonings that are rubbed into the meat and allowed to sit. This is the first step in getting that authentic barbecue flavor. If you have time to dry rub the meat and let it sit overnight, you will get awesome flavor payoff. If you’re in more of a hurry, even 30 minutes in the fridge will do your meat a lot of good.

Then I brown the seasoned chicken. Because as Anne Burell always says, “Brown food tastes gooood.” And she’s right. Browning your meat gives it another layer of flavor and texture that can’t be replaced. It’s one of the reasons that food tastes so good when it’s grilled–because of the browning that takes place over a flame.

Once it’s browned, I finish those suckers off in the oven until they’re ready. While they’re in the oven they get basted with sauce, which will carmelize and brown over the skin of your meat as it cooks. It makes for very delicious skin.

Give yourself a little taste of summer and try this!

Alongside the chicken we had my BBQ baked beans and some No-Mayo Coleslaw.

This is my idea of DINNER. So perfect.

Thanks for reading!

-Lauren