A glaze or marinade can make the humble chicken shine, especially when there is a flavoursome dry rub used as a base. After trying some commercial products that were too salty and sweet, I decided to make my own.

Enjoy this simple, effective and very tasty homemade glaze for cooking chicken in a covered BBQ, Big Green Egg or conventional oven.
Continue reading“Chipotle and Tamarind Roast Chicken”→

Equipment

• Two metal skewers
• Poultry scissors (or a very sharp pair of scissors)
• Small saucepan
• Pastry brushes
• Roasting tin and rack (if cooking in an oven)
• Kitchen thermometer or equivalent (recommended)

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken (3-4lbs) or chicken pieces, e.g. legs and drumsticks.
• 1-2 tbsp dry chicken rub
• 1 tbsp olive oil

For the dry chicken rub you can use the one you like best. I prefer Dizzy Pig Tsunami Spin. If you don’t have one you can make a rub by combining:

• 2 tsp salt (preferably smoked)
• 2 tsp Demerara sugar
• 2 tsp paprika
• 2 tsp sesame seeds
• 1 tsp granulated garlic
• ½ tsp black pepper

For the marinade:

This makes around 150ml, enough for two small chickens or two racks of chicken pieces.

Method

The recipe below works for a conventional oven or Big Green Egg. The timings below are for a 3lb chicken, increase for larger birds.

1. Pre-heat the oven or direct heat setup Egg to 190°C/375°F (fan oven 170°C/340°F).
2. Carefully spatchcock the chicken. This BBC Good Food video explains how to achieve this.
3. Skewer the bird across the middle with metal skewers. Makes lifting it easier.
4. Lightly brush olive oil onto the skin of the chicken.
5. Coat the oiled skin with 1-2 tbsp of the dry rub to get an even coverage.
6. Add the chicken breast-side up to the oven or Egg and start to cook.
   • For cooking in an oven, use a roasting rack and tray
7. Put all of the ingredients for the marinade into a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and then simmer for five minutes to reduce.
8. When the breast meat temperature is at 55°C/130°F (or after 45 minutes), open the oven or Egg. Gently brush the chicken with the marinade.
9. Return to cook until the breast meat is at 74°C/165°F, or for a further 25 minutes.
10. Remove from the oven or Egg. Cut into portions, check the chicken is cooked.

Hints, Tips and Pictures

1. Add the skewers before applying the rub so that the rub doesn’t fall off trying to get the skewers in afterwards.
2. For cooking in a Big Green Egg, I recommend using a raised platform, the results are markedly better. The skin of the chicken will be crisper and it will cook faster, around 50-55 minutes in total.
3. Sweetcorn can be cooked at the same time with a raised platform. Wrap them in kitchen foil with some butter and water, place in the Egg after 25 minutes. The picture below has an indirect setup, it can work with direct as well, turn after 15 minutes for an even cook.
   
4. If cooking raised into the dome, ensure that the skewers don’t touch the sides. For a Minimax, 9 inch skewers are fine.
5. Soy sauce and/or Worcester sauce can be added to the marinade. Personally I find that they can overwhelm the nuances of the tamarind and chipotle, and that the ancho chili paste is enough.