Smoky Mustard-y Barbecue Chicken

As stated before, Mister Sive is the griller in the family and I am the lucky eater of all that grilled goodness. He made a crazy good chicken the other day that I really wanted him to share with all of you, so today’s post is brought to you by him.

Like a lot of guys, grilling brings out the chemist/mad scientist in me. Something about fire and experimenting with combinations: exciting!

This goal with the following idea was to get a deep smoky and intense flavor to the chicken. TKW says it worked, so this is my post for him today.

Marinade:
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup molasses
4 garlic cloves, finely diced
1/3 cup mustard

These proportions are merely a starter; focus on spice, tang, sweetness or acidity to your liking. Mix all ingredients lightly with a whisk until blended.

Take a good sized whole chicken and place in a large ziploc bag. Pour the marinade in and mush until spread over the whole chicken. Partially close the bag, release the excess air, and complete the ziploc. Place in a bowl and refrigerate for 4 or so hours, flipping the bag in the bowl every hour. Take out an hour before grilling.

Prepare your grill for indirect heating (coals to the sides) and just before placing the chicken on the grill, add some water soaked smoky wood chips. (I did this twice.) Grill on medium to hot (400ish degrees) for about an hour, until internal temp is 165. After flipping a few times after a few minutes on each side (to get a good seat on the skin) I then started this bird breast side down, to capture juices and fat in the meat. For the last 30 minutes or so I cooked breast up.

Served with grilled potatoes, grilled Napa cabbage and grilled corn on the cob, it’s an ode to charcoal and Summer.

Happy grilling!