BBQ411: poultry

Showing posts with label poultry. Show all posts

Jerked Chicken

Ingredients:

6 to 8 green onions, diced
1 medium-sized onion, diced
1 to 2 scotch bonnet peppers or habanero peppers, seeded and minced
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon whole cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns, crushed
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 whole chicken, cut into parts

Place all ingredients except chicken in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Process for 10 to 15 seconds at high speed. Place the chicken in a bowl and pour the marinade over it. Refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.

Preheat grill until coals are gray to white (medium hot). Clean and wipe oil on grate

Remove the chicken from the marinade and drain off any excess liquid. Place on the oiled grill and cook for 20 to 25 minutes on each side, or until the juice from the chicken runs clear.

Turkey Hash

1/2 cup onion (diced)
1/2 cup green pepper (diced)
3 tablespoons butter (melted)
2 cups cooked turkey
3 cups cooked potatos
1/4 cup celery (chopped)
1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
pepper to taste

Cook onion and green pepper in butter until softened. Wisk in flour, then turkey and broth. Mix all ingredients well. Pour in a greased baking dish. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes.

Beer Brined Chicken

Ingredients:
1 3 1/2 to 4 pound chicken (butterflied)
3/4 cup plus 1/2 tsp. Kosher Salt
3/4 cup plus 1/2 tsp. packed dark brown sugar
1 Tbs plus 1/4 tsp fresh coarse ground black pepper
6 crumpled bay leaves
2 12oz cans cold lager beer
1 tsp smoked sweet paprika
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/4 tsp chili powder
large pinch dried crushed oregano
pinch cayenne pepper
2 Tbs exrta virgin olive oil

Preparation:
To butterfly a chicken, place the chicken breast side down, on a flat surface. Using poultry shears, cut along each side of the backbone and remove it. Flip chicken over and press firm;y on the center of the breast to breat the breastbone.

In a large bowl, combine the 3/4 cup Kosher salt, 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1 Tbs. pepper and bay leaves. Add 4 cups very hot water and stir to dissolve the salt and sugar. Add the beer and stir well to remove the carbonation. Add about 4 cups ice cubes to cool the brine quickly. When the ice has melted and the brine is cool, put the chicken in the brine, adding more cold water if needed to cover. Refrigerate, covered for 2 to 4 hours.

In a small bowl, mix the 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt, 1/2 tsp. brown sugar, and 1/4 tsp. pepper with the paprika, cumin,celery salt, chili powder, oregano and cayenne.

Remove the chicken from the brine and let air dry about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, build a charcoal fire or heat a gas grill on high. Faor a charcoal grill, when the coals are covered with a white-gray ash, divide it into 2 piles and set a drip pn between the coals. For a gas grill, turn off the burners that will be directly under the chicken, and the other burners to medium. If your grill has 2 burners turn one off and set the other to medium. You may need to rotate the chicken to promote even cooking.

If the chicken is wet, dry it off with paper towels. Brush both sides with the EVOO and sprinkle the spice mixture over both sides. Tuck the wing tips under the breasts. Put the chicken skin side up in the center of the grill or not directly over the heat. Cover the grill and cook until the juices run clear and a meat thermometer in the thickest side of the thigh reads 175 - 180 degrees. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before cutting into pieces.

Stuffed Chicken Thighs

Recipe inspired by Danny Gaulden

Take as many thighs as you need and skin them. Then cut a slit along the bone, and remove it. Stuff the pocket, from the removed bone, with about a 2 or 3 inch long, pencil thick piece of Monteray Jack cheese, a few diced onions and diced jalepeno peppers that have been seeded and ribed. If you have room left, add more cheese, if necessary. You could also use jalapeno cheese and diced green peppers with onions. Season the inside lightly with your favorite chicken rub. Now take a toothpick and use it to close the pocket.

Wrap each thigh with a strip of bacon and pin the bacon to the thigh with another toothpick. Place thighs in pan and drizzle with Italian salad dressing until at least half covered. Let marinade for at least 2 hours. Turn thighs in marinade every hour.

Cook indirect with medium heat at 250 to 300 degree till done, then place thighs directly over low fire to brown and crisp up bacon, if this isn't accomplished during the cooking process. Or, Q thighs directly over the coals till done.

CAUTION: If Q'ing directly over the coals, don't make a big fire. A small one will work best, and not burn the bacon and thighs. You could use apple, cherry, pecan or hickory for smoke flavor. Use a combination of wood if desired

A variation:
After removing the bone you could take your favorite meat pounder and flatten the thighs to about 1/4 inch. You could stuff with your favorite stuffing and turn these into roll ups.

You could do the same thing with boneless skinless chicken breasts.

Use you imagination for stuffing!

Honey Chicken Wings

Ingredients
2 pounds chicken wings, disjointed and tips discarded
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 cup honey
1 clove of garlic, pressed (or mashed)

Preparation
Set uo your grill with 2 zone med high heat (about 350 degrees). Season chicken with pepper. Place wings in a foil pan. In a bowl, wisk together honey, soy sauce, oil, ketchup and garlic until blended. Pour over chicken. Bake for 45 minutes, until chicken is well done and sauce is thick. Turn pan every so often to promote even cooking.

Ceder Plank Game Hen

This recipe was submitted by Mike Flint

Ingredients:

1 14X6X3/4 inch cedar plank
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cooking oil
1/2 cup apricot spreadable fruit (preserves)
1 serrano chile pepper, seeded, finely diced
1/2 teaspoon finely shredded lime peel (zest)
1 Tablespoon lime juice
2 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pound Cornish game hens (halved)

Preparation:

1. Soak plank in water for at least an hour (longer is OK)

2. In a medium hot skillet cook onion and garlic in hot oil til tender. Remove from heat and mix in rest of the ingredients. Set Aside.

3. Place plank directly over the coals of a medium hot grill. When plank starts to smoke. place the hens on plank cut side down. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Cover grill and let cook for 25 minutes. Lift cover and carefully spoon glaze on hens. Cover grill again and let cookfor 35 minutes more, or until it reaches 180 degrees in the thigh muscle.

4. Serve on platter or use plank as platter to serve.

NOTE:

Mike says he's tried this several times and its mighty good eats. However, make sure the serrano pepper is finely diced. It may be a surprise for someone if they chop down on a big hunk of pepper.

How to butterfly a chicken

This is a video made by Chris Allingham at the Virtual Weber Bullet.

Hawiian Grilled Chicken

1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup soy sauce
3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1-2 teaspoons fresh oregano
1-2 teaspoons fresh Rosemary
1-2 teaspoons fresh basil (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black or lemon pepper
1 4 lb. chicken broiler chicken, halved
olive oil spray (for use during cooking)

Wash chicken and place both halves in a large Ziploc bag.

Squeeze lemon juice; add zest (the yellow portion of the peel) for extra flavor.

Combine remaining ingredients with the lemon juice and place in bag. Refrigerate for several hours (up to 6 hours), turning occasionally.

Place chicken on opposite side of the coals to avoid flare-ups. At start of cooking, brush chicken with marinade - then discard marinade so that you're not tempted to use it during the cooking.

Note: For extra flavor, sprinkle chicken liberally with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder just before cooking. Substitute lemon pepper for the black pepper, if available, for an extra zesty kick.

Grill chicken for 20 minutes or until browned on one side, avoiding flare ups. At this point, spray the chicken lightly with olive oil spray; then turn it to the other side and spray again. Cook for another 10 minutes or so until chicken is done (juice no longer runs pink).

Variation: Wine vinegar may be substituted for the lemon juice. If fresh herbs are not available, substitute 1/2-3/4 teaspoon dried.

Apple Honey Grilled Chicken

.

1/3 cup Apple jelly
1 tablespoon Honey
1 tablespoon Mustard -- Dijon style
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Salt
4 Chicken breasts halves, skinless, boneless

Heat grill. Oil grill rack.

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients except chicken; blend well. Brush chicken with sauce mixture; place on grill over medium heat. Cook 15 to 20 minutes or until chicken is fork tender and juices run clear, turning occasionally and brushing frequently with the honey Dijon sauce mixture.

(serves 4)

Maple Brine

.

4 quarts water
2 cups dark brown sugar
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup maple syrup
3/4 cup sea salt
8-10 whole cloves garlic, peeled
6-8 whole bay leaves
3 large sprigs of thyme
2 teaspoons whole peppercorns

Place all ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil, dissolving sugar and maple syrup. Remove from heat and allow brine to cool completely before using.

Savory Turkey Brine

.

2 quarts vegetable stock
1/2 cup salt (3/4 cup Kosher or coarse salt)
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried sage
1 tablespoon dried thyme
2 quarts cold water

In a large pot combine vegetable stock, salt and herbs over a medium heat. Simmer for about 15 minutes until the salt is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Add cold water. Place turkey in a large plastic container. Pour brine over top, cover and refrigerate. Brine for 1 hour per pound.
Thoroughly rinse all the brine from the turkey before cooking. Otherwise there will be a salty flavor to the turkey.

Recipe by Derrick Riches at About.com

Apple Turkey Brine

.

2 qts apple juice
1 pound brown sugar
3/4 cup Morton's Kosher Salt
3 quarts cold water
3 oranges quartered
4 ounces fresh ginger,thinly sliced
15 whole cloves
6 bay leaves
6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

12 to 14 pound turkey

Combine apple juice, brown sugar, and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve. Boil for one minute, remove from heat, let mixture come to room temperature, then refrigerate to 40°F.

In a large non-reactive container, combine the apple juice mixture with the remaining ingredients. When adding the oranges, squeeze each piece to release the juice into the container, then drop in the peel.

Submerge turkey completely and keep refrigerated for 24 hours.