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My Mother's Chicken with Barbecue Sauce

Source of Recipe

From "Cook with Me" by Alex Guarnaschelli


Recipe Introduction

"You can smell how uniquely good this sauce will be the minute you combine all the ingredients and turn the heat on under the pot. When my mother would make barbecue sauce, she'd combine everything in a pot and just let it simmer and then sit, cooling, on the stove for what seemed like forever. I remember the smell would be somewhat acrid at first, like vinegar. Then the ginger, spices, and lemon would take over and create this wonderful aroma. She often made a double batch and kept some in the fridge. This is not 'everywhere' barbecue sauce; it's really best for chicken and pork. But sometimes I'll use it on vegetable steaks, like cauliflower steaks, or I might glaze shrimp with it. I'm not one to impose name brands in a recipe, but here they matter to get that exact flavor my mom created."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 3 cups Heinz ketchup
â—¦ 2 cups Bragg apple cider vinegar
â—¦ ½ cup Worcestershire sauce
â—¦ ½ cup Kikkoman low-sodium soy sauce
â—¦ 2 cups packed dark brown sugar
â—¦ 2 tablespoons Colman's dry mustard powder
â—¦ 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
â—¦ ¼ cup chili powder
â—¦ 1 (2-inch) knob fresh ginger, peeled and cut crosswise into ¼-inch-thick rounds
â—¦ 6 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced
â—¦ 2 large lemons, cut crosswise into ½-inch-thick slices
â—¦ Kosher salt
â—¦ 4 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken parts, a mixture of light and dark meat, all relatively the same size


Recipe

In a large pot, whisk together the ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire, soy sauce, brown sugar, dry mustard, Dijon mustard, and chili powder. Bring everything to a simmer over medium heat and then add the ginger, garlic, and lemon slices. Simmer, stirring from time to time to ensure that nothing sticks to the bottom and burns, until the vinegar mellows slightly and the consistency thickens, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and set it aside to cool. Taste for seasoning, adding salt if needed.

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Set oven racks in the lower-middle and middle positions. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper.

Season the chicken parts on all sides with salt. Pour about 1 ½ cups of the barbecue sauce into a medium bowl (reserve the remaining sauce for serving). Submerge the chicken pieces, one at a time, in the sauce and then divide them between the two prepared sheet pans.

Place one sheet pan on the middle rack of the oven and the second on the lower-middle rack and bake the chicken, undisturbed, for 20 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and turn the pieces over. Use a pastry brush to coat the second side of the chicken with the remaining barbecue sauce (discard any leftover sauce and don't reuse the brush—it touched uncooked chicken; take care to soak the brush in hot, soapy water for a few hours or wash it in the dishwasher).

Return the sheet pans to the oven. Bake for another 15 to 20minutes, until the chicken juices run clear (they shouldn't be pink) when you poke the meaty part of a thigh with the tip of a small knife, or until the temperature reads 165° F on an instant-read thermometer. Serve with the reserved sauce, warmed up, on the side.

Serves 4 to 6