BBQ Chicken!!!

Warm, sunny, breezy, the ornamental pear tree smelling sooo......NASTY!! It made me want to BBQ some chicken!! I figure that we are about seven months away from the next Atlanta BBQ Competition so I have to start practicing, experimenting, tasting, tweaking, SAMPLING NOW!!! I started tonight with some BBQ Chicken. I tried a whole new recipe. I will do my best to get it down here....my eyes are still burning and running from the smoke pouring into them...

The rub is very simple. As my skills move forward, I find myself going back to a more simple mix of ingredients, letting the flavor of the poultry and the smoke take over...so far I have really liked it. Today's rub was pretty good for being so simple. Good enough to try on some chicken thighs next!
Rub:
2 tsp Paprika
2 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp Lemon Pepper
1/2 tsp Garlic powder

The sauce again was pretty simple. I liked it....but not as much as my current sauce.
Sauce:
2 tbsp EVOO
1/2 cup finely chopped sweet onion
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 cup Ketsup
1/2 cup Lemon/Lime pop
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp ground mustard

Directions for sauce:
1. Heat the EVOO
2. Add the onion and the garlic and saute for about 10 minutes stirring the whole time.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and mix
4. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10-15 minutes stirring often

I rubbed the chicken a good 4 hours before I cooked it. I always put my chicken in a zip-lock bag after I rub it and squeeze out all the air before I seal it so that I get the best contact surface of the rub to the chicken.

Set up the grill for indirect cooking. I like to use a coal wall for the inside of the Weber and I put all the coals behind the wall leaving me about 2/3 of the grill for an indirect cooking surface. Cook the chicken over direct heat for about 8 minutes turning once. Keep an eye on it though....you do not want any burned skin here. This will be tough because you must keep the lid on completely as much as possible to keep the flare-ups down!

After 8 minutes, move the chicken to the indirect side of the grill, add some soaked apple wood to the coals and cover for 20 - 25 minutes (medium heat = top vent 1/2 closed/ bottom vent wide open). You can tell that the smoke is good when it billows out in either a blue or white color. Grey or black smoke is BAD smoke!

After 20-25 minutes brush the chicken with the sauce and cover for 7 minutes, repeat and cover again for 7 minutes.....serve! Make sure the chicken is 165 degrees. I like to use chicken legs or thighs because they are forgiving if you cook a little to long.

The color of this BBQ Chicken is beautiful! An amber hue that literally makes your mouth water! The taste is very nice as well. This one has a chance of making the cut for the competition! Thinking this rub with my old sauce!

SMOKE EM IF YOU GOT EM!!!