Homemade BBQ Sauce

Spring is in the air! What's better than firing up the barbeque and filling that fresh air with wood smoke and the smell of roasting meats? 

Store bought BBQ sauce is often times too sweet for us.  We want BBQ sauce to be tangy enough to stand up to the smokiness from the grill.  

BBQ Chicken Method

Part one: Brine

Start with one whole bird.  Cut it into eight parts.  If you are unsure how to do this ask your butcher to do it for you.  

Make a simple brine.  For this recipe we use 5% salt.  50 grams of salt in 1 liter of water.  There's nothing more American than using the metric system to brine your BBQ chicken.  I also added 20 grams of brown sugar.  Brine the bird for 4-6 hours.  

In the meantime, chuck the bones in a pot of water and make a blonde chicken stock.  

Part 2: Rub

Get out your spice grinder and buzz up some delicious flavors.  Heres what we did (or thereabouts)

1 t cumin

1 t corriander.

6 each allspice

1/4 stick cinnemon

2-3 cloves

1 T black pepper

2 dry New Mexico chiles

Part 3: Sauce

Now that your grill is hot and your bird is brined, dried and rubbed, you better get your sauce workin.  

What follows is a recap of the sauce.  If its too tangy add more sweet ingredients.  Conversely taste with each addition of sweet ingredients so as not to cause diabetes.  

1 cup chopped shallots

4 cloves garlic chopped

1 inch ginger chopped

1/2 cup sherry or cider vinegar

1 cup tomato (can or fresh)

1 T tamarind

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 T maple syrup

2 dry ancho chiles

1/4 cup honey

1 quart blond chicken stock (from above)

Sweat the shallots until they start to color.  Add the tomato and cook it down until it starts to stick.  Add garlic and ginger.  Cook until fragrant.  Add brown sugar and carefully stir until it begins to caramelize.  Deglaze with vinegar.  Add the other ingredients and reduce until thick.    Puree with immersion blender.  

Start  the chicken skin side over a hot grill until crispy.  Coat with sauce and cook over indirect heat until done.  

Put some beer or sangria on ice.  Set up a table outside and enjoy with friends.