Barbecue Chicken with Alabama White Sauce
Kevin Gillespie shares a family favorite: Barbecue Chicken with Alabama White Sauce. He says:
“Growing up, the only cooking my dad did was grilling. He taught me everything I know about grilling, starting with the barbequed chicken he would make for the church fundraiser every year. It was always a crowd favorite and I enjoyed spending so much time with my dad.”
Ingredients
4 egg yolks
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons salt
1 cup grapeseed oil
6 chicken leg/thigh pieces
approx. 1 ½ cups Alabama white barbecue sauce
Instructions
In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, blend the egg yolks, vinegar, water, poultry seasoning, and salt until the yolks fluff a little, about 30 seconds. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the oil, the mixture will blend, emulsify, and resemble a thick mayonnaise. You will hear the sound change to a whop, whop; it should take about 1 minute. Spoon the marinade into a large zip-top bag, add the chicken pieces, and massage until the chicken is completely covered with the marinade. Zip the top closed, pressing out any air as you seal the bag. Set the bag in a bowl in the refrigerator overnight or for up to 24 hours.
Pour ¾ cup of the Alabama white barbecue sauce into a bowl to use for basting. Set the Big Green Egg for indirect cooking at 375-450°F/191-232°C. Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat completely dry. Scrape the cooking grid clean and coat with oil. Place the chicken, skin side down, on the grid and cover with an aluminum drip pan or tent with foil. After 10 minutes, flip the chicken pieces. Cover again with the pan or foil.
After 10 more minutes, baste the chicken with the sauce, flip so the skin side is down, and baste again. Cover with the pan or foil, cook for another 10 minutes, and then baste, flip, and cover again. Cook, baste, flip, and cover one last time, for a total cooking time of 40 minutes. Discard the basting sauce. Remove the chicken from the grill and rest, tented with foil or a foil pan, for 10 minutes. Serve with remaining sauce on the side. Serves four.
Ingredients
2 egg yolks
¼ cup lemon juice
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 cup grapeseed oil
Instructions
In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the egg yolks, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, garlic powder, cayenne, and black pepper and process until the yolks fluff a little, about 30 seconds. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the oil; the mixture will blend and emulsify but won’t be as thick as the marinade used for the barbecue chicken. You will again hear the sound change to a whop, whop; it should take about a minute. Makes approx. 1 ½ cups
Recipe and photo from Big Green Egg and courtesy of Chef Kevin Gillespie. For more information about Kevin and his restaurants, visit chefkevingillespie.com.
