The weather is only getting warmer and warmer outside. As the weather becomes beautiful and lively outside, it only serves as a reminder that we should be taking the time to spend some of our days outdoors. We don’t necessarily need to be going off to far places like the lakes or beaches, but we can certainly still soak in the warm weather and sun from the comfort of our own home. Perhaps in our own backyard, porch area, etc. Whatever the case may be, the time has come now to utilize your grill once more and make some delicious barbecue meals that I know you can make! Today’s article will be focusing on chicken. We often regard chicken as being so common nowadays that upon thinking about having a delicious barbecue meal, we tend to crave other kinds of meat that we don’t enjoy as often like steak or ribs. Yet, chicken breast is powerful in the sense that you can enjoy it in the simplest settings and then also dress it up to be enjoyed in a fancier feast-like setting. If you are someone who is intrigued on how to make a regular piece of chicken taste like an amazing, juicy, and delicious barbecue chicken, then keep on reading! These tips will surely help guide you.
Marinate the Chicken Breast – Marinating the chicken breast is the most important aspect of the whole grilling experience. To start off with the marinating process, it is suggested that you try to soak the chicken breast within the marinade. Keep the marinade and chicken breast in a Ziploc bag and keep it in a pan. You can also just pour the marinade in the pan and flip the chicken breasts in the marinade for a bit, before covering it up and then putting it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. This step is incredibly important for creating the most perfect and juiciest chicken breast.
Prep Your Grill Properly – First make sure that your grill grates are completely clean so that no leftover food from previous grilling extravaganzas, affects your meat. Try to rub a bit of oil over the clean grates and allow the grill time to preheat. Allowing time for preheating before you add the chicken makes sure that the cooking process goes more slowly. Additionally, adding in oil ensures that the chicken does not stick to the grill grates.
Never Use High Heat – A piece of advice that I think is important to remember is that chicken has a different protein structure from steaks and burgers. High heat may allow for more intense and flavorful cooking in steaks or burgers, but the same rule does not apply to chicken. The skin of chicken can burn easily so for that reason it is wise to cook the chicken over the grill at medium heat. If you have a charcoal grill, this can be a bit more difficult to achieve because you can’t adjust the heat like a gas grill. In this case, try only utilizing coals on one side of the grill instead of the entire grill and allow the chicken to cook in the middle.
Sauce Your Chicken Often – Basting your sauce on the chicken often can actually provide a very caramelized taste to the chicken. Try basting your chicken about 15 minutes before the chicken is done. Make sure to baste all over the chicken and turn the chicken a few times so that you can give each layer decent time to caramelize the chicken before adding a new layer.
Use a Thermometer – Try to use an instant read thermometer to test the chicken’s temperature so that you are able to ensure that it has been cooked well. It should be cooked to a temperature of around 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
These are just a few of the tips that you can utilize the next time you want to whip up a good chicken barbecue meal. Definitely with these tips and tricks up your sleeve, you are bound to experience the most delicious chicken breast.
