Barbecued Dry-Rubbed Chicken

Wow! This has got to be one of my new favorite recipes, and will definitely be my go-to recipe for barbecued chicken. This Barbecued Dry-Rubbed Chicken recipe seasons the meat with a rub that ends up melting as the chicken cooks and turning into an incredibly savory glaze.

It's truly incredible chicken. Rubbing meat with spices is an excellent way to season meat for the grill. But then you miss out on the sticky, savory glaze that screams 'barbecue'. Basting your meat with barbecue sauce gives you that great glaze and sticky fingers, but the glaze doesn't have time to really penetrate and season the meat. With this recipe you get the best of both worlds! It's mmm mmm good, and I don't think I'll ever buy a bottle of store bought barbecue sauce again.

I have a confession to make. Every time I used our grill (previous to this recipe), epic fails resulted. Every time. I have stomped and thrown fits and wanted to throw our grill on some train tracks somewhere. (Are you sensing my frustration here?) I would follow the recipe instructions exactly~ and end up with black lumps of coal for food. So I relegated all the grilling to my husband.

When this recipe came along, I made up my mind to figure out how to use our gas grill. No matter how many times I had to make it, I wouldn't give up. The third time was the charm, and this is what I ended up with! A whole plate full of YUM!

Gas and charcoal grills operate very differently and I"m not going to get into all of that. But I will share with you what I learned about using my gas grill. I finally figured out that I needed to let my grill temperature fall to the desired range after preheating before placing my food on it. I was placing food on the grill when it was still almost 500 degrees. DUH! Plus there is a lot of fat rendered from the skin on the chicken. I had a major grease fire in my grill at one point too. That also blackened my food very quickly.
Lessons learned: 1. Check the grill temperature. 2. Watch for grease fires. 3. Wait for the grill to cool some after preheating.

Every delicous bite is well worth the effort to learn your grill and have Barbecued Dry-Rubbed Chicken on your dinner plate tonight! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do. Please let me know how it goes, I always love feedback!

This recipe adapted from

Barbecued Dry-Rubbed Chicken

by The Goldilocks Kitchen

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Cook Time: 40 to 50 minutes

Keywords: grill entree July 4th American spring summer fall

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Ingredients (4 to 6 servings)

Dry Rub

• 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pepper
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

chicken

• 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces
• (breast pieces halved crosswise and drumstick and thigh separated)

Instructions

1. Prepare the chicken by blotting dry with paper towels. Combine all ingredients for the dry rub and divide evenly in two separate bowls. Set one bowl aside. Rub the other bowl of seasoning all over chicken pieces and under the skin.

2. Cover and refrigerate seasoned chicken pieces for at least 30 minutes or up to an hour.

3. While chicken is in the fridge, preheat your grill. Scrape clean and oil the grate. When the grill has reached a temperature of about 325 degrees, (low or medium low) it's ready for the chicken pieces. (Each grill is different, whether you use charcoal or gas. I burned three batches of chicken before I figured out I had to let my gas grill cool down for 20 minutes after preheating to come to the proper low temperature.)

4. Place the chicken skin side down and grill until the skin is crisp and well browned, about 15 to 20 minutes.

5. Dredge the skin side of the partially cooked pieces in the second bowl of seasoning and return to the grill, skin side up. Grill, covered, until the internal temperature has reached 160 degrees for white meat, and 175 for dark. The rub will melt and turn into glaze on the chicken. Remove, tent with foil for about 5 minutes, and serve.

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Old Fashioned Chicken Dumplings

 Classic home cooking at it's best!

Rustic, old-fashioned, made with love comfort food. The kind your grandma used to make. That's what this meal is all about. Sunday dinner on a chilly fall evening with the fireplace lit, cozy and warm. I have loved making this recipe again and again because it's such a classic hearty meal in a bowl, streamlined and foolproof. The timeless combo of chicken simmering with farm fresh herbs and veggies on the stove is the iconic turn of the century American meal. Add home made dumplings cooked right in the pot and you've got yourself a steamy bowl of goodness and love in every bite!

Alright, fluff aside, this recipe is a step above beginner, but can be accomplished by anyone who is willing to spend a little more time in the kitchen to chop fresh veggies and shred chicken :0)

Bone-in, Skin-on chicken pieces are first browned in a dutch oven to render chicken fat for use later. Browning the skin to a deep golden color adds tons of  flavor to the meal. The chicken fat is poured off and saved for the dumpling dough, which also adds flavor.

Then the veggies are sauteed and the stew is built, adding in the chicken that was browned earlier to cook in the broth. Once done cooking, the chicken is shredded and added back into the pot. The bone-in chicken is super hot and will retain heat for a long time. I get impatient waiting for it to cool enough to shred by hand, so I take a knife and fork and cut the pieces open along the bone, even separating whole chunks of chicken off the bone to cool faster. There's a reason for using bone-in though, the meat stays more moist and tender.

At this point, you can turn this recipe into a make ahead. I highly recommend this~ you can store it in an air tight container for 24 hours if needed. This is so great because the excess chicken fat on the top of the stew will solidify and is easily spooned off. Otherwise, you'll need to get a large spoon and try to spoon it off of a hot stew, without spooning the stew out with it.

Side note: I once kept a sweet family we had invited over to dinner waiting almost 45 minutes for this dish! I had forgotten how long it takes to let the chicken cool before shredding and was so late getting this on the table (sorry Holbrook's!) I was thoroughly embarrassed. My advice is if you're making this for a crowd, definitely make it the day before. Warm it up 30 minutes or so before you wish to serve it to give yourself time to cook the dumplings.

While the chicken cools, I go ahead and make up the dough for the dumplings. Now there are all kinds of different 'dumplings' out there in the world, and this recipe may be different from any you've tried. They're made from a very sticky dough, scooped right out into a small ball and dropped into the stew to steam cook. I recommend a small scoop like a melon baller or a tablespoon for this. Whatever you use to scoop and drop, spray it with cooking spray. The dough won't stick and will come right out in a more pleasing round shape. The finished dumplings double in size and should be light and flavorful. If they are gummy on the inside, they are underdone.



Old Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings

by The Goldilocks Kitchen

Cook Time: 2 hours

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Ingredients (8 -10 Servings)

Stew

• 4 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces (split breasts cut in half, drumsticks, and/or thighs), fat trimmed off
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 2 celery ribs, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 1 medium onion
• 6 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
• 5 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

Dumplings

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup whole milk
• 3 tablespoons reserved chicken fat or unsalted butter

Instructions

1. For the stew: Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season it generously with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Turn the heat to medium and brown half of the chicken on both sides, 6 to 8 minutes per side. You can turn the heat up to medium high if the chicken isn't browning fast enough but if the bottom of your dutch oven begins to scorch, turn the heat back down. Transfer the chicken to a plate, leaving the fat in the pot. Repeat with the remaining chicken.

2. Pour off any chicken fat and reserve it for later. Add the butter, carrots, celeryk, onion, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the broth, milk, and add the thyme and bay leaves and whisk to incorporate, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom.

3. Nestle the chicken, along with any accumulated juice into the pot and bring to a simmer. Cover, turn the heat to medium-low, and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked and tender, about 20 minutes for the breasts (165 degrees) or 1 hour for the dark meat (175 degrees). If using both types, simmer the thighs and drumsticks for 40 minutes before adding the breasts.

4. Transfer the chicken to a plate to cool. If you divide each piece into two it will cool quickly. When it's cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and shred it into bite-sized pieces; add the shredded chicken into the pot and discard the skin and bones. Remove and discard the bay laves. Skim as much fat as possible off the surface of the broth with a large spoon. This step is important~ the dumplings will be cooking at the surface and you don't want excess chicken fat baking into the dumplings. (At this point the stew can be cooled completely and refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 24 hours. The fat will solidify and it's extra easy to remove this way. Re-heat over medium low heat.)

5. For the Dumplings: Stir the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Microwave the milk and reserved chicken fat in a microwave-safe bowl until just warm (do not over heat), about 1 minute. Stir the warmed milk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until incorporated and smooth.

6. Return the stew to a simmer, stir in the peas and parsley, and taste it. Season with salt and pepper if necessary. (This stew has always needed salt when I make it~ make sure you add salt before adding the dumpling dough.) Using a melon baller or small spoons sprayed with non-stick spray, scoop and drop balls of dough into the stew. Leave 1/4 inch of space around each dumpling until there's no more room. You may have excess dough depending on the size of your dutch oven or pot. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the dumplings have doubled in size, about 13 to 15 minutes. Serve.

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Chicken Pomodoro

This dish is easy to prepare and takes less than 30 minutes, perfect for a weeknight supper. Yet it's also fancy enough for preparing for company. I've prepared it several times for my friends and family!

Simple and Delicious weeknight meal.

Juicy white chicken breast topped with a tomato, cream, and basil sauce.

Chicken Pomodoro is a great teaching dish for beginners, as it uses all fresh ingredients. There is just no comparison for food created with fresh ingredients. The Chicken breast meat is patted dry and lightly seasoned with salt and pepper, then cooked in a saute pan until deep golden on both sides. This step is not to cook the chicken through, but to create fond, the little brown bits on the bottom of your saute pan. These little bits are full of flavor and help to give depth to pan sauces. You'll finish cooking the chicken in the prepared sauce at a later step in the recipe.

See the brown bits on the bottom, and
mixed with the onion? That's the fond!

Here, the ingredients are used to build a chunky pan sauce, and then the browned chicken is braised in the creamy mixture with a little kick of red pepper flakes.

Here's the finished sauce, minus the
 fresh basil. (Which goes in just before serving.)

When cooking this recipe, prepping all ingredients beforehand is a must. It goes fast, and you won't have time to be chopping up veggies and herbs and cooking at the same time. 

Chicken Pomodoro

by The Goldilocks Kitchen

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20

Keywords: entree

6054358

Ingredients (4 servings)

• Ingredients
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1.5 lbs total)
• salt and pepper
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil (not extra virgin)
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 4 garlic cloves, minced or pushed through a press
• 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

Instructions

Instructions

Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Using a sharp knife (preferably a chef's knife) slice each breast horizontally in half. It's easiest when you place you hand, fingers close together, flat on top of the meat to secure it and slice through the meat horizontally with your knife, under your hand. You should have 4 total breast shaped cutlets approximately 1/2 inch thick. heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet or saute pan over medium-high heat until just smoking. Cook chicken until golden, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.

Heat the remaining two tablespoons of olive oil in the empty skillet over medium-high until the oil has spread out over the entire bottom of the pan. Cook the onion until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Then stir in the tomatoes, cream and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Nestle the chicken and any accumulated juice into the pan. Simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 8 minutes.

Transfer chicken to a platter and tent with foil. Simmer sauce, uncovered, until slicktly thickened, about 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in the basil and season with salt and pepper as needed. (Don't forget to always TASTE your sauces before serving, and add salt accordingly.) Pour finished sauce over chicken and serve over your choice of rice, pasta or even polenta!

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Italian roast chicken

This recipe is a perfect example of how beautiful and simple Italian cooking can be. You will be able to work with fresh rosemary, personally my favorite herb. I love the beautiful, clean, vibrant fragrance. If you've never cooked with fresh herbs, this is a great beginner's recipe. If you don't have a rosemary bush growing in your yard, no worries! Most supermarkets now sell prepackaged fresh herbs in the produce section. Cooking with fresh herbs really takes your food to the next level. I now always try to use fresh herbs instead of dried, unless dried is specified in the recipe. One teaspoon of dried herbs = one tablespoon of fresh. Simple and easy enough to remember, right?!

I love black olives, don't you? If you're my dad, don't answer that question :0) My dad hates olives. Only person I know. However, my mom loves them and she would bring home the occasional can. I was the kid who put the pitted olives over the end of all five fingers, happily waving them around and eating them off one at a time. Is it just me or did everyone do this as a kid? Whenever I see veggie trays with olives, I load up. If there is a bowl of olives passed around the Thanksgiving table, I load up. When I serve myself a helping of this recipe I pick out a few extra olives for my plate. Terrible, I know. Well, it's out there now so don't judge me :0)
A few words about the recipe:
Did you know that fruit sometimes is given a thin wax coating? I always wash my lemons in hot water to melt away any wax, and to make sure the zest is clean for eating.
I don't know how I managed to get through life without an instant-read food thermometer! I feel it's an essential piece of equipment for any home chef. While practiced chefs can often judge the doneness of meats by sight and touch, I think it's so much safer (and easier!) to use a thermometer. No guesswork!
Also don't skimp on the extra-virgin olive oil and buy cheap stuff. Some generic brands can taste downright awful. I use Colavita brand. It's a great taste and doesn't break the pocket book. Plus it's been a proven favorite of taste testers :0)

Italian Roast Chicken

by The Goldilocks Kitchen

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes

6054434

Ingredients (10 servings)

• 10 to 12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 large lemon
• 1/2 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves peeled and sliced
• 1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 bunch of fresh rosemary
• 2 and 1/2 pounds of potatoes, peeled and cut into about 1 inch pieces
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 can large pitted black olives

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Trim the fat off the chicken thighs and place them in a shallow dish large enough to hold them in a single layer. Zest the lemon and sprinkle half the zest over the chicken. Save the rest. Cut the lemon and squeeze the juice over the chicken, toss to coat well and let it marinate for 10 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a large roasting pan. Add the rest of the lemon zest, the sliced onion and garlic, and half the rosemary sprigs. Drizzle the olive oil over and toss gently. Now let it marinate for about 20 minutes.

In the mean time, place the potatoes in a large pot and cover them with water; 1 inch above the top of the potatoes. Lightly sprinkle with salt and bring to a boil. Cook for 2 minutes, then drain well and add to the chicken. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper.

Roast the chicken in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, turning frequently or basting, or until the chicken is cooked. (175 degrees on an instant-read thermometer.) Just before the end of cooking time, discard the cooked rosemary, and replace with fresh sprigs. Add the olives and stir. Serve immediately with steamed vegetables. (I recommend carrots and zucchini.)

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