The Busy Gourmand

Oven Barbecued Chicken

While I originally prepared this recipe with chicken legs and cooked them in the oven, you could of course use these with any pieces of chicken (dark meat preferred) and you could cook these on the grill for a more smoky flavor.

2 pounds chicken legs, or other dark meat chicken
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons dijon style mustard, or hot mustard
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon of chopped herbs, thyme or rosemary would work well
2 cloves of garlic, chopped fine
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large bowl that would hold all the chicken legs, place the ketchup, mustard, brown sugar, vinegar, olive oil, herbs and garlic. Whisk together to thoroughly combine all the ingredients. Place the chicken legs in the bowl and turn to coat with the sauce. Allow the chicken to marinate for at least an hour. The longer the better.

For the oven version preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Once heated place the chicken legs in a baking dish, thoroughly cover the chicken with the excess sauce, and place in the oven for 45 minutes. The sauce should caramelize and be a bit bubbly on top of the chicken. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes and serve.

Chicken Fresh From the Oven

If you are going to cook these on the grill, preheat a grill on medium high making sure the grill surface is hot. Place the chicken legs on the grill. Brush the chicken with some of the excess sauce and cook for about 10 minutes. Turn the chicken, brush the other side of the chicken with the excess sauce, and cook for an additional 10 minutes making sure the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the grill, cover, and allow to rest for 5 minutes.