How to Grill Chicken

Probably the hardest meat to do on the grill, as it is so easy to under cook or over cook. Everyday people get food poisoning from under cooked chicken. Then on the other hand to prevent this you over cook it and have dry saw dust like meat.

Following a few simple steps will ensure your chicken gets cooked properly and come out succulent off the bone tender.

Many people pre-cook their chicken to prevent any food poisoning from occurring. You can do this by boiling your chicken pieces or pre-cooking them in the oven. Once you become more confident with chicken and use these techniques you will prepare your chicken using only your barbecue.

Boiling Chicken

The easiest way to prepare your chicken, simple boiling it for a few minutes to pre-cook the meat then finishing it off on the barbecue. The problem with using this method is you do get cooked chicken but it is not that tasty.

Only the outer layer of the chicken has flavour once you get past that the taste is dull. Although it is the easiest method to use it is my least favourite.

Pre-cooking using the Oven

This method involves marinating the chicken then pre-cook it in the oven. Once the chicken turns to a lovely golden brown colour place it on the grill.

By grilling the chicken after cooking it in the oven you give it a great smoky taste. This method is more tastier than the boiling option but still is not as good as full on barbecue chicken.

Barbecue Chicken

The more challenging option but definitely the most tasty. The whole chicken gets a lovely barbecue flavour and the outer skin gets caramelized.

Use direct heat grilling for smaller cuts and indirect heat grilling for bigger pieces or whole chickens.

Once you know how to BBQ chicken this method will be easier.

Chicken - Direct grilling

When chicken cooks the fat seeps through, which causes flare ups. When grilling chicken it is important to avoid flare ups at all costs, it is the easiest way to burn it.

Keep a water spray bottle handy to put up any flare ups that might occur. You can even remove the outer skin of your chicken pieces to prevent excess fat dripping through the grill grid.

Always smear olive oil or cook & spray on the grill grid to prevent the chicken from sticking. Turn chicken pieces over frequently to prevent it from burning. Coat the chicken with marinate every two minutes, this prevents the chicken from drying out.

To barbecue chicken using direct heat, marinate your chicken as per normal with your favourite marinate and spices. Pre-heat your grill to a medium heat and place the chicken on. Turn the pieces over every minute. Normally chicken is done when it has a brownish colour. Make sure it is cook through by do a test slicing through one of the pieces. There shouldn't be any 'pink colouring'.

Chicken In-Direct Grilling

By setting up your fire with an in-direct heat any excess oil dripping will not cause flare ups as it drips into a foil pan. Close the lid of the barbecue to create an oven effect and cook the chicken through.

Make sure your chicken is cooked by doing a test slice on one of the pieces. The chicken pieces will be done between 10 - 15 minutes just depending on heat and size of the pieces.