Ring of Fire Grilled Chicken
Prep: 30 min | Cook: 20 min | Servings: 4
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2010.
Special equipment: 2 sheets of newspaper, vegetable oil, 2 to 3 pounds natural chunk charcoal, a chimney starter, 8 feet of heavy-duty aluminum foil and 2 aluminum pie pans.
Inactive prep: 2 hours.
Ingredients
- 1 Chicken, broiler-fryer, 4 to 5 pounds
- 1 qt Water
- 1/2 cup Honey
- 3 1/2 oz Kosher salt, about 3/4 cup
- 1 tbsp Curry powder
- 1 tbsp Chili powder
- 2 tsp Cocoa powder
- 1 tsp Adobo seasoning, powder, without pepper
- 1 tsp Ground cumin
- 1 tsp Smoked paprika, hot
Directions
- Cut up the chicken into 2 wings, 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks and 2 boneless breasts with the drumettes attached. Freeze the carcass for stock or discard.
- Put the pieces in a 1-gallon resealable bag with the water, honey and salt. Seal and move it around vigorously 1 to 2 minutes to dissolve. Refrigerate in a leak-proof container 1 1/2 hours.
- Meanwhile, combine the curry powder, chili powder, cocoa, adobo, cumin and paprika in another 1-gallon bag.
- Pat the chicken very dry with paper towels; don't rinse. Shake the pieces in the spice bag to coat and rest on a rack over a half sheet pan 30 minutes.
- Spritz 2 sheets of newspaper with oil, put them in the bottom of a chimney starter, fill it with 2 to 3 pounds of chunk charcoal and set it on the kettle's charcoal grate until hot and ashy, 15 to 20 minutes. Make a ring of heavy-duty foil with a 9-inch center, set it over the chimney and lay it on the grate.
- Spread the hot coals evenly outside the ring and set a pie pan in the center to catch drippings. Heat the cooking grate 2 to 3 minutes and oil it lightly.
- Arrange the chicken skin side down over the coals. Give the legs a quarter turn every 3 to 4 minutes and turn the thighs, wings and breasts after 4 to 5 minutes; the skin should blister and darken. Rotate the grate to avoid flare-ups.
- After 9 to 10 minutes, move the breasts to the center and cover with the second pie pan. After 10 to 11 minutes, put the wings on top of the pan and lean the thighs and legs against it away from direct heat, turning every 2 minutes. Move finished pieces on top of the pan.
- After 18 to 20 minutes total, check that the deepest part of each piece reads 155 degrees F. Cover with a towel in a bowl and rest 5 minutes before serving.