My Favorite Chicken Recipe

Charcoal Mike

Hi all -[p]This is a recipe passed down to me from my grandfather. I loved eating this as a kid, and still love it now. It's a real hit with the neighbors. Since everyone here has been so helpful, I thought I would pass it along as best I can. Maybe not in the proper recipe format, since there really isn't a set recipe (just a list of ingredients), but here you go nonetheless.[p]- Mike[p][p]Charcoal Mike's Chicken
=======================[p]Ingredients:[p]1. Enough Bone-In Chicken Pieces to feed a small city, or whatever you need.[p]2. All-Spice[p]3. Chili Powder[p]4. Mustard Flour (dry mustard)[p]5. Lawry’s Seasoned Salt[p]6. Barbeque Spice. This is the most important ingredient. Use a **LOT** of this. Maybe 2½ - 3 times more than the other spices. “Stubbs” brand seems to work well, as well as the “Astor” brand available at Winn Dixie.[p]7. Garlic Salt or Powder[p]8. Poultry Seasoning[p]9. Ginger (Powdered)[p]10. Black Pepper[p]11. Cajun Seasoning.[p]12. Crisco Liquid Vegetable Oil (Not Wesson, as it tends to burn more quickly)[p]13. One bottle of cheap sweet red wine. “Mogen David Concord” seems to work great. Plus, it’s only $3.00 a bottle.[p]14. One bottle of beer. Regular beer, not Guinness or other stout or weird flavor.[p]Wash chicken and loosen skin (do not remove) and place in pan or dish. Use a pan that is not too much bigger than the amount of chicken that you have. This way, the marinade that is created will be deeper and cover more of the chicken. I usually pat the chicken dry to keep too much water from collecting in pan and washing off the spices before I can add the oil.[p]Sprinkle each of ingredients #2-11 on both sides of the chicken. Be VERY generous with the spices. Add enough of each spice to *cover* each piece of chicken. If you think you have enough, add more.[p]After adding the spices, hand rub the oil over and into each piece of chicken. I normally hold a piece a chicken in my hands, and have someone else pour the oil over my hands and the chicken, and then rub it in. Maybe 2 tablespoons per piece. Maybe more, maybe less. Depends on the size of the piece - 1 for a leg, 3 for a breast, or whatever. Try and rub it and the spices under the chicken skin if you can. I usually do this over the pan, so the extra oil will drip into the pan, mix with the spices, and make the marinade.[p]Repeat the same steps using the wine and the beer that you did with the oil. Rub each of these ingredients into the chicken. Maybe ¼ cup of each of these per piece. I also do this over the pan.[p]Although it seems funny (and VERY messy) to rub these last 3 ingredients in, it is quite important. Do not just pour it over the chicken, as it will wash off all the spices. You should be able to tell you are doing it right by the “feel” of the chicken. The spices and liquids should begin to make a nice marinade in the bottom of the pan, and the chicken will not feel nearly as “rough” as it did when you started.[p]Spoon the marinade on top of the chicken, and let chicken marinate overnight. If your pan is short on marinade, just slowly pour more wine/beer into the mix. Turn chicken halfway through the marinade process (like the next morning) to fully soak both sides before cooking. I sometimes use a marinade injector to inject the marinade into the larger breasts.[p]My grandfather used to cook this on the ORIGINAL egg - the old red ones, in quarters or halves. I usually do them by the piece, as my wife only likes white meat. Pick your favorite - should work either way.[p]Grill until done at your favorite egg temp (500-550), basting frequently with marinade from bottom of pan. No need to add wood for smoke, as the marinade dripping on the coals will provide plenty of flavor.[p]Enjoy.