Alabama White Sauce Chicken

Thu, 11 May 2017

Every town, county, region and state in the United States has their preferred BBQ Sauce.

Some are tomato or mustard based, some are sweet and others are tangy.  Or it can be creamy and tangy like North Alabama’s White sauce.  Big Bob Gigson put the sauce on the map in the early part of the 20th century and now it can be found in numerous BBQ joints across America. This has been my go-to sauce for the past year.  I love tangy and this definitely brings the TANG!! It’s been my most popular dish and cookouts and we introduced it to our menu during the festival season.  Tried and tested deliciousness.

This is my twist on the classic which is basically Mayonnaise, vinegar, and pepper.

You will need:

·         250ml mayo

·         175ml cider vinegar

·         half a lemon juiced

·         a thumbnail of freshly grated horseradish

·         1tbsp freshly cracked black pepper, Don’t be afraid to add even more.  This recipe loves pepper.

·         1tsp paprika or chilli flakes(if you want to spice it up)

·         1 tbsp worcestshire sauce

·         salt

Method:

1.      Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix till smooth.  Some people like it thick and others prefer to use it as a basting sauce.

2.      I like it to be quite runny for dipping the chicken in.  I might add more mayo if I use it as a finishing sauce.  The best call is to save a small bowl for people to use for dipping or adding on during the feasting.  This is where I might add a little more mayo to thicken it up. (If you are doing a couple big chickens, then double up on the sauce.)

3.      Now ya need to get your chicken cooking.  I like to cook all the parts of the chicken so ask your butcher to break down the chicken into thighs, drumsticks, wings, and breasts. 

4.      Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

5.      Set your grill up for the “half and half” technique.  Charcoal laid out over half the base with no fuel under the other half.

6.      Once your coals are ready, lay the chicken skin side down.  Make sure there is no excess oil to avoid flare ups.  Get some colour rocking on your chicken.  Keep an eye on the chicken as when the fats break down and start to drip on the coals, there will be lots of flare ups.  If it gets out of hand, move the chicken to the indirect side of the grill so things can mellow out.  Once I have a good colour (a slight golden colour) on the chicken, I move the pieces to the indirect side and put the lid on. 

7.      Now the beauty of this white sauce is THERE’s NO SUGAR.  Which means you can dip and baste much earlier in the cook.  Normal tomato/vinegar/sugar based bbq sauces should be added near the end of the cook to avoid burning. SUGARS BURN. 

8.      When you are nearing 3/4’s into the cook and have a good sear going on the chicken, pull each piece off the grill and dip into the sauce and place back onto the indirect side of the grill. 

9.      Note: If you are making your own mayo, then be careful the sauce doesn’t split.  It won’t like the heat so it’s best to dip near the very end.

10.  Place the cover back onto the cooker and cook for a couple more minutes and as your approach the end of your cook, give the chicken another dip.  Heck, go for a triple dip!  It’s your cookout! Get crazy!  Once that internal temperature is at 165 F(75 C) then you are good to eat. 

Buying a bird that has lived a longer more natural life will increase the internal cooking temperature as the last thing that develops on chicken and turkey is the fat and fat acts like a catalyst when cooking.  I’ve seen a slow growth Turkey get pulled out the oven and continue cooking up to 10 more degrees. 

Also, don’t put foil on birds. You want to get that heat out.  The more it cooks, the quicker it will go dry.