Rosemary Grilled Chicken with Alabama Style White BBQ Sauce

It was nearly 77 degrees yesterday, so I broke out the charcoal grill. This simple grilled chicken with a Alabama-style BBQ sauce has become one of my favorites.  The inspiration for the white BBQ sauce comes from Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ in Decatur Alabama.  A small amount of fresh rosemary is added to the marinade, and it adds a lot of flavor.  After marinating and seasoning the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, place them directly over hot  coals, searing both sides for 2 or 3 minutes to get some grill marks - then move them to the outer parts of the grill where its not as hot.  Cover the grill and cook the chicken the rest of the way, nice and slow.  You will end up with perfectly juicy, tender and smoky pieces of chicken. The whole grain Dijon mustard adds a great tang and texture to the chicken.  You can use this white BBQ sauce on all kinds of grilled meats.

Ingredients:

Whole chicken, cut into quarters or pieces
1 cold beer (reserve for the chef!)
1 Tbs plus 1 tsp whole-grain Dijon mustard, divided (I use Maille brand)
1 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 tsp salt
fresh ground black pepper
3 Tbs mayonnaise
1 Tbs cider vinegar
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp prepared horseradish
1 tsp lemon juice
1 Tbs corn syrup
1 Tbs water

Trim, clean and pat dry your chicken pieces.   Whisk together 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 1 Tbs olive oil, chopped rosemary, and salt and pepper.  Put chicken in a large zip-bag and pour the marinade over the chicken pieces and coat them completely.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or up to 24.)   Remove chicken from the fridge 1/2 hour before you are ready to cook.  Combine 1 Tbs mustard, the mayonnaise and the water in a small bowl.  Prepare the grill and make sure it is clean, very hot and brushed with oil before placing the chicken on it.  It is much less likely to stick and pull all the yummy outside bits off when you turn it..  Place chicken on center (hottest part) of grill and sear on both sides for 2 minutes or so, then move the pieces to the outer (low heat) part of grill.  Cover and let cook and smoke slowly (turning occasionally) until its  done (internal temp of 170 degrees).

Dip the chicken pieces in the mayonnaise-mustard sauce and return to the hot grill to sear for 30 seconds per side.  Remove from grill and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Open the reserved beer (if it is not already) and enjoy with the delicious chicken and your favorite side dish!