How to Barbecue Chicken: 7 Tips for Barbecuing Chicken

Barbecue chicken (or BBQ chicken) refers to grilled or otherwise cooked chicken covered in barbecue sauce. Technically, barbecue refers to the specific method of cooking rather than the type of sauce; however, certain sauce flavor profiles have become nearly synonymous with barbecue-style cooking.

Barbecue chicken can be as simple as brushing barbecue sauce (or BBQ sauce) onto chicken or as complicated as smoking and grilling the chicken while basting it with a homemade sauce. Whatever you choose, here are some helpful tips for making barbecue chicken:

1. 1. Baste as the chicken cooks. Prepare a small bowl filled with homemade sauce or your favorite barbecue sauce from the grocery store and have a pastry brush handy. Brush the chicken with the barbecue sauce as the chicken cooks. This type of basting ensures there is flavor throughout the whole piece of chicken.
2. 2. Check the internal temperature often. This is especially important if you’re cooking a whole chicken or boneless skinless chicken breasts, as they will dry out if they become overcooked. Insert a meat thermometer or instant read thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken every ten minutes or so to monitor the internal temperature. The desired doneness for chicken is 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
3. 3. Decide on the type of grill to use. A charcoal grill or a gas grill will work, but the cooking process is a little different between the two. Both grills leave classic grill marks from their grill grates, but it will be harder to control the temperature on a charcoal grill. Keep in mind that with a charcoal grill, there is usually a hot side of the grill (considered direct heat) and a cool side of the grill (considered indirect heat).
4. 4. Flip the chicken at least twice. There are a couple of reasons to flip the chicken while you cook it. The first is to make the chicken skin as crispy as possible. Brushing sauce onto the chicken repeatedly somewhat undoes any crispiness it’s achieved. The second reason is to create a sticky barbecue sauce crust that is a classic characteristic of grilled barbecue chicken.
5. 5. Know what goes into your sauce. There are a lot of commercially available barbecue sauces out there and using a store-bought sauce can be convenient. On the other hand, making a homemade sauce can give you full control of the ingredients. Make it as sweet, spicy, thick, or thin as you want. You can even combine different styles of sauce, like Carolina sauce, Texas sauce, or Alabama sauce, to make a hybrid homemade sauce.
6. 6. Marinate the chicken first. Marinating the chicken before you cook it can impart a richer flavor and help to tenderize it. You can make a simple marinade with buttermilk, Kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Place the chicken in a large resealable bag or large bowl and pour the marinade over the chicken. Let the chicken marinate for at least an hour or overnight.
7. 7. Use the oven if you don’t have a grill. If you do not have access to a grill, you can achieve a similar effect by using the direct heat of the broiler. Place the chicken on a baking sheet and add it to your oven. Brush the chicken frequently with sauce and flip it regularly until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. The chicken will lack classic grill marks, but the flame can still sear the chicken, caramelizing the sauce and creating a sticky crust. For baked barbecue chicken, brush the sauce on first, then place it in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until it’s fully cooked.

You can use any kind of chicken for barbecued chicken—just keep in mind that you will need to adjust the cooking time and process accordingly.

1. 1. Chicken breasts: Brine or marinate chicken breasts ahead of time to keep as much moisture in the chicken as possible, and brush them regularly with sauce. These steps are especially important for grilled chicken breast, which can dry out quickly.
2. 2. Chicken thighs: Bone-in and skin-on chicken thighs stay juicy while they are grilling. Start with the skin side down on the grill. Boneless and skinless chicken thighs exist and are a good alternative if you can’t find bone-in and skin-on thighs.
3. 3. Chicken wings: Necessary for making buffalo wings, chicken wings are also a common cut for barbecue chicken. With the bone in and the skin on, these retain their moisture while they cook but will still dry out if you severely overcook them.
4. 4. Drumsticks: Usually available with the bone in and the skin on, like chicken wings, drumsticks are a meaty cut. This makes them more flavorful than other cuts for barbecue chicken. They cook up quickly, so have a meat thermometer handy and keep a close eye on them as they cook.
5. 5. Whole chicken: It is nearly impossible to cook a whole, raw chicken on the grill without overcooking certain parts and undercooking others. To avoid this, employ a culinary technique called spatchcocking—this involves taking out the center bones of the chicken and flattening it out. This ensures the whole chicken cooks faster and more evenly.