Oven BBQ'd Chicken Drumsticks with Cola Q' Sauce

Are you a leg person? I am. Actually, I like all the parts of the chicken, but my kids love the legs. I love that they are dirt cheap this week at the grocery store, $.89 a pound, how can you not love that?

I was in the mood for a little BBQ, when am I not? Almost never. I just wish I had my charcoal grill. Nothing beats chicken with a sticky sweet BBQ glaze right off the grill. Cold from the frig is good too. Ahhh, I can hear my daughter now while she's reading "ewwww mom, that's gross." She doesn't know what's she's missing. Cold BBQ chicken is awesome. So is fried. But that will be for another day.

I am a Coke A Cola fiend. I admit it. Next to sweet tea with lemon, it's my favorite beverage of choice. So I decided to throw together a cola sauce. We like sweet sauces with a little tang so this one is pretty sweet. Feel free to adjust the sugar. And don't limit yourself to just Coke, you could also use root beer, Dr. Pepper, Cherry Coke, ect, ect. But I wouldn't recommend diet sodas, since I don't drink them and I've never used them, can't say how they would turn out. Sorry.

So here we go. I started the chicken with a quick brine. My brine solution comes from America's Test Kitchen, I use it for pork too. Works great. Never to salty and the meat is always moist. I find it seasons the chicken perfectly. Just make sure to rinse it off. Of course I forgot to take a picture of this step. I'm new to this. Bear with me. It'll get better. Promise. :)

After you brine them you'll want to rinse them, pat them dry, and season them up ~ go ahead give then a little rub.

Once you have them seasoned I like to baste them with a little butter, cause it makes everything better. Feel free to use olive oil, canola oil, or even Pam.

Then preheat your oven to 400 degrees, spray a roasting rack with Pam ( here is the one I am using, cheap as chips: Professional Cross Wire Cooling Rack Half Sheet Pan Size) set over a pan lined with foil and pop them in the oven on the center rack. Roast them for 45 minutes. While they are roasting make your BBQ sauce. After they are finished roasting remove them from the oven and turn it to broil. Brush the legs lightly with BBQ sauce and put them under the broiler for 2 minutes, or until they start brown and get bubbly. Remove them from the oven and give them a little more sauce. Pop them back under the broiler until they are spotty black in spots. Not all black, that's burnt. After they are colored to your liking take them out and let them rest 10 minutes before serving.

Mmmm, look at that sticky yumminess.....

Oven BBQ'd Chicken Drumsticks with Cola Q' Sauce

3 lbs chicken drumsticks
1/2 stick unsalted butter -- melted
Brine
1/4 cup table salt
1 quart water
Spice Rub
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt (omit of brining)
Cola Barbecue Sauce:
1/4 cup onion -- grated on the large size of a box grater, with juice
2 cloves garlic -- pressed, grated on a microplane, or minced fine
1 cup cola (recommended: Coca-Cola)
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke -- 1 tsp if you prefer a smokier sauce
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

To make the brine:
Dissolve salt in cold water. Place chicken in gallon size ziplock freezer bag placed inside of a large bowl, or place chicken inside of a large bowl and pour brine over chicken. If using a baggie, squeeze out any extra air, zip bag closed. If not using a bag, cover the chicken with plastic wrap, I weigh it down so all the chicken is submerged. Place chicken in the frig for at least 30 minutes, I usually do for an hour. I wouldn’t go longer than 4 hours, but that’s me. Do whatcha like.

After the quick bath in brine, I rinse the chicken thoroughly and pat it dry.

Rub and Roast:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Spray a roasting rack with Pam and lay it over a foil lined baking sheet, or you can line a baking sheet with aluminum foil sprayed with Pam.

Combine the rub ingredients, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, brown sugar, pepper, and salt **only if not brining. Sprinkle the chicken liberally with the rub. Take some melted butter and lightly baste the chicken with it. Pop it into the oven for about 45 minutes. While chicken cooks, make the sauce.

For the sauce:
In a heavy non-reactive saucepan over medium heat combine onion, garlic, cola, ketchup, worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, cider vinegar, 1/4 cup brown sugar,
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and dijon mustard. Give it a stir and gradually bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat slightly to keep a gentle simmer going. Simmer the sauce until reduced and thickened, about 30 minutes.

Back to the chicken……
After the 45 minutes is up, remove the chicken from the oven and preheat your broiler.

Baste chicken lightly with the sauce, pop it under the broiler for a few minutes, until it starts to bubble and brown. Every broiler is different, it usually takes about 2 minutes in mine. Remove chicken from broiler and baste again with sauce, this time lay it on a bit thicker. Pop it back under the broiler for a few minutes, until it begins to char in some spots, usually another 2-3 minutes. Broil until it’s the color you like. I like mine spotty black and charred in a few spots.

Try subbing Dr. Pepper, Cherry Coke, or even rootbeer for Coke. I have never tried diet sodas so can’t recommend it.

Enjoy.



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