Juicy Grilled BBQ Chicken Recipe

Juicy grilled BBQ chicken is easily done with this simple brine recipe and chicken seasoned with your favorite barbeque seasoning then grilled to perfection. It seems so easy, yet if you have never used a brine on grilled chicken, you are missing out on the juiciest grilled chicken.

I must admit it was thanks to this Asian Marinated Chicken that I was inspired to make my BBQ chicken. But I do love a good grilled chicken of any sort.

Simple Brine Ingredients

To make this juicy grilled chicken you will need to start with these ingredients:

• apple cider vinegar
• water
• garlic cloves
• salt
• brown sugar

How to Make the Best Grilled Chicken

Start by combining the brine ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil to dissolve the salt and sugar.

Then grab your choice of seasonings. Here are a few of the items I tossed into the cooled vinegar mixture. I added a teaspoon of cayenne pepper and two teaspoons of the rest. I added about 10 dashes of Tabasco.

Add four more cups of ice cold water or ice itself to the mixture once the seasonings are dissolved. Then get your chicken. So, let's talk about chicken for a second.

What chicken is best for grilling?

We are a dark meat family. We find it to be more flavorful. Not that I have anything against the breast, but if you start with a dry, low-fat piece of meat, don't be surprised if you end with a dry, low-fat piece of meat. If you are trying to watch fat, I recommend using dark meat and removing the skin. You will still have lots of flavors. I have chicken breast in my freezer that I make too, but for grilled chicken, I recommend bone-in and skin on for the fullest flavor.

I found the greatest packaging of chicken at Costco last time I bought chicken. It was six individually wrapped servings of legs and the same with the thighs. This meant each package had 5 legs and 4 thighs. I tossed it directly in the freezer when I got home. Then I just tore off the packages I needed for supper. Easy, peasy. And it was still 99 cents a pound!!

Now that you have your chicken, drop it in a gallon zipper bag and power the vinegar brine over top of the chicken. Zip shut a refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.

Pour the brine on the chicken and let it sit at room temperature for 10-20 minutes before tossing on the grill.

Season the chicken with one of your seasoning salts of choice. Then grill for about 20 minutes per side over medium heat. Keep an eye on it. Flare-ups happen. You will notice I have a few VERY black pieces. Luckily the skin peels right off. I however really like the black, charred pieces. I am weird like that. However, this is still the juiciest grilled BBQ chicken.

Grilled Chicken Recipes

Grilled chicken is always a hit, but there is no need to make the same old grilled chicken. Here are a few of our favorite grilled and barbecued chicken recipes.

Bacon Wrapped BBQ Chicken

I love grilling season and this grilled bacon wrapped BBQ chicken recipe is soon to become a staple on my grill this summer.

Check out this recipe

Balsamic Marinade for Chicken or Steak

This balsamic chicken marinade is so easy to make and tastes so good on chicken but might actually be a better balsamic steak marinade. It is a five-ingredient marinade is perfect for grilled chicken or steak to top off a fresh summer salad.

Check out this recipe

Grilled Honey Mustard Chicken Marinade

Grilled honey mustard chicken marinade recipe is a simple grilled chicken recipe combining olive oil, lemon juice, dijon mustard, and honey with salt and pepper.

Check out this recipe

📖 Recipe

Juicy Grilled BBQ Chicken

This go-to BBQ recipe combines salt and sugar in a brine fills this juicy grilled BBQ chicken with tons of flavors as you can add garlic and spices.

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Course: Entree

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Grilled Chicken

Prep Time: 4 hours hours

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 4 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 5 servings

Calories: 337kcal

Author: Leah @ Beyer Beware

Ingredients

• ½ cup apple cider vinegar
• 8 cups water
• 3 cloves garlic
• ¼ cup salt
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 5-10 dashes Tabasco
• ½ teaspoon cayenne optional
• 3-4 pounds chicken
• 1 tablespoon seasoning salt
• 1 cup your favorite bbq sauce

Instructions

• Start with bringing a ½ cup of apple cider vinegar and 3 ½ cups of water to a boil. Toss in 3 chopped cloves of garlic cloves and then pour in ½ cup of salt and ¾ cup of brown sugar. Turn off the heat. Then wait for it to cool down a bit.
• Then grab your choice of seasonings. Here are a few of the items I tossed into the cooled vinegar mixture. I added a teaspoon of cayenne pepper and two teaspoons of the rest. I added about 10 dashes of Tabasco.
• Add four more cups of ice cold water or ice itself to the mixture once the seasonings are dissolved.
• Drop your chicken in a gallon zipper bag and power the vinegar brine over top of the chicken. Zip shut a refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.
• Pour the brine off the chicken, and let chicken rest for 10-20 minutes on the counter.
• Season the chicken with one of your seasoning salts of choice.
• Then grill for about 20 minutes per side over a medium heat. Keep an eye on it. Flare ups happen.
• When chicken is done cooking, spread with BBQ sauce and let grill for a minute or two longer.

Nutrition

Calories: 337kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 9018mg | Potassium: 187mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin A: 579IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 74mg | Iron: 3mg

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Leah

A working mom of two very active teenagers. My husband and I gave up running the 80-cow dairy farm that also included a couple of hundred acres of corn and soybeans to both work to support the agricultural industry. We still have about 20 head of dairy heifers and cows to help my kids appreciate the effort it takes to raise livestock. I consider myself a foodie as I love cooking and experimenting with recipes. My family just wishes I would make the same thing twice. Find my other blog, FarmWifeDrinks.com for all things cocktails.

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