Make the best BBQ Chicken by covering chicken breasts, wings, drumsticks or thighs with a delicious bbq seasoning. Cook the chicken low and slow on the grill and finish it with a generous coating of bbq sauce to make juicy, tender, flavorful barbecue chicken every time! This grilled chicken recipe is perfect for everything from summer bbq's to game day cookouts!
Pat the chicken pieces dry with a paper towel, then rub them on all sides with olive oil.
Sprinkle the bbq seasoning evenly over the chicken and rub it in until the chicken is completely coated in the seasoning.
Preheat one side of the grill to high heat, around 450°F. Do not turn on the other side of the grill.
Oil the grill grates.
Place the chicken on the side of the grill that’s not turned on, this is referred to as grilling with indirect heat.
For bone-in thighs, drumsticks and wings, grill for 20 minutes, flip and grill for an additional 20 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160°F using an instant-read thermometer.For bone-in chicken breasts, grill for 40 minutes, flip and grill for an additional 40 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160°F.
Once the internal temperature of each piece of chicken reaches 160°F, use tongs to move the chicken over to the hot side of the grill to grill over direct heat.
Brush bbq sauce on the chicken, cook for 1-2 minutes, flip and brush the other side with bbq sauce.
Continue cooking the chicken for 1-2 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F.
Remove the chicken from the grill and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Chicken – for this recipe you can use just about any cut of chicken that you like. Boneless or bone-in chicken pieces will both work in this recipe, but I highly recommend trying it with bone-in chicken for the juiciest, most tender results. You can mix and match chicken breasts, thighs, wings or drumsticks to make this recipe. I recommend keeping the skin on to help protect the outside of the chicken from burning, but if you prefer chicken without the skin, feel free to use a sharp knife to remove it before starting this recipe.
If using different cuts of chicken, I recommend adding bone-in chicken breasts to the grill first. These are usually the largest, thickest cut of chicken and therefore need the longest time to cook. Allow them to cook for 40 minutes, then add chicken thighs, wings or drumsticks to the grill. This should result in all of the chicken reaching 160°F internal temperature around the same time.
If some of the chicken pieces reach 160°F internal temperature before the others, simply remove them from the grill, place them on a cutting board and loosely cover with foil. When all of the chicken pieces reach 160°F, you can add the other pieces of chicken back to the hot side of the grill and sear them with the pieces that were still on the grill. This will guarantee that all of your chicken pieces are fully cooked, and hot and ready at the same time.
Grill to temperature, not time! Cooking over indirect heat is similar to cooking on a smoker. Each grill is different and with chicken pieces of different size, the cook time will vary when making this recipe. Always use an instant-read meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the chicken before moving it to the hot side of the grill to sear.
This recipe is gluten free, using the ingredients shown above. Always read the label on the bbq sauce to make sure it’s gluten free.