Cherry BBQ sauce. Hubs couldn’t quit talking about it.
A wonderful twist on traditional BBQ Sauce. It’s complicated in flavor. Savouring each bite, the palate sorts through a myriad of flavors as you start thinking about everything in sight that you could possibly drizzle this on. Tart, sweet, sticky AND savory, it would be a perfect pair with duck or pork. Our first introduction was on some cinnamon cured smoked chicken.
I finally purchased some wood chips and took my first stab at smoking.
Nothing like you professionals out there, and you know who you are. This is more like kindergarten smoking…I simply soaked some cherry wood chips in water for an hour, drained them, put them in a foil packet, leaving the top of the packet open and placed it on the flavor grates of the gas grill. There was a wasp nest in the charcoal grill, or I would have used it. Let’s take a look at my Saturday project:
For the Cherry BBQ Sauce:
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/3 cup cherry preserves
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 1/4 Cup lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon grated orange zest
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 Cup ruby port
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/4 Cup orange marmalade
- 1 Tablespoon chili sauce
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Salt and pepper to taste
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Combine the broth, preserves, orange juice, lemon juice, zests, cinnamon and cloves in a saucepan and mix well. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 8 minutes or until mixture is reduced to 1 1/2 cups. Stirring occasionally.
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Whisk the port and cornstarch in a small bowl until blended. Whisk the port mixture, marmalade and chili sauce into the broth mixture. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the flavors blend and the sauce is slightly thickened. Season with red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.
The chicken was great simply served along side steamed broccoli. I glazed the chicken with the sauce just before removing from the grill and also served it when plated.
For the chicken:
- 4 C. Water
- 1/4 c. coarse sea salt
- 1/4 c. dark brown sugar
- 1 whole chicken, cut in half (or 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced
- 2 thin lemon slices
- 2 thin orange slices
- 1/2 t. cinnamon
- 2 C. cherry or apple wood chips
Whisk water, salt and brown sugar in a large bowl until the brown sugar dissolves. Add the chicken, onion, lemon and orange slices, and cinnamon. Marinate, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator for one to three hours. Do not marinate longer than three hours.
Combine the wood chips with enough water to cover in a bowl. Let stand for one hour, drain. Preheat grill on medium heat. Place wood chips in a 6×8 inch foil packet; do not seal top. Place the packet on the coals five minutes before grilling process begins and cover the grill. Drain the chicken, discard marinade. Grill chicken until cooked through.
Cherry BBQ Sauce with Cinnamon Cured Smoked Chicken…It’s What’s for Dinner.
