Pulled Chicken with Alabama White BBQ Sauce

We love pulled chicken at the Three Dogs BBQ house.  It is something different and just a bit healthier for you than pork or beef.  Usually, when we make pulled chicken, we also make an Alabama White BBQ sauce.  This is a mayo passed sauce that is sweet and sour and compliments chicken well.  I like this sauce so much that I also put it on pork as well.

For this cook, I prepared a batch of my standard poultry brine and chilled the brine overnight.  Then, the next day, I placed a whole roasting chicken in the brine and allowed it to go for a  24 hour swim.

The day before I also prepared my Alabama White BBQ Sauce.  Preparing the sauce the day before give the flavors a chance to mingle.  This sauce really does change even after an hour of sitting.  For our sauce, I use this recipe from MyRecipes.com.  It is the closest to what I have had in Alabama.  My only changes are to:

1.  Add a pinch of cayenne pepper.
2.  Remove the sugar and substitute half of the water with apple juice for the sweet component.

The next day, I lit my smoker and brought the smoker to 325 F.  While the smoker was heating, I removed the chicken from the brine and discarded the brine.  Then, I rinsed the bird well and patted dry.  For a rub, I used Oakridge Game Bird and Chicken Rub.

This rub is outstanding.  The coriander adds a flavor that just pairs well with chicken.  When I am ready to rub, be sure to gently pull the skin back and apply seasoning between the skin and meat.  I also season the cavity of the bird as well.  For the skin, rub the outside with olive oil, then apply my rub.

Just before placing the bird on the smoker, I added some pecan splits to the ash pan for smoke flavor. Then, I placed the chicken on the top rack of the smoker.  Here are some pictures after one and two hours.

Once the timer popped and the internal temperature was above 165 F, I removed from the smoker, placed in a pan, covered with foil, and let the bird rest for 30 minutes.

Then, Hope meticulously pulled the meat from the bone, mixing white and dark meat together.

Then, we served on some nice slider buns with some potato salad on the side.  I do not mix the sauce into the pulled chicken.  I just add a little dollop on top of my chicken.  This combination is outstanding.

I have read that you can grill your chicken and brush the Alabama White Sauce onto your chicken during the last 15-20 minutes of cooking.  I want to try this method the next time I make some.  A friend of mine also uses this sauce as a salad dressing and loves the flavor it brings to his greens.

So, give this combination a try.  Especially if you are tired of the usual sweet, traditional red BBQ sauce.

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill

Sides for your BBQ. Homemade Potato Salad

Every good BBQ meal needs to have good side dishes.  Sure, we can live on meat alone, but why do so when there are so many good side dishes.  Plus, you may need a little something else to cut some of the fattiness of your meaty meal.  Today, lets dive into one of my favorite BBQ sides, potato salad.

Mine is fashioned after my Mothers recipe.  It is pretty spot on, up until the moment I add plain yellow mustard.  My Mom makes a traditional Southern white potato salad.  I like the tang that the mustard brings to the table.  A good Southerner will tell you adding mustard is blasphemy.  I call it culinary license.

For this batch, I took one and a half pounds of small, red potatoes, rinsed well and placed into my dutch oven with enough water to cover and one tablespoon of salt.

I brought my potatoes to a boil, then reduced the heat and simmered while covered for 20 minutes, or until fork tender.  When cooked, I drained, rinsed with cold water, cut into quarters with the skin on, and placed in a bowl.  My Grandfather said that leaving the skins on was being lazy.  He might be right, but I like the texture the skins bring to the final product.  I'll leave that decision up to you.

To my potatoes, I add the following:

1/4 of a red onion, diced
2 ribs of celery, diced
1/3 cup of sweet relish.  Alternatively, you could dice up 1/3 of a cup of sweet pickles or bread and butter chips and add an additional 1/4 of the juice from the jar.
2 hard boiled eggs, peeled and diced
1/2-1 cup of mayonnaise.  I use Helmann's Light Mayo.  A half cup worked well for the 1.5 pounds of   potatoes.  Just start with 1/2 cup and add more until you get the creaminess that you desire.  Remember, you can always add, but you can't subtract.
One healthy squirt of plain yellow mustard.  Nothing scientific here.  I would say I added about 3 tbsp  worth of mustard.

Mix well, place in the refrigerator to chill, then serve.

Quick, easy, and tasty.  Substitute the potato with four cups of cooked elbow macaroni and you have my Macaroni Salad recipe as well.  Enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill