Sunday, April 5, 2009

The Best Brine Grilled Chicken Legs for your Summer Picnic and The Cincinnati Reds Opening Day





The other day I went to the store and left with two small bags of groceries. There was no meat and no dog bones (the two things that really add the dollars to my bill.) The sum of the two bags was $92.97! What the heck? Buying groceries is really getting expensive. That got me to thinking about my upcoming Memorial Day Picnic. It is really going to be expensive and I need to seriously plan ahead.



Chicken Legs are a great value and definitely are delicious when grilled. When you are hosting a picnic you don't want to be stuck at the grill the entire time. That is where The Best Brine Grilled Chicken Legs comes to the rescue. These things are easy, good, and can be made ahead of time.



Best Brine Grilled Chicken Legs



Chicken Legs, skinned removed

1/2 of raw sugar

1/4 cup kosher salt

4 tablespoons liquid smoke

barbecue seasoning of your choice

cooking spray

water



(1) To remove skin from chicken legs use paper towels and hold by leg and pull skin (do not throw away if you have a puppy.) (2) Dissolve sugar and salt in water. Add liquid smoke and chicken legs. (3) Brine chicken legs 4 to 5 hours. (4) Remove chicken legs, rinse and pat dry. Spray with cooking spray and lightly sprinkled with seasoning. (5) Grill on charcoal grill over medium heat for approximately 30 minutes. Turn frequently. (6) Remove to aluminum pans and place in a 250 degree oven for another 30 to 45 minutes. (7) Serve to your picnic guests!



The meat is tender, smoked, and seasoned perfectly. For all you Weight Watchers, these chicken legs are 1 point a piece! I guarantee your guest will rave about these chicken legs. I have never heard a negative comment about them. You can serve them with a side of your favorite barbecue sauce.



Here is why I said to keep the skin!





I take the skin and throw it in a hot pan with a little olive oil and fry it up like bacon. Of course, this is a treat beyond all expectations for Kramer. I guess I will have to put a disclaimer to ask your Vet first? I did this and all he did was stare at me. I am taking his silence as a vote of confidence in giving my puppy fried chicken skin!

It is getting ready to turn really bad weather wise here. If you live in this area you expect nothing different for the Reds (baseball) opening day! If it is not snowing or sleeting rain, you definitely would wonder "what the heck?" I figure warm weather and great picnics are just around the corner. I just can't wait!!

21 comments:

  1. I love bbq'd chicken legs, I'll have to try your recipe this summer. And your dog is adorable!

    Good luck with the weather - we finally have sun after all the snow last week. I so want spring to start!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am really into brining these days, in fact, I have some chicken in an apple cider brine right now! This recipe looks delicious.

    ReplyDelete
  3. OMG...opening day already? These legs look divine...I could gobble a couple up right about now.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I thought about you when I read your 'dipping' post a few days back...truffles is like OMG'd...if you like mushrooms; then you will love truffle oil. Personally I would stick to white truffle oil, I was not impressed with the black...this post makes me so want something with grill marks on it! Love me some BBQ chicken...we fish in my house, not to big on sports, but so many friends who do!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I tell you what those chicken drums just look perfect, even the dog is looking up. delicious. cheers 4 sharing. :) xx

    ReplyDelete
  6. Ah! Your chicken looks very tasty, too. Awwwww, your canine friend is adorable. How I wish I had a dog again. Thanks for stopping by my blog. It's fun to meet other foodies who enjoy blogging and photographing what we eat. Great job! I'll be popping in. Great recipes, here.

    Debby

    ReplyDelete
  7. YUM! The chicken looks fabulous. I think brining is such a cool technique, and what a perfect one to use on chicken legs. I love the flavor of smokey, yet tender meat. How fabulous! Your blog is just great; I can't wait to keep reading more!

    ReplyDelete
  8. These look fantastic, we have alot of BBQ's in the summer and I think these will go down a treat, thankyou!

    ReplyDelete
  9. hahahaha! KRAMER!!!! you are SPOILED!!! ;) ROxie is allergic to chicken, but she gets a lot of other treats :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Love chicken leggs! :)

    Kramer looks so cute!

    ReplyDelete
  11. If I was at a picnic, those chicken legs would be the first thing I go for! Thanks for sharing the recipe and...cute dog! I always give leftover chicken skin/fatty parts to my pups. They love it and I think as long as it is in moderation, it's all good.

    ReplyDelete
  12. That chicken looks tasty. Hope it gets warm enough to have a picnic soon. Love the puppy.

    ReplyDelete
  13. haha! what a creative way to save the chicken skin! never waste food, I say! this is a good reason to keep a dog (admidst many others)

    ReplyDelete
  14. I would not have thought of brining chicken legs. The only thing I've brined is a pork tenderloin. I love chicken legs and you're right about them being budget friendly.

    These looks great! I bet the taste was incredible.

    ReplyDelete
  15. great idea - who said you had to brine the whole bird - parts work just as good...

    ReplyDelete
  16. Such a great idea...it looks so good! Just in time for the hot weather...

    ReplyDelete
  17. Yum - they look great and I love recipes that can be prepped the day before! We just got some liquid smoke and I was surprised that I really like it.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Kramer would have to fight me for that chicken skin--except if crisp mine in the microwave.

    ReplyDelete
  19. this is a great looking recipe! i couldn't find your copyright info, so i wanted to let you know that i used your photo in an entry i wrote about grilling and brining chicken (giving you credit and a link back to your entry, of course!) here it is if you'd like to check it out!

    http://reluctantwwfoodie.wordpress.com/2011/02/18/grill-brine-and-sunshine/

    ReplyDelete
  20. Chicken skin tastes great to more than dogs! I fry and eat it myself! Total yum. Should be great marinated then fried in a pan. :)

    ReplyDelete