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Easy BBQ Chicken in the Oven

JE
Jennifer

Cuisine: American
Categories: Main Dishes, Family-Style Meals & Chicken

Recipe Source: Elizabeth Stark

Easy BBQ Chicken in the Oven is a simple and flavorful way to enjoy tender, juicy chicken with a smoky, tangy barbecue glaze. Chicken pieces are seasoned with a blend of spices and then baked in the oven until golden and cooked through. A generous coating of your favorite barbecue sauce is added during the final minutes of baking, allowing the sauce to caramelize slightly, creating a delicious, sticky coating. This easy recipe is perfect for a quick weeknight dinner or a casual weekend meal, and it pairs wonderfully with sides like cornbread, coleslaw, or roasted vegetables for a complete, satisfying meal.

Easy BBQ Chicken in the Oven
liquid smoke

Difficulty: EASY

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Serving Size: 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds (skin-on, bone-in) chicken legs
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup barbecue sauce (any tomato- or mustard-based sauce), divided
  • 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)

Directions:

  1. Marinate the chicken: Set the chicken legs in a shallow dish and sprinkle both sides with salt. If you're using liquid smoke, mix it into the barbecue sauce. Brush the legs all over with 1/4 cup of the barbecue sauce, reserving the rest. Cover, and set in fridge to marinate at least 30 minutes or as long as overnight.
  2. Prepare the chicken for cooking: Set the broiler to high with a rack positioned a few inches below. Set a metal cooling rack (like the ones used for baking) inside a rimmed baking sheet, or use a broiler pan. Arrange the marinated chicken legs on the wire rack with a little space between each leg.
  3. Sear the chicken: Slide the pan under broiler, and broil chicken on one side until you begin to see dark brown charred spots, 2 to 4 minutes. Flip, and sear the second side, 2 to 4 minutes.
  4. Turn the oven to 300F and reposition the rack in the middle of the oven.
  5. Finish cooking the chicken: Brush chicken all over with all but a tablespoon of the remaining sauce. Slide into the oven and bake 15 minutes. Flip chicken, and brush with the remaining sauce anywhere it's needed. Continue baking until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165F, another 15 to 20 minutes.
  6. Serve chicken right away while hot, with extra barbecue sauce on the side.