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Gordon's Grilled Chicken

Chicken grilled Santa Maria Style with Italian glaze
Prep Time1 hour
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Keyword: BBQ, Grill

Equipment

  • Santa Maria style oak-fired grill
  • Large pot with rack for steaming

Ingredients

  • 8-12 whole chicken legs
  • 1/3 cup wine vinegar
  • 2/3 cup wine
  • 2/3 cup olive or other cooking oil
  • 1 tbsp Worcester sauce
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning I use a lot more, as many fresh herbs as possible
  • Salt & pepper
  • Garlic
  • 1 dash Tobasco

Instructions

Prepare Chicken

  • Buy good quality chicken parts, looking for fat in the skin; I've learned that I get best results (and the least fussing) by cooking only whole legs.
  • Season both sides with salt & pepper and set out uncovered for a time. I like to leave them uncovered overnight in the refrigerator, then bringing up to room temperature before cooking.

Prapare Glaze

  • Mix ingredients together 2-3 hours before cooking. I can get by with one batch for up to 10 good sized legs. When I fill my grill with 27 legs I usually make a 3x batch

Grill Chicken

  • When the fire has settled down to a steady heat lay out the legs skin side down, moving them all back and forth gently for the first few minutes until the grill has enough fat from the skin that they won't stick.
  • Keep adjusting heat so that you hear a gentle but unmistakeable sizzle. When it's cooked enough on the skin side it should have a nice golden color. Turn and cook the other side for a bit longer.
  • Now spread glaze on the legs and turn. The glaze will drip into the wood coals and smoke nicely. After a few minutes, repeat. Keep doing this several times until the skin is pulling away nicely from the end of the bone. Total cooking time might be 25-40 minutes.
  • Pour the remainder of the glaze into a large pot and transfer legs onto a rack in the bottom. Heat so that the legs steam for 5-15 minutes before serving.