Oh My Marinade - Chicken Thighs

Having had a kitchen torn apart since... January (?) most of my cabinet stock foods have been in brown boxes sitting in my dining room.  And because I have decided that when it comes time to put them back in, I will be weeding out the old and expired and using up what I can without buying new, I've tried to do as much "home made" as I can.  One of our biggest money wasting purchases is keeping a well stocked cabinet.  While this is great from one angle because I can then say I always have this or that on hand, it's also bad, as I lose track of what I really have.  I have found duplicate spices, having purcahsed Ginger recently because I didn't think I had it, so now I have two bottles of ground ginger.  Same with Curry.  At least it's two good spices though.  However I have about 4 bottles of cinnamon... why do I have so much cinnamon?  So before I put all my food items back into what will hopefully be a super organized, labeled and categorized set of cabinets, I'm trying to use and create and make what I can from scratch.  Which means, a lot of playing.

I first made this marinade a few weeks ago and applied it to chicken wings.  I really, really wish I had taken a picture then for you.  The wings came out FANTASTIC.  I mean, they could not have been more perfect.  They were crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside with just enough sauce to give you sticky fingers.  Oh they were divine!  But alas, I did not have my camera near by and so I did not get the opportunity to share this marinade with you then.  Last night however, I applied my new sauce to chicken thighs and behold, the same succulence came forth from my grill.


Now I present to you the ingredient list:

• Soy Sauce (I prefer low sodium)
• Sesame Oil
• Fresh or Dried Chives
• Ground Ginger
• Garlic Salt
• Red Pepper flakes (didn't I tell you I've been crazy about them lately, they go into everything!)
• Toasted sesame seeds
• Sugar

And you ask me, as always, but HOW MUCH Jenn?  And my answer to you this time... depends on how much chicken!  I served 8 chicken thighs with this.  And my combined amount of liquid could not have been more than just 1 cup.  I cook by taste.  Grab a bowl.  Pour in  some soy sauce and sesame oil.  Equal parts, that I know for sure.  Add to that sugar and the rest of your spices.  How sweet do you want it, adjust accordingly.  Note that your pepper flakes will give more flavor the longer they sit in the sauce and once they get heat up, so it may take you once or twice of making the sauce to get your heat adjusted correctly.  First time I made it, it had a nice zing on the tongue and last night it was just a soft undertone.

Now, I'm sure by now you've also noticed that I've said "sauce" and I also say "marinade" - well, you could use it either way!  This would be so yummy having let the chicken sit in it for an hour or more and I have a variation that includes White Wine Vinegar where I do just that.  But the last two times I've made this sauce, I have used it as just that, a sauce.

Let's get cooking.
Prep your chicken, trim what needs to be trimmed.  I used boneless, skinless thighs last night.  I have also used wings and drumsticks.  This is best with skin on, as you can get things nice and crispy.  Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken parts you have decided to use.

Get your grill nice and hot.  Get the chicken on.  What, Jenn, no sauce?  Oh nooooo... why get my grill all dirty?  Get the chicken on the grill naked (aka. no sauce).  Use your grill skills and make those lovely grill marks.  Turn the heat back a bit and flip them when it is time.  Cook your chicken to its desired doneness (you know, not pink).  If it's chicken parts with skin, keep an eye on them as you don't want flare up or burns.

When the chicken is just about done, that's when you bring out your sauce.  Douse those babies and make 'em happy.  They've been roasting under that hot fire and they are asking for some cool sauce.  Turn the heat to low and just let them sit for a few minutes under a closed lid, let the sauce start to caramelize a bit on top.  Flip, sauce the other side.  Let them sit.  Repeat this until you have sauced the chicken at least 2 times per side.  And as a side note, this is a good time to let yourself get sauced.  Any of my drinks from this blog go very nicely with grilling.  Stay cool while your meat heats.  LOL



Ok, when they're done, you should be out of sauce for the most part, and your chicken should be a beautiful amber brown and glistening. 

Serve with pasta or rice, and of course a vegetable.  Enjoy!