Turn to the Dark Side – Spicy Grilled Chicken Thighs

When it comes to chicken, I used to prefer white meat. Firm and homogenous, with no fatty blobs or errant veins, the breast is cleaner, leaner, and neater than dark meat. But over the years my point of view has changed; I have turned to dark meat, at least most of the time.

Lately I have been finding chicken breast to be rubbery in texture and lacking in flavor, and it goes from under to overcooked in a flash. While bland white meat may be the perfect canvas for fancy sauces, in many preparations, dark meat provides a natural flavor that needs far less enhancement. In addition, it is way more forgiving than white meat as the fat it contains makes it much more difficult to overcook.

So when do I use chicken breast versus thigh and leg? White meat is still best if cut into thin cutlets, pounded, and sautéed, then covered in a sauce, as with Chicken Piccata. Some (not most) kebabs – including Chicken Souvlaki – also warrant larger chunks of white meat skewered and grilled. I tend to prefer white meat if it is going to top a salad or if I’m making breaded chicken cutlets.

As for dark meat, I prefer thighs over legs, but both withstand the intense heat of a grill and stewing or braising much better than white meat. Most grilled kebabs benefit immeasurably from dark meat, as the edges get crispy without drying out the interior. For fried chicken, dark meat remains succulent inside, while the outside develops a perfect crunch. Dark meat is pretty much essential for chicken tacos where it withstands the long cooking time much better than white. And bone-in thighs are the way to go for barbeque. As the fat renders, the meat stays juicy and the skin becomes a perfectly crisp wafer, like a chicken-flavored potato chip.

So while chicken breast certainly has its culinary niche, I have recently been turning to the dark side. It is more flavorful, forgiving, and juicier and in many applications a better and more satisfying choice than white meat.

Tricks and a Formula

Dark meat – bone in chicken thighs and legs – is best for cooking over the high heat and direct flame of a grill, especially with the addition of a flavorful sauce. There are a few simple tricks and a list of categories from which to choose to make a sauce that will help grilled chicken thighs be a successful part of your meal every time.

As you prepare your grill, set it up for 2-zone grilling – both direct and indirect cooking. With a charcoal grill that means one zone directly over a pile of scorching hot coals where the chicken can sear, and another zone away from the coals. On a gas grill, turn one or two burners on high and leave the other off or on low. When you need to, you can move the chicken from direct heat, where it sears, to indirect, where it will continue to cook inside while the outside gets a rest if it is cooking too quickly.

As the chicken cooks, fat will render out and likely flare up, no matter the flame level. Thus, the pieces should be monitored closely and flipped and moved around every few minutes, lest they scorch.

Don’t marinate your chicken or cover it with sauce too early. The sauce will burn before the inside is done, especially if it contains sugar. Instead, put the sauce on during the last few minutes of cooking, after the chicken is almost cooked all the way through. Brush it on one side, let some of the liquid evaporate and the sauce thicken and cling, while that piece remains sauce side up. After a minute or two flip it and brush sauce on the other side. Repeat two or three times. This gives your sauce time to thicken, stick to the chicken, and caramelize in spots, without blackening to a colon cancer inducing char.

Finally, build a better sauce. There’s no need to purchase one, as you probably have everything you need to improvise a perfectly tasty sauce with ingredients in your refrigerator and pantry. Barbeque sauce is fine, but there’s no need to stop there. I find that if you choose from a list of basic ingredients, you’ll have flavorful, juicy chicken that will impress your family, friends, and guests. Most sauces, in addition to a base, have a few main components – sweet, spicy, sour, and umami, with a little oil and salt thrown in. You can then add other spices or flavorings as you see fit. Choose from the following categories, and you’re almost always guaranteed success.

A base – the sauce needs body, and many of the ingredients below can fill this role, but if it’s not thick enough, try a little ketchup or tomato paste, or cook it down for a few minutes in a small saucepan on the stove

Sweet – sugar, honey, agave, brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup, seedless jam

Spicy – hot sauce, sriracha, sambal oelek, chili paste with garlic, gochujang, minced chipotle chilies in adobo

Sour – vinegar (any type), citrus (lemon or lime), prepared mustard – use sparingly to just give a little tang

Umami (savory) – soy sauce, fish sauce, minced anchovies or anchovy paste, tomato paste

Oil – a tiny bit of olive oil, vegetable oil, or sesame oil to help the sauce stick

Salty – many of the ingredients above have enough salt so you can skip extra, but taste the sauce (before it touches raw meat) to be sure, and add a little salt if needed

Spicy Grilled Chicken Thighs

This recipe is not set in stone. Feel free to improvise, switching ingredients in and out from the list above.

Serves 2 – 4, 30 minutes

2 Tbsp. sambal oelek (ground fresh chili paste – available at Asian supermarkets and in the Asian section of most supermarkets)

2 Tbsp. honey

2 tsp. fish sauce

½ tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 clove garlic, crushed or finely minced

4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

1. Prepare your grill for 2-zone grilling. If using a charcoal grill, after coals are ripping hot, set them to one side for direct heat cooking and leave another area without coals for indirect heat cooking. On a gas grill, turn one or two burners on high and leave the other off or on low.
2. Make the sauce by whisking together all ingredients (except chicken thighs) in a medium bowl. Set aside.
3. Place chicken thighs over hot side of grill, skin side up. Cook, flipping and turning every two to three minutes or if there are flare ups or it’s scorching, until thighs are almost cooked all the way through (165 ^oF), about 15 minutes. If the outside of the chicken is cooking too quickly, move them to the indirect heat side of the grill and cook for a few minutes with the lid closed.
4. When chicken thighs are almost all the way cooked through, brush sauce on one side, let some of the liquid evaporate and the sauce thicken and cling, while that piece remains sauce side up. After a minute or two flip it and brush sauce on the other side. Repeat, brushing on sauce and flipping two or three times. This gives your sauce time to thicken, stick to the chicken, and caramelize in spots.
5. Serve hot off the grill with extra sauce on the side. (There is no need to cook the sauce, if it has never touched raw meat.)

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