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Barbecue season is upon us, and to celebrate National Barbecue Week this week, I thought I’d share with you another of my family’s go to barbecue favourites (I shared our favourite Chicken, Bacon & Honey Mustard Skewers last Summer), our Skinny Sticky Storecupboard Barbecue Chicken, as well as my menu for a super easy Summer barbecue with all the trimmings you can make ahead to share with family and friends.
The barbecue marinade is actually something I’ve adapted from a Rosemary Conley diet book I picked up second hand in a charity shop after my grandmother had recommend her recipes to me. I don’t believe in that sort of thing usually, but I do like to eat healthy and we actually have so many of her super healthy and low fat, but still totally delicious recipes in our family rotation. Chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts give more flavour, but the recipe has them both skinless and boneless for easy barbecuing and to make them healthier. Don’t worry, they’re still deliciously moist and juicy. Skinless and boneless thighs tend to cost a little more than the ones with the bone and the skin, so I usually buy the latter and trim off the skin and cut out the bone myself.
Can I let you into a little secret? I’m still terrible at barbecuing, in spite of trying to learn. Daddy is still the family grill maestro. I am however a whizz at marinating and everything else, so I think that I’ll have to keep that as my domain right now! I am planning on having a round two on the beach this Summer to see if I can pull it off. Kathy, Ed and whoever else happens to be around this Summer? Be warned.
This is my favourite go-to barbecue marinade for the barbecue, and it is also low in all those things that make bottled sauce more of a treat option, too!
Ingredients
Scale
6 Skinless, Boneless Chicken Thighs
2 tbsp Tomato Puree
2 tbsp Soft Dark Brown Sugar
2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1/2 tsp Dried Fennel Seeds
Sea Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a big dish (I crush the fennel seeds between my fingertips to release more flavour), and season with sea salt and pepper.
Add the chicken thighs, making sure they are well covered with all the marinade. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours.
Barbecue until the chicken is cooked through when you’re ready to eat!
We usually eat this with a mountain of brown rice and our home grown salad leaves, but a killer barbecue combo would be my Purple Cabbage Slaw with Cucumber and Dill, and my Simple Potato Salad. Three dishes, all of which are prepared in advance, and all you have to do is cook the chicken for a totally no fuss meal for family and friends if you’re feeding a crowd and you want to relax and enjoy everyones company, instead of having to play hostess. To drink, you can also make up in advance either a big jug of my Classic Sangria, or my Lavender Vodka Lemonade, which you can leave the vodka out of if you are feeding kids.
Have you got any barbecue plans yet for this Summer? I’ve love to hear for some of your go to recipes for grilling items, side salads and homemade Summer drinks and cocktails.
I'm a food writer, professional recipe developer and cookbook author living in the English Countryside. I love creating easy, accessable recipes filled with vibrant world flavours that are manageable on busy weeknights. Simple and delicious dinners, from my kitchen to yours!
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One Pan Pescatarian: 100 Delicious Dinners – Veggie, Vegan, Fish
My second cookbook contains 100 delicious dinner recipes, all of which are either vegetarian, vegan or which celebrate fish and seafood - all cooked in either one pot or one pan.*
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