Thursday, September 10, 2009

Chicken or Steak with Balsamic BBQ Sauce



Sadly, I believe that our grilling days are just about over for now. Our apartment does not allow grills, so we had to take ours to a better place. The one thing that consoled me was that summer is over, and grilling is not the primary way to cook anymore. I will still miss my grill all the same...a moment of silence please.

And now onto the food. I love BBQ sauce, but I just don't think you can beat the homemade stuff, especially when it's made like this. The base is balsamic vinegar, which makes it a very tangy dipping sauce, but comes out so sweet and gooey when grilled right onto the meat. You can't go wrong. And the good news is you can do it in your oven too, so don't let the cool weather get in the way of having fabulous BBQ chicken or steak!

Chicken or Steak with Balsamic BBQ Sauce
By Giada DiLaurentiis

Ingredients

For the Balsamic BBQ sauce:
1 cup balsamic vinegar
3/4 cup ketchup
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the chicken or steak:
4 pieces chicken (any combination of breast or leg-and-thigh pieces) or 4 pieces of New York strip or Club strip steak
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

For BBQ Sauce:
Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and stir until all the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Simmer over medium heat until reduced by 1/3, about 15 to 20 minutes.

For the chicken or steak:
Place a grill pan over medium heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Lightly coat with some of the BBQ sauce using a pastry brush. Place the meat on the grill. Place the remaining BBQ sauce, still in the small saucepan, over low heat or on the edge of a gas or charcoal grill and allow to gently simmer while the meat cooks.

Cook the chicken about 8 minutes per side. Cook the steaks starting at about 4 minutes per side until a meat thermometer reads the desired temperature, 120 degrees F for medium rare, 135 degrees F for medium (about 6 minutes per side), 155 degrees F for well done (about 9 minutes per side). Continually brush the meat with BBQ sauce every few minutes. Remove the meat from the grill and let rest for at least 5 minutes. Serve with the heated BBQ sauce alongside.

Alternately, the chicken can be baked in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the chicken skin side up in a baking dish and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the baking dish from the oven and spoon the BBQ sauce all over the top of the chicken. Return the baking dish to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes.

27 comments:

Erica said...

mmm balsamic vinegar bbq sauce? I've never heard of such a thing! Sounds incredible.

Heather S-G said...

Oh,that balsamic bbq looks finger-lickin' good!! I've been known to grill in the snow ;) Bummer that you had to send your grill to a "farm", LOL!! Looks delicious.

Sara said...

Yum, this looks and sounds great. I love balsamic vinegar.

Palidor said...

That looks so mouthwatering! Your BBQ sauce looks way better than anything out of a jar!

theUngourmet said...

Yum! I just love the flavor balsamic brings to just about any dish! This chicken is scrumptious!

chow and chatter said...

this sauce sounds great

GarlicBOSS said...

I really like balsamic vinegar so it's great to see this balsamic BBQ sauce

Cucinista said...

I can almost taste it... I'm licking my fingers already.

♥peachkins♥ said...

This looks really good. Never tried balsamic vinegar on bbq sauce before...

Reeni said...

You are so right! Nothing beats home-made BBQ sauce. This looks really delicious!

Kim said...

Oh, wow! I'm so going to email this link to my best friend. She has been hunting for a recipe just like this. She'll love it. Looks very delicious.

Leslie said...

That stinks they dont allow grills!
:(

ann low said...

What a great blend of flavors!

Lara said...

I love balsamic vinegar bases, but I've never tried it as a BBQ sauce. It sounds delicious!

Debbie said...

I love grilled meats but have no talent grilling at all. I burn everything. Your sauce looks good so I will have to try this in the oven!

MaRiN said...

Wow! That looks so tasty! I love all that sauce. I'm adding this to my list. Thanks!

Cathy said...

Hi Teresa - I'll be sorry to see bbq season pass too. If I had a covered patio I would do it year around.

This sauce recipe looks delicious. Its fun to try something new.

Alissa said...

Wow this sounds great! I love that you can do it in the oven as well! Love me some bbq!

Ingrid_3Bs said...

Yea, I'm liking this! While I don't make homemadeBBQ sauce all the time. I do make it relatively often! Yum, thanks for sharing!

Happy Friday!
~ingrid

Donna-FFW said...

This sounds wonderful and I love the alternative of cooking in the oven. Delicious!

Anonymous said...

NO GRILL? Oh no! Tragedy! And I mean it in the most sincere way, I really do! :-(

But the BBQ sauce is FABULOUS! At least you can enjoy that whenever you want.

Julie said...

That sauce looks just divine! Doesn't allow grills? How barbaric :)

Katy ~ said...

Bah humbug on not being allowed grills!!

This BBQ sauce sounds so good. We often use just Italian dressing as a marinade, so I know we would really enjoy this one. Copying and saving!!

Shelby said...

I just saw this on her tv show! I also just bookmarked the recipe on Food Network - it looks and sounds delicious!

Inspired by eRecipeCards said...

May your grill RIP, but there is still the odd picnic days you can take a small weber to the park...

this does look good

test it comm said...

That chicken looks tasty! I like the sound of a balsamic bbq sauce!

Carrie said...

Balsamic BBQ sauce! I've never even thought of that! I bet it's delicious though, I have to try it!