Cook by the Book: Mahogany Chicken

Labor Day is coming up this weekend so for my “Cook by the Book” challenge this week I decided to feature none other than something off the grill: Mahogany Chicken from Williams-Sonoma’s Essentials of Grilling! This is a cookbook the kids and I gave my husband for Father’s Day one year. He has used it many times, but I have not so I decided to flip through and get some inspiration for a good grilled chicken dish!

Really, they had me at the word “mahogany” based on the idea of the color alone. The thought of a mahogany glaze made my mouth water, just imagining the tasty components that might go into it to produce a rich reddish-brown sauce! I skimmed through the ingredient list and had all the items needed so texted a photo of the recipe to my husband at work to tell him I’d have the chicken and glaze ready when he got home if he wouldn’t mind grilling to which I received an immediate and affirmative reply!

Mahogany Chicken

Ingredients:

2.5 pounds mixed chicken parts such as breasts, drumsticks, thighs, and wings (I had chicken breast only so that’s what I used)

2 handfuls woodchips such as hickory or mesquite, soaked if using charcoal

For the Mahagony glaze:

1/4 cup molasses

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil (I used olive oil)

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 Tbsp. whole-grain Dijon mustard

1 Tbsp. fresh orange juice

1 tsp. grated orange zest

Freshly ground pepper

To make the mahogany glaze, in a small saucepan, combine the molasses, vinegar, oil, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, orange juice and zest, and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer, stirring often. Simmer for 2 minutes to blend the flavors, stirring often. Use the glaze immediately or refrigerate for up to 2 days.

(I failed to get photos of the grilling process, but the following instructions are pretty easy to follow for both charcoal and gas methods.)

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for INDIRECT grilling over MEDIUM heat. If using a charcoal grill, place a drip pan half full of water on the center of the fire bed. Oil the grill rack. Brush the chicken parts with some of the glaze.

Charcoal: Sprinkle half the woods chips on the coals, if using. Grill the chicken, skin side down, over the drip pan for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken, brush with more glaze, and grill for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining wood chips on the coals. Continue to grill, turning and brushing the chicken 2 more times, until the juices run clear when a piece is pierced with a knife tip, about 20 minutes longer.

Gas: Add the woodchips to the grill in a smoker box or perforated foil packet. Grill the chicken, skin side down, away from the heat elements for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken, brush with more glaze, and grill for 10 minutes. Continue to grill, turning and brushing the chicken 2 more times, until the juices run clear when a piece is pierced with a knife tip, about 20 minutes longer.

This mahogany chicken was full of flavor and just the right balance of sweet, savory, tang, and citrus! We all loved it, especially my husband, and we agreed that the glaze would probably be delicious on pork as well. I served the chicken with corn on the cob that had been popped on the grill for a few minutes and some minty fruit salad!

I’m not disappointed at all about autumn making its appearance soon (yay!🍁) but I’ll be enjoying as many summery grilled meals as I can get like this before the seasons change! There are so many wonderful recipes in Essentials of Grilling, and I know I’ll be referring to it more often. Ok, friends, this wraps up this week’s new recipe from a cookbook and I’ll look forward to sharing another one next week!