Baked BBQ Chicken

My oven baked BBQ chicken is so easy to make and also includes a homemade BBQ sauce that is a no cook one, but can easily be made with your own homemade sauce or even storebought barbecue sauce. If I could make this chicken dish everyday my husband would welcome it - he loves BBQ chicken and this is one of my favorite recipes for oven BBQ chicken - sticky, sweet, smoky flavor in each bite. You don’t need a grill for these BBQ chicken thighs. They really don’t disappoint! It’s great with all sorts of salads, corn on the cob, rice, mashed potatoes - or just about anything. I like to marinate my bone-in skin-on chicken thighs for maximum flavour but that is optional, if you want to make this oven baked BBQ chicken even faster then skip the marinating and get them in the oven in no time - chicken dinner done fast and delicious!

I like to use green seasoning when I’m marinating my BBQ chicken whether on the grill or this oven baked version. Trinidadian green seasoning is a blend of herbs, aromatics and pimento or hot peppers that is ground into a paste or even a sauce to marinate meat - its so flavourful and delicious - its optional to use - feel free too use your own favourite marinade and seasoning for the chicken or don’t marinate the chicken at all as I mentioned above - the recipe will still yield super tasty finger licking good chicken! I have a quick funny story I always think of when I make BBQ chicken - it was the first time being invited to a BBQ in Trinidad - of course I was asked to bring marinated chicken to put on the grill so of course I did. I thought I was doing a great job grinding my own green seasoning and all… then we get there and I have it all ready to put on the grill then I remove the plastic wrap from my container and I hear gasps - yup I brought raw chicken to the party!! That is a no no apparently. Chicken is usually preboiled or baked then put on the grill to get a quick sear over the hot grill while being basted in BBQ sauce - you can imagine how embarrassed I was - you think I would have gotten a heads up from my hubby but no I did not! Lol! You don’t have to go through anything like that with this oven baked BBQ chicken - because it all made in the oven - no pre-boiling required!!

Oven Baked BBQ Chicken Recipe Ingredients

For The Sauce

• Tomato Ketchup: is really the base of the sauce so use one you like
• Apple Cider Vinegar: adds just the right amount of acidity and tang a BBQ sauce needs
• Worcestershire Sauce: adds a touch of complex flavor to the sauce
• Brown Sugar: adds sweetness to the sauce and also helps with the caramelization of the sauce when chicken is cooked and basted
• Molasses: gives the sauce a rich and delicious flavor
• Spices: a mixture of mustard powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, fresh black pepper, paprika or chili powder, Cajun spice mix
• Cornstarch: helps to thicken sauce

For The Chicken

• Chicken Thighs: Which cut of chicken can I use? - I prefer to use chicken thighs (bone in skin on), but this recipe will also work with chicken drumsticks or chicken wings, and skinless chicken breasts can also be used - but cooking time will vary greatly deepening on size and cut of chicken. Make sure to cook chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 ° F off an instant read thermometer
• Fresh Homemade Green seasoning: (Optional but recommended) or store-bought (if using bottled or store bought you will need 1-2 cups ) If you don’t have green seasoning but would like to marinate your chicken before roasting it with the BBQ sauce feel free to marinate it with your own favourite marinade or a storebought one or simply with some olive oil, salt and pepper and poultry seasoning blend or any seasoning blend you think might work with the BBQ flavours - again this step is optional
• Fresh Parsley: or chives or finely chopped green onions, for garnish
  
  

All About Caribbean Green Seasoning Ingredients & Instructions

Yes you can get it in a bottle but as Trini’s say “fresh is bess” so here’s a simple recipe for your basic Trini green seasoning. I like to make it fresh per meal but you can definitely make a large batch and freeze it too which I have done in the past and it’s great to have on hand. I can’t give you exact amounts because you can adjust amounts to taste and also to the amount you need for your meat. Ingredients and recipe for one single purpose seasoning. Double or triple recipe to freeze or reserve for later use:

Ingredients

• A couple of bunches of CHIVES or scallions/green onions
• A small bunch of CHADON BENI or culantro, a good substitute is cilantro or fresh coriander
• A few cloves of GARLIC
• A small bunch of PARSLEY
• A small bunch of Trini CELERY or you can sub a stalk or two of regular celery but Trini celery is more flavourful
• A small bunch of fresh THYME
• a few (2-4) pimento PEPPERS (Trinidad pimentos - Capscium Chinense). These are so flavourful and delicious but if you can’t find any than you can sub in a sweet red bell pepper but the flavour is not quite the same a better substiture might a habanero pepper. For a hint of spice feel free to add some scotch bonnet as well
• Other optional add ins: basil, oregano, rosemary and Spanish thyme, grated fresh ginger

Directions

• Put all ingredients in food processor and then use to marinade meat
• Some add a little liquid like vinegar lemon/lime juice or water. I think that would be good if you were to use a blender to grind the seasoning to a paste. But with a food processor I don’t need to add any liquids to get the seasoning chopped finely so I leave it out. I like it chopped finely and not so much a paste. So again it’s all preference.
  
  

How to Make Oven Baked BBQ Chicken

1. Marinate The Chicken (Optional Step): Toss chicken with fresh homemade ro storebought green seasoning (or your favorite marinade) and marinate for 1 hour or overnight in a sealed container. Before cooking remove chicken from marinade and pat it dry and remove from fridge 30 minutes prior to baking
2. Make BBQ Sauce: In a small bowl mix all ingredients together until well combined. Or feel free to use your own homemade BBQ sauce recipe or use your favorite store-bought BBQ sauce - you will need approx 1 ½ cups of it. Transfer ½ the sauce into a separate bowl and set it aside for later - to prevent cross contamination with uncooked chicken.
3. Brush Chicken With Sauce & Bake: Brush remaining sauce onto chicken pieces. Place chicken pieces into prepared pan. Bake then flip all pieces and baste with reserved sauce. (Some people prefer not to flip - if you plan on flipping halfway start baking with bottom side up then flip to top side up for the last part of the baking time) Continue baking until chicken is done cooking. Switch oven to broiler setting and broil, 2 to 3 minutes until sauce caramelizes. Serve hot.
   
   

What to Serve With Oven Baked BBQ Chicken?

• Creamy Potato Salad
• Easy Greek Pasta Salad
• Greek Roasted Lemon Potatoes (lemonates patates)
• Mixed Bean Salad
• Greek Style Green Bean Salad
• Baked Mac and Cheese
• Caribbean style corn pie
• Sautéed Green Beans
• Creamed Spinach Trinidadian Style
  
  

Oven Baked BBQ Chicken Make Ahead Storage & Freezing

• MAKE AHEAD: The chicken can be marinated ahead 1 day and stored in a airtight container or ziplock bag in the fridge - if you chose to marinate it. The Homemade BBQ sauce can be made and stored in an airtight container for up 1 week ahead or more.
• STORAGE: Once the chicken is cooked and cooled, refrigerate it within 2 hours of sitting at room temperature. Store leftover chicken in an airtight container or wrapped in aluminum foil in the refrigerator (at 40°F or less) for up to 3-4 days.
• FREEZING: Cooked and cooled chicken may be frozen in and airtight container or wrapped tight with plastic wrap and foil, freezer containers or bags for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven or microwave.
  
  

More Chicken Recipes You will Love

• Zaatar Chicken
• Chicken Cacciatore
• Chicken Marbella
• Harissa Chicken
• Skillet Balsamic Chicken With California Figs
• Roasted Chicken With White Beans and 20 Cloves of Garlic