Sticky Maple Barbecue Chicken

This Sticky Maple-Barbecue Chicken is prepared in the oven and it chars beautifully baked on a grill pan. A whole chicken is rubbed with barbecue seasoning then basted with a homemade sauce filled with sweet and spicy flavors. Serve it with potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw and cornbread and you’ll have them running to the dinner table.

Easy Sticky Maple Barbecue Chicken Recipe

Chicken and barbecue go together like peas and carrots. This oven barbecue chicken and it’s an absolute family favorite that never gets old. I prepare chicken so often, I often find myself brainstorming trying to invent a new way to make it just to keep things interesting. Until it comes to this recipe. The maple-barbecue sauce simmers while the chicken bakes, and then you baste it at the end of cooking and char the sauce for optimum stickiness and flavor.  It’s fantastic, a real family pleaser but good enough for company.

How to Make the Best Sticky Maple Barbecue Chicken

• Ingredients you’ll need to make juicy homemade Sticky Maple Barbecue Chicken: One 4 pound chicken divided into 8 pieces and olive oil or vegetable oil for rubbing the chicken. You’ll also need 1/4 cup of prepared barbecue seasoning mixed with 1/4 cup light brown sugar to season the chicken.
• For the Maple Barbecue Sauce you’ll need: Diced onion, butter, maple syrup. ketchup, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, liquid smoke, garlic powder, onion powder, crushed red pepper flakes, cumin, salt and the same barbecue seasoning you used for the dry rub.
• The sky’s the limit with flavor twists and variations of dry rubs you can use for barbecue chicken. I recommend you start this chicken with your favorite barbecue rub or one of the suggested brands that I use. 
• Simmer the sauce on the stove top while the chicken is roasting and you’ll cut down your active prep time.
• Even better, make the sauce in advance and pop it into the fridge and you’ll be good to go.
• Take a few minutes to turn the oven to broil at the end of cooking and the sauce will char beautifully on the chicken pieces.
• Store leftover Maple Barbecue Chicken chilled in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat gently in the microwave.

Southern Style Side Dishes to Serve with Barbecue Chicken

So many sides pair well with barbecue and there are some classics that are no-brainers. A few options you may like to add to the menu:

• A heaping helping of Homemade Baked Beans.
• Air Fryer Macaroni and Cheese can be cooking at the same time as the chicken without crowding the oven.
• Chick-fil-A style Cole Slaw.
• See How to Boil Corn on the Cob in a buttery milk bath.
• BLT Potato Salad is practically a meal on its own.
• Fun individual Bacon Macaroni and Cheese Muffins.
• Pineapple Pepper Slaw from Southern Living.

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Sticky Maple Barbecue Chicken

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Resting Time5 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: sticky-maple-barbecue-chicken

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 499kcal

Author: Melissa Sperka

Ingredients

• 1 4 lb whole chicken cut up
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• Seasoning:
• 1/4 cup barbecue seasoning i.e. Smokehouse Maple or BBQ Magic
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• Homemade Sauce: [Or 2 cups your favorite BBQ sauce]
• 2 Tbsp onion minced
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp liquid smoke
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes [optional]
• 1/2 tsp barbecue seasoning [same as rub]
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp salt

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Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line the bottom of a large pan with a rack with aluminum foil [for easy clean-up] or spritz an oven safe grill pan or broiler pan with cooking spray.
• Rinse and pat dry the chicken pieces. Drizzle the chicken pieces with olive oil then rub liberally with the seasoning on all sides. [Seasoning: BBQ seasoning and brown sugar]
• Place skin side down on the rack or pan. The skin will crisp when the chicken is basted and turned. Bake for 30 minutes.
• While the chicken is baking, on the stovetop saute the minced onion in 1 Tbsp of butter. Saute until softened, around 2-3 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer on low uncovered for 15 minutes to reduce and thicken. Skip this if using a prepared barbecue sauce.
• After the chicken has baked for 30 minutes, remove from the oven and drain the juices from the pan.
• Drizzle the chicken with sauce. Turn and drizzle the top with sauce.
• Bake for another 10-15 minutes or until the juices run clear. If the breast pieces are large, remove the wings, back and legs to a platter at 40 minutes and keep warm.
• Continue to cook the breast pieces checking in 5 minute increments, until the juices run clear or the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165°F.
• To char: At the end of cooking, increase the oven temperature to broil, and move the oven rack up. Broil the chicken for 3-4 minutes until the skin is charred. Keep a close eye on the chicken. Remove from the oven, brush with sauce and rest loosely tented with foil for 10 minutes before serving.
• Serve leftover sauce on the side, if desired.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 499kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 48g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 151mg | Sodium: 694mg | Potassium: 272mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 477IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 126mg | Iron: 3mg

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