How to Keep Your Chicken Juicy and Tender on the Barbecue

Do you love barbecued chicken, but hate that it often gets dry? Here's a little secret that will result in tender, juicy, mouthwatering barbecued chicken that's thoroughly cooked every time.

This method can be used with any type of chicken, whether it's boneless and skinless, or a package of drumsticks and thighs. You can even use frozen chicken straight out of the freezer.

Instead of putting the chicken on the grill straight from the package, the secret is to cook the chicken first. Take the chicken and rinse it well under cold running water in the sink. Then place the chicken in a pot of cool water. Put the pot of chicken on the stove and bring to a boil. Let the chicken boil for 20 to 30 minutes, or until thoroughly cooked.

It's easy to test whether the chicken is thoroughly cooked. Simply stick a fork into the thickest part of one of the largest pieces. If the fork comes back out easily, then the chicken is cooked well. Also, if the meat starts to fall away from the bone, it is completely cooked.

While boiling you can add a number of spices to the water for extra flavor. Depending on your taste, you could add any combination of salt, pepper, onion, garlic, season salt, basil, thyme, onion soup mix, Italian dressing mix, or cayenne pepper. Just choose the spices depending on what type of flavoring or barbecue sauce you'll be putting on the chicken when you barbecue it.

After boiling until completely cooked, the chicken is ready to be barbecued. Place the boiled chicken on a preheated barbecue grill. Baste with your choice of sauce, or sprinkle on your favorite seasonings. Barbecue sauce, Teriyaki sauce and mustard honey sauce are all delicious choices. The chicken is also good without sauce when sprinkled with a combination of garlic and seasoning salt. Another alternative is to simply sprinkle the chicken with Mrs. Dash.

The chicken does not need to be on the grill for long. Only about two to four minutes on each side, or until it has enough smoky barbecue flavor to suit your taste. By keeping the time on the barbecue short, you will keep the juices in the chicken and it will be flavorful and tasty rather than dry as it typically gets when cooked completely on the barbecue.

This boiling and then grilling method also works great for other types of meat, such as beef and pork ribs, and is great for making kabobs. For kabobs, simply boil the meat prior to marinating it in the refrigerator in sauce for several hours. Then assemble the kabobs and grill.

Enjoy juicy, tender chicken every time you grill!