Grilled Chicken Thighs in a Mustard Sauce
I know I’ve been doing a lot of grilled recipes as of late, but that’s just because it’s been so hot. So, I’ve been doing a lot of cooking outside. As I’ve mentioned before, I love cooking outside. Don’t get me wrong, I love cooking in general, but using my grill gives me a special kind of high. While it’s true that I’m standing over an open flame, I have a cool breeze blowing in my hair and nature is my kitchen.
These days there are so many options when it comes to cooking outdoors. There’s the fire pit and an open flame. You can use a gas grill. You can use charcoal. Or you could use a smoker. Luckily I have all three. When it came time to buy a new grill, I told Hubs I wanted a combo: a grill that has both gas and charcoal. But I lucked out by finding a grill that not only has gas and charcoal, it has a smoker box as well. So, now if I’m in a rush, I can use the gas side. On occasion I’ll smoke a brisket or even a turkey, but most of the time I use the charcoal side.
See, I love using the charcoal because that flavor just can’t be copied anywhere else. It’s smokey and when I add smoking chips, it’s even better. Those chips are where the flavor really kicks in. I have cherry wood, apple wood, mesquite… they all have a slightly different smoke which translates to a different taste that adds great depth to any protein. That smoke and those chips are the reason I use the charcoal side more often than not, and it was the side I used when I made these chicken thighs from Fine Cooking.
While the lump charcoal is always my base, it’s the wood chips that change. The protein I cook dictates which chips I use. Apple is good for fish and vegetables. Mesquite is good for beef and cherry is good for beef and chicken. So, the cherry won the chip battle this time, as it should have. See, not only did the cherry wood enhance the chicken, it enhanced the mustard sauce the chicken was marinating in. That’s right, I said mustard sauce. A Dijon mustard sauce to be precise. And that Dijon sauce, in combination with the chicken and those wonderful cherry wood chips, makes for one hell of a summer dinner.
Notes
Adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon dill, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
Instructions
- Whisk together the mustard, oil, dill, Worcestershire, pepper, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the chicken and coat. Set the chicken aside to marinate at for 30 minutes, or cover and refrigerate for about 2 hours.
- Heat the grill to 500°F. Prepare the grill for direct and indirect cooking.
- Take the thighs out of the marinade. Place the thighs skin side down over the flame until well marked on both sides, turning once or twice, 8 to 10 minutes. Move the thighs to the indirect side, skin side up, and cook with the lid closed until a thermometer inserted registers 165°F, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer the thighs to a platter, garnish with fresh dill and serve.
