Island BBQ Chicken

This is easily one of my favorite recipes for chicken. The flavors are both sweet and savory and the chicken so succulent, you'll forgive yourself for it not being the healthies thing you ate that day!

Island BBQ Chicken

This makes 6 drumsticks and does require some prep-work.

- 1 pkg drumsticks, skin-on*

- 1 cup BBQ sauce - really any type will do

- 1/4 - 1/2 cup pineapple soda (I use Shasta)

- 1 jalapeno, ribbed, seeded and finely diced

- 1 tsp paprika

- salt and pepper to taste

- 1 cup all-purpose flour

- non-stick aluminum foil

1. In a small sauce pan combine BBQ sauce, 1/4 cup of pineapple juice and paprika. Whisk to combine, add additional soda if desired and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in diced jalapeno, bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Allow to simmer for 10 - 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

2. Place chicken in a freezer bag and pour cooled marinade over the top. Partially seal the bag and press down to remove excess air. Place in a dish to prevent messes and place in fridge for 2 -3 hours (chicken can be marinated over night as well).

3. Preheat oven to 375. Place a sheet of the aluminum foil non-stick side up (I cannot stress enough that it should be non-stick. If you use the normal kind your chicken will fall apart).

4. Spread flour on a plate. Take each piece of chicken and coat is lightly in flour and place on the baking sheet. The flour should be thin enough that it blends with the marinade. After each piece is complete, briefly dip into marinade again and back into flour and replace on baking sheet. Let rest for 5 - 10 minutes.

5. Pour the remains of the marinade back into the sauce pan and bring to a boil, whisking occasionally and remove from heat. The marinade should be a bit thicker now.

6. Place chicken on middle rack in oven and bake for 25 minutes. Remove and brush with remaining marinade, flip and brush other side, then return to oven for 20 - 25 minutes.

7. When finished, remove and let rest for 5 minutes before serving. The chicken skin and marinade should have a light crust and be caramelized to a deep redish-brown.

This chicken goes great with a cool iceberg wedge dressed in a bit of asian ranch (recipe to come at a later date) or just steamed white rice with butter.

Fun tidbite: The dark redish-brown shiny drippings on the foil are delicious! Just pick them off and eat them =D

*This recipe can be adapted to chicken wings for an appetizer. Simply follow the directions on the package for thawing, do the steps 1 - 6 here and then follow the directions on the package for cooking. If necessary, double the marinade recipe.