It's July and that means it's blueberry harvest time! This recipe for Chicken Thighs with Blueberry Barbecue Sauce is the perfect way to use the bounty of the season. It comes together in minutes with every day pantry items and has a wonderful color and flavor that would pair well on chicken, pork or even beef. You can easily double or triple the recipe and it would keep in the fridge for at least a couple weeks which makes it an awesome addition to your summer cookouts.
The sauce starts with two cups of fresh, plump blueberries. If you can find a farm stand and pick them up locally, that would be best, but if you can't find one or don't have the time, store bought blueberries work just as well.
They combine in a small pot with brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar, molasses and just two spices - allspice and cayenne pepper. The balance of the earthy and warm allspice with the subtle heat of the cayenne makes this sauce an interesting compliment to the meat. It's just right.
The mixture needs to be brought to a boil and then reduced to a simmer for about 15 minutes. During that time, the blueberries will soften and some will pop, creating a thick sauce that works well as a marinade, finishing sauce or condiment.
After simmering, the barbecue sauce can be cooled and stored in an airtight container where it will hold for a few weeks. It will be saucy with some chunky blueberries still intact and it is delicious and visually interesting. If you like that, by all means, wrap it up and call it a day. But as many of you know, Dave has a thing about "hot fruit" and he is a picky eater when it comes to textures. Since I was cooking for just him this evening, I decided to take this mix to "full on sauce" and I chose to puree it.
If you have ever played with blueberries, you will know they are insanely staining, so instead of pulling out the blender or food processor and creating a headache of a clean up project, I opted for the stainless steel, hand held immersion blender for this part.
I turned it on low and churned the mixture until all of the blueberries were pureed. It took a minute and once it was done, I went a step further and strained out the skins and seeds. I was surprised how much "pulp" was taken out of the sauce. In the end, the sauce was completely smooth and I knew it would be hubby approved as far as "creepy, hot fruit" is concerned.
Once the sauce was strained, I placed it in a glass storage container and later used half to baste boneless chicken thighs as they cooked on the grill.
We used the other half as a barbecue sauce for dipping and poured a little on top of the finished thighs. It was dark and sweet with a hint of tangy robustness that was very tasty on the chicken thighs.
Thigh meat tends to be a little juicier than breast meat and so it paired really well with the bolder flavor of the blueberry barbecue sauce. They were a match made in heaven, if you ask me!
If you wanted to get adventurous, you could even mix in a few black raspberries into this sauce as it cooked or even squeeze in a little lemon juice. It would be good with a hit or liquid smoke or a teaspoon of maple syrup.
The sauce comes together fast and looks and tastes impressive. If you decide to give it a try, start with the Chicken Thighs with Blueberry Barbecue Sauce recipe to get a feel for it. I think you will really like it and may inspire you to try a few variations to liven up your summer cookouts.
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