Spicy, Sweet and Sticky Chicken Thighs Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you get sauce to stick to chicken thighs? ›

Set your oven to broil and apply a thin coat of sauce to the meat; make sure you cover it completely but don't glob it on. Now put the meat on a rack beneath the broiler and wait until you see the sauce starting to bubble (should be no more than 1-2 minutes if you've applied enough sauce and your oven is hot enough).

Spices like smoked paprika, cumin, coriander, cayenne, and thyme will make the most flavorful spice rub for your chicken, so make sure to always have your pantry stocked with some spices. Preheat a cast iron or non-stick pan over medium-high heat for 2 minutes with 1 tablespoon of oil.

I like to open and close the lid of the barbecue every few minutes, making sure to flip the chicken (with grill tongs) and to move it around if there are any flames on the skin. You don't want to burn the skin, so make sure you keep a close eye on the meat and don't leave the barbecue until it's fully cooked.

Barbecue sauce typically contains sugar that will brown faster than the meat. This can make it difficult to tell when the chicken is done. To ensure you don't pull the chicken off too soon, add the BBQ sauce when you're nearly done cooking the meat.

Sugar doesn't thicken in quite the same way as starch or fat, but it does make your sauce stickier, and getting your sauce to stick to the food is the entire point. Adding sugar to water creates a solution that is thicker than water, and further heating (boiling or simmering) makes it even thicker.

Unlike chicken breasts, chicken thighs and drumsticks actually become more tender the longer they cook. That's because of their makeup. Dark meat has an abundant amount of connective tissue, which dissolves into gelatin as the meat cooks, rendering it juicy and tender.

First loosen the chicken skin — this can be done by carefully sliding a paring knife underneath the skin, or by hand — and then thoroughly incorporate both your seasoning and a layer of fat under the skin. Next coat the chicken generously with salt, pepper, spices, or a dry rub.

Low and slow cooking methods like braising, stewing, or smoking are most effective when trying to create tender, succulent chicken.

If it looks OK and smells OK but feels extra slimy, sticky or dry from freezer burn, it's time to say goodbye. “Raw chicken can have a somewhat slimy feel to it, but if it has a slimy feel after it is rinsed off and patted dried, it's no longer good,” Danielson said.

What is the pink goo coming out of chicken? ›

Many people think the pink liquid in packaged fresh chicken is blood, but it is mostly water that was absorbed by the chicken during the chilling process.

Spoiled chicken may be slimy or sticky to the touch or have an off odor. If you notice any of these things, discard the meat (3).

While washing meat and poultry to remove dirt, slime, fat or blood may have been appropriate decades ago when many slaughtered and prepared their own food, the modern food safety system doesn't require it. Meat and poultry are cleaned during processing, so further washing is not necessary.

Deboning chicken thighs is not always necessary. It depends on the recipe and personal preference. Bone-in chicken thighs can add flavor and moisture when cooking, but if you want boneless, you can debone them using a sharp boning knife. Leftover chicken bones can also be used for making chicken stock.

It might look small, but there is often a huge amount of fat below the surface as well. After all the thighs are trimmed, do a onceover to see if you missed anything. This same method works for boneless, skinless chicken thighs too. All that fat is still on the underside and should be removed before cooking.

Coating chicken wings in flour provides a slightly roughened exterior, giving the sauce a better grip on the surface. As the wings cook, the flour forms a delicate crust that not only seals in juices but creates the ideal foundation for the sauce to adhere.

Once the chicken is done cooking, cut it up while it is still warm to maximize the exposed surface area to soak up sauce.

Drizzle a light layer of olive oil onto the chicken if you want the rub to stick better. Olive oil helps the dry rub adhere to the meat so it's less likely to fall off while you're cooking it. Put a coin-sized amount of olive oil on the chicken and spread it evenly across the sides of the chicken.

A pretty easy trick that helps the sauce to stick to the pasta is to add a bit of the water you cooked the pasta in to your sauce. Basically, move your hot pasta directly from the water to the sauce, cook the pasta in the sauce for a minute or two, and then add in a few tablespoons of the starchy pasta water.