Smoked ‘Marry Me’ Chicken by Sam and Shauna

This whole French chicken is raised on a specialised diet of mostly corn, which adds a unique depth of flavour and delicate sweet taste of this beautiful meat. The name for ‘Marry Me’ Chicken, was from Lindsay Funston’s 2016 recipe for Delish and came about accidentally. After cooking the chicken dish, Ms. Funston’s video producer took a bite and declared, ‘I’d marry you for that chicken!’ according to the New York Times. This is the enthusiastic reaction that sparked the name.

Now we’re not sure if you should use this recipe as a precursor to a proposal, but it’s certainly an absolute banger of a dish, boasting extra umami from the sundried tomatoes and parmesan and using a premium, beautiful chicken. We give this a smokehouse twist by smoking the chicken to take this to the next level.

Serves 2-4

Method

Step 1: Set your BBQ with a lid up for indirect grilling. Regulate the temperature of your BBQ at 160C.

Step 2: Brush with neutral oil and season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper.

Step 3: Cook indirectly and add a few chinks of cherry wood or a few handfuls of soaked cherry wood chips. Using an instant read thermometer, cook until the internal temp of the breast reaches 70C and set aside. The chicken will not be thoroughly cooked at this stage as we’ll cook it further in the sauce.

Step 4: In a large oven/BBQ proof skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon oil. Stir in garlic, thyme, and chilli flakes. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Step 5: Stir in stock, tomatoes, cream, and Parmesan; season with salt. Bring to a simmer.

Step 6: Cut the chicken into portions, legs, thighs, breasts, wings then return chicken and any accumulated juices to skillet.

Step 7: Continue to cook on your BBQ for another 20 minutes. Check the temperature of the chicken is over 75C. When ready remove the pan from the heat.

Step 8: Transfer the chicken to a platter. Spoon sauce over. Top with extra basil and serve with either mash, fries, pasta, greens or a simple green salad. It’s up to you of you want to serve this dish with a marriage proposal on the side!

Enjoy!

Watch Sam and Shauna create this delicious dish on our Instagram page! Click Here

This recipe was crafted by Sam and Shauna of Hang Fire BBQ, award-winning BBQ chefs and experts in Southern Soul Food. Bringing their unique expertise, they’ve created these dishes to add bold flavours and a touch of smokehouse magic to your table.

Where you can find them:

• @hangfirebbq
• https://samandshauna.com/