How to Cook Chicken Legs on the Grill

Grilled chicken legs are not only a tasty summer meal, but they are also thrifty as legs are one of the cheapest parts of the chicken. Just because they are cheap, does not mean they have to lack in flavor. Actually, the dark meat of poultry has more flavor as it contains more fat.

One of the biggest problems grilling enthusiasts face any way is with cooking times and temperatures. One of the most oftentimes asked questions is: how long do you grill chicken legs?

Tailgating Gas Grill

It legitimately isn't possible to give an exact riposte to this examine as it legitimately depends on the type of grill you are using, the grilling formula and how big the chicken legs are.

How to Cook Chicken Legs on the Grill

It legitimately is an excellent idea to invest in a good quality cooking thermometer. I personally own a voice alert electronic thermometer. It legitimately is a marvelous microscopic cooking tool and I would be lost without it. It is extremely literal, and eliminates all guessing, and guessing is not an choice when cooking meat, especially chicken.

Chicken Grilling Methods

Boil the Chicken Legs First

The goal with this formula is to cook the meat all the way through before it goes on the grill. This greatly reduces the risk of any food born illnesses and also cuts down the grilling time significantly. The downside to this formula is a serious lack of flavor. Since you will be cooking the meat on the grill for a much shorter period of time, the meat will not have a occasion to pick up that tasty grilled flavor.

Marinate Then Grill

Marinating your chicken legs first is always a good idea. Not only does it give your food a marvelous flavor, but it also keeps the meat moist during the cooking process. For the best results, marinate the chicken over night. Below is an excellent marinade that I use often and it is quite versatile. It works well with seafood like shrimp and scallops as well.

Citrus Herb Marinade

Ingredients:

4 Chicken Legs

1/4 Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 1/2 Tablespoons of Fresh Lemon Juice

1 1/2 Tablespoons Fresh Orange Juice

1/3 Cup of Freshly Chopped Parsley

1/3 Cup Freshly Chopped Cilantro

2 Cloves of Garlic Minced

1 Teaspoon of Salt

1/4 Teaspoon of Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Directions:

In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients except the chicken legs. Add chicken to the bowl with the marinade and toss to coat. Refrigerate for some hours, over night if possible.

Let's Start Grilling!

I have found that the best formula for cooking chicken legs on the grill is to first sear the meat and then terminate the cooking process over indirect heat. The succeed is a nice moist chicken leg with a delightfully crispy skin.

Step 1: take off chicken from marinade and rinse. This is to take off any ingredients from the marinade that are stuck to the chicken. If left on, this can burn. Coat the chicken with some oil to prevent it from sticking to the grill.

Step 2: Clean the grill. The best formula for cleaning a grill is to turn the grill up high and allow the heat to burn off any grease and grime. Use your grill brush to scrape the grates clean. For charcoal grills, just light up the charcoal and allow the fire to heat up the grates and scrape the grates clean.

Step 3: Heat the Grill. We are going to set up our grill for the searing/indirect cooking method. For gas grills, this is pretty easy. All you do is turn one burner up high and leave the others off. For charcoal grills, it is a microscopic more involved, but not rocket science. All you do once your charcoal is ready, is push all of your charcoal over to one side leaving half of the grill without charcoal. The side with charcoal is for searing and the other side is for the indirect cooking.

Step 4: Begin Cooking. Once your grill is good and hot, go ahead and put your chicken legs on the hot part of the grill and sear on all sides. Only sear your legs for a few minutes per side. You are seeing for a nice sear, so avoid burning the skin. After you sear them, go ahead and move them on over to the cool side of the grill and cover.

Let them cook for a good 20 minutes and then get out your basting sauce. If you used the citrus herb marinade from above, try and find a thick basting sauce that compliments the citrus flavors. Baste the legs on all sides and then cover. After other 20 minutes or so, using your thermometer, go ahead and check to see if the legs are done. You are seeing for an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

Once the legs are done, If they aren't as crispy as you like, put them on the hot side of the grill again for a few minutes before removing them from the grill.

Enjoy!

How to Cook Chicken Legs on the Grill

Four Top Rated movable Barbecue Grills

One of the advantages of having a transportable barbecue grill is that you can take it camping or tailgating. This portability allows you to cook from any place you can converyance your grill. A few of the top Bbq grills are reviewed below, along with a short summary of their benefits. Both propane grills and charcoal grills are included.

The first one is the Weber Q220. This is the ideal transportable Bbq grill. It's halfway in the middle of the small Weber Q120 and Weber's Q320 in terms of both size and cost. The Weber Q220 has a huge cooking covering of two hundred and eighty inches squared, which is space to grill fifteen hamburgers or a few hefty New York strip steaks. It has the weight of 36 pounds and is engineered to be no ifs ands or buts moved around. In terms of how much you will pay, it's midrange, usually selling in the range of two hundred dollars. This piece has a built-in climatic characteristic gauge, and it has an easy-ignition button.

Tailgating Gas Grill

Another grill is the Coleman Road Trip grill. This grill is comparable to the Weber grill mentioned above, and it also has an ingeniously engineered built-in folding leg stand. Additionally, the Coleman produces more power due to its great dual 10,000 Btu burners. The Coleman has authentic grilling with an open flame, and the burner is covered in order to preclude flares. Even though it has an attached stand, this grill folds up surprisingly easily. It's got 285 quadrilateral inches of cooking space so it can still cook for a whole party. The Coleman also has side tables along with push-button electronic ignition. If you'd like a stand for more portability, this is a good option. The Coleman even has a modular grilling surface.

Four Top Rated movable Barbecue Grills

A third selection is the Blue Rhino Gbt1030 transportable propane grill. The most great difference with the Rhino is that it's very small and light. It's designed to fold up no ifs ands or buts and has a locking top, which makes it safe to move. Weighing only 14 pounds, it's very easy to lift, but the trade off is you can only cook for a couple of population at a time. It has a hundred and twenty quadrilateral inches of room, which accommodates about four burgers plus a few veggies. There are a couple of great burners. They are controlled by two distinct knobs, so you only have to cook from the desired area. One of the surfaces is covered by a griddle for cooking food like eggs and bacon, while the other half is a normal grilling surface. The griddle can be taken off to expand the area for grilling meat. One thing to note about the Rhino grill is that it requires introductory assembly, which can take up to two hours.

Our final grill is the Go anywhere by Weber. If you like to grill with charcoal, the Weber Go anywhere is the one to choose. This grill is very cheap, usually retailing for about half a bill. Also using charcoal, a big attraction of the Go anywhere grill is that it's highly light - it weighs less than 20 pounds. It has 160 quadrilateral inches of cooking space, so it's on the smaller side. There's still plenty of space to cook for six people. Although it's supposed to be a trip grill, the Go-Anywhere can still be used as a home grill. Like all products from this company, it cooks evenly and doesn't flare up. It can take a lot of abuse - some population are still using their Weber Go-Anywhere five years after purchase. This same grill also comes in a gas model, the Weber 1520, for another ten dollars.

Four Top Rated movable Barbecue Grills