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  • Serves 8
  • Makes 24
  • 2 hours
  • Difficulty Easy
  • 8 Ingredients
May 15, 2020

95 Comments

Charcoal Chicken Fire Pit Style is here to rock your world!  You will never visit another Charcoal Chicken store again.

If you’ve ever wondered why a Charcoal Chicken tastes so good, here’s why.  The key is in the name.  CHARCOAL chicken.  That’s right chicken cooked over charcoal is always going to win out in the smoky flavour stakes.  Especially compared to an oven roasted chicken.

So we all pop down to the Charcoal Chicken shop and spend a fortune each time we want the taste. Before we developed this recipe, a trip to the Charcoal Chicken shop would set us back close to $50.  And that was just for 2 whole chickens.

Make the most of your Fire Pit!

As the cooler weather arrives, we all start staying home a lot more.  And if you’re anything like millions of Aussies, you’ve got a firepit in the back garden.  The kids might toast marshmallows while you sip your wine, but when it comes to food, that’s about it.

Why not make the most of your fire pit and make it into the perfect spot to whip up a batch of charcoal chicken.

All you need is a wire cooking rack with a handle. Camping stores are a good place to look.  Or there is the Maverick flexible basket on Amazon AU. This nifty gadget allows you to grill and flip your food with ease. It’s designed with a flexible basket which bends and moulds around food, keeping food firmly in place while cooking. The wooden handle also allows for easy flipping.

Taking your Charcoal Chicken Next Level.

We’ve given you a beautifully basic Charcoal Chicken recipe here.  It will suit the entire family because it’s full of flavour but no heat.

If you want to go next level without spice, double down on some of the base ingredients like the herbs and spices.

If you do love a really spicy Charcoal Chicken, get your hands on a Peri Peri sauce or a Peri Peri rub from the supermarket.  Any of these will add some heat and depending on what you choose it could be a whole lot of heat.

Is this the best Charcoal Chicken Recipe ever?

Once you’ve tried this recipe, we’d love to hear your thoughts.  Did it live up to your expectations? How did it compare to other recipes you’ve tried?

If you really enjoyed this recipe, hit the LOVE button up top just under the recipe photo.  The more LOVES, the more others will know it’s a recipe worth trying.


Ingredients (serves 8 | makes 24 Pieces)

  • 24 Chicken pieces (skin on, bone in if possible)
  • 1/2 cup Bertolli Light in Taste Olive Oil
  • 2 cups Fresh Herbs (oregano, thyme, sage)
  • 1 tsp Paprika
  • 1 tsp Sea Salt
  • 1 tsp Ground Mixed Pepper (red, black and white)
  • 1 large Lemon (zest the skin and squeeze the juice)
  • 6 Garlic Cloves (peeled and crushed)

Method

  1. Make a marinade paste by combining all the ingredients except the chicken. Ideally grind them all together in a mortar and pestle to make a paste or blitz in the food processor.
  2. Place the chicken pieces in a large container with a lid that seals well and then pour the marinade over the chicken. Using your hands (pop on some gloves if you do not like handling chicken) massage the marinade into each chicken piece. Refrigerate for at least an hour (best overnight).
  3. Get your fire pit pumping so that you end up with lots and lots of beautiful COALS. You do not want to try and cook your chicken while the flames are leaping because you will burn the outside and inside will be raw. You want a slow and steady heat. Our tip to perfect flavour is a combination of wood and beads. Even better if you have cedar chips or some other smoking wood (look at your BBQ store or Bunnings) to throw on just before you start cooking the chicken.
  4. Spray your wire cooking rack with olive oil and then lay all the chicken pieces side by side in the rack. Clip it shut and then you are ready to cook.
  5. Once most of the flames have died down and the coals are white hot, lay the wire rack over the top of your fire pit. Because your chicken pieces are bone in, they will take longer but the flavour will be exceptional. Be patient and you will be rewarded. Turn your chicken every 10 - 15 minutes to ensure even cooking. If cooking starts to slow down, you may need to add a few more beads (add beads not wood as you will get less flame). IMPORTANT: If you decide you want to drizzle a little olive oil over the chicken while it cooks, TAKE IT OFF THE FIRE PIT. You do not want to accidentally pour oil directly onto a fire as the flames could go up quickly!!
  6. Test your chicken by piercing the thickest piece close to a bone. When the juices run clear, the chicken is cooked. Carefully remove from the wire rack and wrap in foil for 10 minutes before serving. This will ensure the juices are reabsorbed by the chicken.

Bertolli Light In Taste Olive Oil for Bertolli Recipe Integration

We used Bertolli Light in Taste Olive Oil in this recipe and couldn't be happier with the way the subtle olive flavour added to the result.

Bertolli is the world’s no. 1 olive oil brand. Bertolli Light in Taste is pure olive oil that has a mild flavour that’s still full of character. It’s especially good when you want your olive oil to play a supporting role or when cooking with lighter flavours. You can use it anywhere you would use vegetable oil. It’s particularly good to use when baking, you get wonderfully moist cakes and it’s so easy to use. Bertolli olive oil contains just crushed olives, nothing else. Bertolli Light in Taste Olive Oil is available at Woolworths and selected IGA stores nationally.
  • Oh my lord…..yes please this sounds amazing

    Reply

  • Easily done on the BBQ as well with some charcoal under the grill.

    Reply

  • Yum! I just need a fire pit for these!

    Reply

  • Yesssssssss! I love cooking on the fire

    Reply

  • Yum I need this is my life!!

    Reply

  • Looks very tasty and would. be a great dinner

    Reply

  • love charcoal flavoured chicken.
    just got a fire pit, now need to purchase this nifty grilling tool

    Reply

  • This looks amazing and my mouth is watering right now.

    Reply

  • Just wanna reach in and nick a piece

    Reply

  • We don’t have a fire pit, but I like the sound of this marinade and may just do this in the oven.

    Reply

  • Making note of this for our camping adventures, Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  • I would never have thought to do this. Looks ideal for those summer dinners.

    Reply

  • I was reading the ingredients and when I got to the lemon, I stopped. Unfortunately citrus and I don’t like each other, dangerously so. Also I don’t have a firepit and certainly wouldn’t get any use out of one either

    Reply

  • This would be great camping!

    Reply

  • We don’t have a fire pit, but this looks amazing. Making my mouth water.

    Reply

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