Perfect Barbecued Chicken

Barbecue season is fast approaching!

I love cooking on the barbecue in summer - to be outside, and to avoid making such a big mess in the kitchen. But chicken has always been a problem. It seems like by the time it's cooked on the inside, it's burned on the outside.

Well, I found the solution!

This involves being in the kitchen a little bit, but the mess is minimal.

Simply get out a big baking sheet - one with a rim - and cover it with aluminum foil. Then lay out your chicken pieces in a single layer. Salt and pepper them to suit your taste.

Now, while you're getting things ready and the barbecue is heating, put them in the oven at 375 degrees for a half hour. This will par-cook the chicken so it doesn't need to stay so long on the grill in order to get done.

When you take it out of the oven, apply your favorite barbecue sauce and finish cooking it on the grill.

Barbecue season at last!

First, sorry for the long absence. Our hard-drive crashed! We had a back-up, which is a laptop, but typing on it is a chore. I think I averaged about two typos per word.

Summer seems to have finally arrived in North Idaho - sunshine for 3 days now! So Carl has taken some of his cooking outdoors to the Barbecue. Why is it that even though we have a gas grill (no charcoal aroma) steak and burgers smell better when cooked on the barbecue?

Meanwhile, he's also gotten hooked on frozen veggies cooked in the basket in the top of the rice steamer. Just turn it on and set the timer for 15 minutes - no worries about getting things overdone, and the nutrients stay in the veggies. It works for fresh things too - he used it for asparagus and it turned out perfect.

Hope you have sunshine, too!