Homemade BBQ Sauce & BBQ Chicken Recipes

After the 5k on Saturday morning, the day turned into the rainy, grey day that it was supposed to be all along. I’m very thankful that we had that brief window of perfect weather to run the race in the morning! 🙂

Saturday night was definitely a “staying in” kind of evening so I planned a dinner and a movie date with two girlfriends at my place. No matter how often we try to get together for a girls’ night – we always end up saying “it feels like it’s been too long!” Does that happen to everyone else, too? 🙂

I’ve been dying to try making my own BBQ sauce, but I don’t eat BBQ very often so it has sort of been on the back burner. But, I thought some BBQ chicken would be the perfect low-key dinner for our girls’ night! And after tasting this sauce, I may be eating BBQ more often. It’s super quick and easy to throw together, and made from ingredients you probably already have in your house.

Homemade BBQ Sauce
Makes approximately 1 ½ cups sauce

– 6 ounces tomato paste
– ¾ cup ketchup
– ½ cup chicken (or veggie) stock
– 3 garlic cloves, minced or pasted
– 2 tbsp brown sugar
– 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
– 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
– 1 ½ tbsp cider vinegar
– 1 tsp smoked paprika (regular paprika will work)
– 2 tsp cracked black pepper

Mix all ingredients in a medium sauce pot and cook over medium-low heat until mixture thickens to desired consistency. I cooked mine for about 10-15 minutes. If the mixture appears too thick, you can thin it out with another splash of stock.

I used the sauce to make some BBQ chicken in my cast iron skillet.

BBQ Baked Chicken
Serves 4-6.

– 4 chicken breasts (or thighs, or other meat – it’s up to you!)
– Homemade BBQ Sauce (recipe above)
– Coconut oil, olive oil, or other cooking oil
– Salt and pepper

This is a quick and easy recipe to throw together! 🙂 Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Next, I cut my chicken breasts in half because they were absolutely huge. Next, put a few tablespoons of your cooking oil into your cast iron skillet (or other oven-safe skillet) and allow it to heat up. I used coconut oil because it has a higher smoke point then olive oil, and I have a particularly sensitive fire alarm. And my cats hate the fire alarm. It makes them make faces like this.

Salt and pepper the chicken and add to the skillet. Cook 3-4 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. You’re just looking to sear the chicken, don’t worry about cooking it all the way through. Once both sides of the chicken are golden brown, coat the chicken in BBQ sauce and transfer to the oven. Cook for 10 minutes, or until the meat is cooked through.

Serve with your favorite BBQ sides, and additional sauce on the side for dipping!