Leave it to an East Village Jewish Deli to come up with an actual American/Jewish/Asian fusion dish! That is because the Second Avenue Deli has had a Chinese chef for many years. I have enhanced this recipe with even more Asian flavor. Although this recipe calls for baking and broiling the chicken, it is definitely better on a charcoal grill.
If you are using a charcoal grill, you must have a covered grill, e.g. a Weber. Bake the chicken over indirect heat, with the cover on. To give the chicken more of a barbecued flavor, I recommend putting soaked mesquite wood chips in a shallow can (e.g. a tuna can) on the hot coals during the indirect cooking phase. For the second stage, place the chicken directly over the coals.
Ingredients:
1 14-ounch bottle of Ketchup
1 teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet
2 Tablespoons light soy sauce
2 Tablespoons dry white wine
2 Tablespoons finely chopped garlic
2 Tablespoons freshly minced ginger
2 Tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon Chinese 5-spice seasoning
1 ½ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 chickens cut into 8 pieces each
Basting sauce:
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice, plus the pulp and peel of ¼ orange
3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice¼ cup crushed canned pineapple
2 Tablespoons of freshly minced ginger
3 Tablespoons honey
¾ cup ketchup
2 Tablespoons of Hoisin sauce
1 Tablespoon of Asian sesame oil
Directions:
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix everything except the chicken and the basting sauce ingredients.
Add the chicken, making sure all pieces are well coated.
Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.
For the basting sauce, coarsely chop the orange and lemon pulp and peel. Place them, along with the citrus juices and crushed pineapple, in a food processor, and pulse until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a saucepan, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Add the honey, ketchup and Hoisin sauce, and mix thoroughly. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade, leaving only the amount of marinade that adheres to the chicken. Discard the rest.
Place in a baking dish and bake for 30 minutes.
Turn oven to broil. Brush the chicken well with basting sauce and broil for about 5 minutes (or until the chicken browns on top. Keep an eye on it or it will burn!)
Source: inspired by the Second Str