This chicken isn't chicken about getting its injection of Carolina vinegar BBQ sauce

Injecting the whole chicken with Carolina vinegar BBQ sauce. 

This injector comes with Cajun butter and has the needle on the side.

Before smoking Sunday's chicken, it was injected with a special sauce called 'Carolina vinegar BBQ sauce.'  Along with an injection, the chicken was basted in the sauce while cooking. After cooking, the sauce was used as a condiment for an extra spoonful of goodness. The entire process was performed on a pellet grill, the grill that's the new rave for those that like to cook outdoors. 

"So we did this chicken on Sunday," said my Aunt Marge. I'm so grateful that she and husband David Fields love to cook, BBQ, grow vegetables, and golf.  Because of their active lifestyles, there's so much content available!

For this article, I'll share my aunt's whole chicken recipe, David's injection process, the Carolina sauce, and basic information on pellet grills. 

What's the process of brining a chicken?

For a simple brine, use two quarts of water along with:
1/3 cup salt
1/4 cup sugar
Let the chicken sit in the mixture for about four hours.

How do you inject the Carolina vinegar BBQ sauce into the chicken?
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First, pat it dry and inject the chicken (or other meat) in several places with the marinade.  Rub the entire chicken with olive oil and use your favorite Cajun spices (smoked paprika, kosher salt, garlic powder, ground black pepper, ground white pepper, onion powder, dried oregano, cayenne). 

How do you cook the chicken?
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The pellet grill smokes it. Set the temperature at 275 degrees and the smoke at a four for about three hours. Once the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees, let it rest for 10 minutes.

Carolina vinegar BBQ sauce

Let it sit out for 24 hours

How do you make the Carolina vinegar BBQ sauce?

2 cups apple cider
1 and 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 T salt
1T pepper
1T red pepper flakes
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Mix all ingredients in jar, then shake it (always shake before using). Let it sit out for 24 hours before using. It will last in the refrigerator for two weeks. "It's good on pork of course, but can be used to grill chicken and that's what we did," said Marge. 

"Love my favorite picture on the counter too!!" Marge

The chicken is rubbed with olive oil and sprinkled with Cajun seasonings.

How did the Fields' get interested in pellet grills? 
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"The kids gave us the grill for Christmas. My son, Bo is a cooker and loves his pellet grill and David’s son, Cody, does too! David is a diehard charcoal guy but we are learning. I think we will really like it as we figure a few more things out. I want to try salmon next. Bo says it's awesome!" Margie Davis Fields

Chicken 'hot off the grill.'  Let it rest for at least 10 minutes before serving. 

David's been using the injection method for years and has perfected the process.

What about these pellet grills? 

Pellet grills have become the hottest trend in BBQ. If you're new to pellet grilling or smoking, it's good to learn the ropes. 

For outdoor cookers, pellet grills combine the elements of a smoker, charcoal and gas grills, and an oven. The natural wood pellets are the fuel source that provides direct and indirect heat. The process...wood pellets are poured into a hopper. The pellets are fed into a cooking chamber that's powered by electricity. The pellets ignite through combustion. Air is brought in by intake fans. Then, heat and smoke are dispersed throughout the cooking area. You can read more about these grills at Pit Boss Grills.

A typical pellet grill