Grandma Barb’s Baked BBQ Chicken
I grew up on a lot of bbq chicken recipes. Just like macaroni and cheese, it seems like everyone in my family has their own way of preparing baked bbq chicken. This is my grandma Barb’s recipe. I feature a lot of her down-home, tried, and true recipes on this site, like her fluffy yeast rolls, moist cream cheese pound cake, and cornbread dressing to name a few. They never disappoint which is why I’ve been begging her to create a cookbook.
This bbq chicken recipe is pretty easy. It’s super juicy and tender. Grandmother would whip this up on weekdays and serve it with roasted corn, stove-top mac n cheese, yeast rolls, green beans, and of course some good ol’ fashioned, ice-cold sweet tea to wash it all down. Ahhhh…to be a child again. I didn’t know how good I had it!
This bbq chicken recipe isn’t saucy like your typical baked barbecue chicken. The homemade bbq sauce is thin and bakes right into the chicken as it cooks. Â This isn’t a very bold style sauce which makes it pair up great with just about any side dish. It has that nice taste of tangy, sweet BBQ flavor without being too overpowering (not that I would ever complain about an overpowering bbq sauce)
Out of all the baked BBQ chicken recipes I make, my son seems to like this one the best. I guess because it’s not too spicy or smokey.
Watch me make this easy, baked bbq chicken recipe from start to finish!
Get the Recipe: Grandma Barb's Baked BBQ Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 small chicken, cut up (5 lbs)
- garlic pepper seasoning
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup water, I don't always add water but in the video, I did, forgot to mention
- 6 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2-3 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons prepared mustard
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450.
- Place chicken on a foil-lined baking sheet and season both sides generously with garlic pepper seasoning.
- Mix all of the remaining ingredients in a bowl to create the bbq sauce.
- Place the sauce in the microwave to melt the butter if needed.
- Cover both sides of the chicken with bbq sauce.
- Bake skin side up for 40-45 minutes, basting with the bbq sauce every 15 minutes.
- Turn the oven to broil for the last two minutes of baking and broil for 1-2 minutes to crisp up the skin. Watch it carefully.
- Remove from oven and let chicken rest for about 5-7 minutes before serving.
Notes
For a smoky flavor, sprinkle the chicken with hickory salt or liquid smoke before baking.
Be careful not to overcook. Depending on the size of your chicken, you may need to adjust the cooking times.
Great recipe! Everybody loved it!!! So easy to make and it tastes amazing. I used half the amount of water but a little extra sugar, it was great!
Great recipe!! I loved the bbq sauce and so did everyone else. Next time I’ll use maybe half the water the recipe calls for, my only issue was that it was a little too thin but the flavor was still there and the chicken turned out amazing still
Thank you Monique! This recipe is a keeper. I have made this chicken three times and every time it’s right on point! You are an awesome cook, thank you for sharing your grandma’s recipe.
So I used this recipe and OMG talk about good bbq chicken! I actually decided to use the exact same thing with TURKEY LEGS in the CROCK POT for 8 hours and OMG. This is just the best bbq sauce and best recipe I have ever made. I truly am in love and make it literally every week because our farmers market has really good chicken legs for a dollar a pound sometimes so I stock up 😀 Thank you so much for sharing this recipe it literally changed our home and made chicken yummy! I actually am cooking a really late dinner right now!!!! 😀
i love this recipe! made it for the first time last night and it was a hit! I had my daughters (6 & 4yo) make the bbq sauce and the had a blast, pouring and mixing. Then, into the oven it went! (i did bake at 425 instead of 450) When this BBQ chicken came out, it smelled awesome, but tasted even better. My pickest eater (4yo) asked for seconds. This was an instant hit! Thank you so much for sharing
SIDENOTE: i feel like a superhero, who knew i could make my OWN BBQ SAUCE?
I honestly was wonder what all the hype was able because when I made mine the sauce was runny and it did not coat the chicken very well at all. This was after baking for over an hour. It was really just okay for me the night I cooked it then…
I had it for leftovers the next day and boy oh boy was it DELICIOUS!!!!
The BBQ sauce was sticky and so much more flavorful. Will definitely make it again and this time let the chicken cool a lot longer when I take it out the over before serving.