Okay it’s confession time. I am a food blogger and self proclaimed foodie and I dislike smoked barbecue food. It’s not the sauce. It’s typically the smoke flavor. It over powers all of the other flavors for me and I can’t help but feel like I am eating the grill drippings instead of the food. For some reason my palette just doesn’t respond to smoked flavors. Naturally my husband and I have different tastes in barbecue sauces and this Spicy Chipotle Honey Barbecue Chicken is the answer.
The barbecue sauce is smoky without the use of liquid smoke. Instead I used Chipotles in Adobo sauce. Between the Chipotle peppers and a little molasses, the sauce is smoky without tasting like the actual fire pit. A win!
You’ll want to make sure to use one Chipotle pepper and then add more for your desired heat level. The first time I made this, I added 3 and I have to say it was knock your socks off hot. Thankfully no one has a problem with spicy food around here, so that was okay.
I think this sauce would be perfect as the base for a Barbecue Chicken Pizza. Make sure you check out my easy 5 Ingredient Barbecue Chicken Pizza. I think if you grilled chicken wings, it would be a hit too. Homemade barbecue sauce is really so easy. You can taste as you go and add a little of this or that to sweeten things up or spice things up. You are truly in control of your barbecue sauce destiny.
Because this sauce is so flavorful, I just brush a little on in the last 5 minutes of cooking. No need to drench it, but you can leave some out for dipping. I definitely recommend that.
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Spicy Chipotle Honey Barbecue Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 Chicken Breasts, 4 oz. each
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1 Chipotle Pepper in Adobo Sauce You can add more to reach your desired heat level. 3 or more will be very spicy.
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup Molasses
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 tbsp. Dijon Mustard
- 1 tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
Instructions
- For the Sauce: Saute the onions and garlic in a teaspoon of olive oil until translucent. Add in the ketchup, brown sugar, honey, molasses, Dijon Mustard, chipotle, and apple cider vinegar. Stir together for 2-3 minutes. Use an immersion blender to puree or transfer to a regular blender.
- Make sure to pound the chicken breasts to even thickness. Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken. Grill on the first side for 5 minutes. Do not flip the chicken until you see it getting done around the edges. You want good grill marks.
- When you're ready to flip, brush the top side of the chicken with an even layer of sauce. Allow the second side to finish cooking. This will take 4-5 minutes.
- I like to use an instant read thermometer to be sure the chicken has reached 165 degrees. Allow the chicken to rest 10-15 minutes before serving.