How to Cook Chicken on an Infrared Grill

Do you love barbeques and cooking outdoors with friends and family? Well, infrared grilling is the new outdoor cooking trend! Infrared grilling is an excellent way of quickly preparing that tender, juicy, and moist kind of meat.

Infrared grilling is unique when it comes to grilling because of the grilling technology used to manufacture infrared grills. An infrared grill uses electricity or gas to heat an infrared radiant panel between the grates and the flame, which then radiates intense heat to the food.

This kind of grilling is preferred to other kinds of grilling. This is because infrared grilling retains up to 35% more of the natural juices, keeping your meat juicier. It also cooks faster because of the radiant energy that heats the food directly, and the meat is also cooked evenly.

Cooking chicken on an infrared grill can be challenging. This is because a chicken has both white and dark meat, which don’t cook at the same rate. Also, as we all know, chickens do not have a round uniform shape compared to a steak.

When it comes to grilling chicken, there are a few tricks and techniques that you need to apply to avoid getting dry, undercooked, or burned chicken afterwards. Here is a step by step guide that will help you get that mouth watering chicken without any problems.

How to Cook Chicken on an Infrared Grill: Step by Step

Ingredients

Full Chicken
Extra virgin olive or canola oil
Salt
Garlic powder
Ginger powder
Black pepper powder
Paprika powder

Cooking Guide

Mix the spices and the seasonings in a bowl.
Apply the olive oil to the chicken to help hold the spices.
Massage the spices to the chicken for 2 minutes.
Preheat the grill to 350° – 400°F.
Grease the grill surface with a little bit of oil.
Add chicken.
Close the lid and cook for 8 min or until it is browned.
Rotate the chicken and close the lid.
Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 7 to 10 more minutes.
Check the internal temperature to determine whether chicken is well cooked. It should range between 165° to 170°F. Alternatively, you can cut a piece into the middle of the chicken. If the cutout piece is white, it means the chicken is cooked – if it still has some pink color, that means your chicken needs a little bit more cooking.

Common Mistakes When Cooking Chicken on an Infrared Grill

As outlined above, we have some simple steps on how to cook chicken on an infrared grill. However, some common mistakes can easily ruin your chicken.

Here’s how to avoid these common mistakes when you get ready to grill.

Leaving the Grill Unattended

Leaving the grill unattended is a common mistake that you can make and end up burning your chicken. Unlike other kinds of grills, the infrared grill is super hot. This means that you need to stick around in order to be able to regulate the temperature.

As you start, a high temperature would be ideal, but as the meat cooks, you should reduce it to medium. Otherwise, you will be surprised to find either an overcooked piece of meat or a dry burned piece.

Using a Fork When Grilling

When you are cooking your chicken on an infrared grill, it is not advisable to use a fork. When you use a fork, you poke the chicken as you turn it. This makes the chicken lose the juice that is supposed to keep it moist and you may end up with a dry piece of chicken.

It is always advisable for you to use grilling tongs or a spatula while grilling your chicken.

Using a Wet Chicken

This is a small step that you are likely to overlook, but it might cost you that mouthwatering taste you have been anticipating as you grill your chicken. Before grilling your chicken, you need to pat it dry.

Wet skin causes steam, therefore making the salt and seasonings not adhere to the chicken and penetrating to the inside of the chicken to bring out that flavorful taste.

How to Make Tastier Chicken on an Infrared Grill

Soak Chicken in Saltwater Before Grilling

This is a small trick that will help you get your chicken tasty and juicy. You just need to soak your chicken in salty water between 30 minutes and 1 hour before cooking. This helps the chicken absorb water through osmosis, maintaining that outside crispness while keeping it moisturized on the inside.

Marinating the Chicken Like a Pro

You can also marinate your chicken, preferably using natural flavors overnight. Marinating makes the flavors penetrate inside the chicken and brings out that juicy taste. It also helps tenderize the meat. The tender meat will spare you lots of time you will use when grilling.

Spicing up Using Seasoned Fruits and Vegetables

You can use seasoned fruits like lemons, oranges, rosemary, coriander, and others to spice up your kitchen. These fruits are not only healthy, but also great at adding flavor and delicious scents to your chicken. So, don’t just limit yourself with what’s on the spice shelf – try out fruits and vegetables too. You will love the results!

Conclusion

We can all agree that chicken is one of the healthiest and also one of the most delicious kinds of meat around for your grill. Chicken can be cooked in many ways, but when it’s cooked on an infrared grill, it’s tastier and healthier. Grilling it sounds easy, but if you do not do it right, you may not get the best result.

In this article, we have outlined a step by step guide that you can use to avoid common mistakes that can mess up your chicken grilling, as well as tips and tricks you can use to get the best results.

Armed with this guideline and recipe, you are finally equipped to make the most delicious chicken on an infrared grill. Enjoy firing up that grill!