Friday 15 January 2016

Buttermilk Grilled Chicken


What?? Buttermilk again??? hee..hee...hee...This happened last year where I promised that I won't buy anymore buttermilk. But then...... You see, my carton of buttermilk expired (yeah, what's new?). But I was not going to throw it out until I was sure that it had gone bad.

I opened the carton and poured the contents into a big mixing bowl. The color looked alright and it smelled alright. I mean it smelled like what buttermilk should smell like - sour. I did not have a taste though. So in went a whole chicken that was already cut into 8 pieces. Yup, I had every intention of making another round of buttermilk fried chicken.

Marinated chicken after removing buttermilk.
But later in the day, I changed my mind. I just felt a sense of dread thinking of deep frying the chicken. That was when I googled to confirm if it was possible to grill the buttermilk chicken. To my delight, I found many recipes. So yes, I can grill buttermilk chicken.


I removed the chicken pieces from the buttermilk and marinated them in a mixture of crushed garlic, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, dried oregano, salt and black pepper. I left these to marinate in the fridge overnight.


The next day, I grilled the chicken. It didn't smell good in the beginning but after 30 minutes or so, it smelled alright. I mean, it smelt really good. I was looking forwards to digging in.


At half time, I turned the tray and noted that the chicken had a good color. I knew it was going to be good.

Oh yes, it was good in terms of the flavors. Buttermilk chicken is supposed to be moist and tender but my chicken was on the dry side.


It could be that I grilled it for too long or the quality of the meat had deteriorated due to being in the freezer for too long. I will try this recipe again with fresh chicken. But that won't happen anytime soon because buttermilk seems to have disappeared from the supermarket shelves. But I reckon I could do this with plain yogurt and get the same results.









Buttermilk Grilled Chicken
Recipe source : Phong Hong

Ingredients :
- 1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
- 600 ml buttermilk
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp black pepper or more
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 bulb garlic, peeled and crushed (I used a garlic press)
- 3 tbsp olive oil

Method :
1. In a big mixing bowl, add chicken and buttermilk. Let soak for about 12 hours or overnight.
2. To make the marinade, mix smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper, salt, garlic and olive oil in a big mixing bowl.
3. Remove chicken pieces from the buttermilk and add to the marinade.
4. Using your hands, rub the chicken with the marinade, making sure every piece is well coated.
5. Leave to marinate in the fridge overnight or for at least 4 to 6 hours.
6. Take the chicken out of the fridge to come to room temperature and grill on a wire rack at 180C for 35-40 minutes or until chicken is browned and cook through.

37 comments:

  1. Mmmm.... this grilled chicken looks very delicious! Thanks for sharing, Phong Hong :)

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  2. Yummmmmm!!! I love baking/grilling/roasting chicken in the oven, nice! Best part, all the fat would have dripped off the meat.

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  3. Hi Phong Hong, wahaha! lovely chicken, the healthy version, too. It will be faster if you make your own buttermilk, then. About the 'dry' chicken, perhaps you can try baking them at 200 C for 20 minutes then baked with top heat for another 10 minutes - the meat may not be dry.

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    1. Thanks for the suggestion, Kimmy! I will do that next time.

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  4. You're quite a daredevil, PH...always consuming stuff that are past expiry! >.< I've not marinated chicken with buttermilk before but I've read that it tenderises the meat. As for baking chicken, I never set it for more than 30 minutes if they're chicken pieces (and not a whole chicken).

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    1. I survived so far hah..hah... You are right, chicken pieces cook faster and too long will dry them out.

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  5. Your chicken looks delicious! I like the spices that goes into your marinade. I am very kiamsiap, I don't buy buttermilk. I just mixed a cup of milk with a tablespoon of lime or lemon juice and set aside for 5 minutes. Haha! Me, very kiamsiap! Yes, buttermilk makes the chicken very moist and tender. A great idea to try again with fresh chicken pieces, as your marinade sounds delicious!

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    1. Hi Joyce! I am kiamsiap too but sometimes my kiamsiap button is switched off hah..hah...

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  6. I was looking for the punchline, where you said "...but the remaining buttermilk was not enough, so I went to buy another carton, so now I have some more stashed in my fridge". Did you leave that part out? :D :D

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    1. hah..hah... no lah because I couldn't get anymore buttermilk. I wonder who is buying them up :(

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  7. haha, what's new?? and i must support what RealGunners said, else why was there a NEW expiring carton of buttermilk in the fridge?? hahaha.. okay okay, sshhhh, we understand that and let's all assume that carton of buttermilk was some gift and you just tucked in into the fridge and two days before expiring you suddenly remembered it.. :p

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    1. hah..hah... I was just looking for buttermilk but no stock lah.

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  8. i think your grilled chicken looks good and i have not actually tried buttermilk chicken, i am very sure i would like to sink my teeth into those chicken pieces, hahaha.. the skin looks so sexy with the golden brown color.. okay you said the chicken pieces were on the dried side, guess they have been sitting inside the fridge for some time?? your next attempt with fresh chicken is when?? then there is another reason for you to get one more carton of the buttermilk, and then keep it till expiring, haha~~ :p

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    1. I don't know if any restaurant sells buttermilk chicken. Maybe not because buttermilk is pricey. Well, if I can get buttermilk, I'll do this recipe again and make sure I don;t cook for too long.

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    2. I read that you can make your own buttermilk by using low fat milk and add a bit of vinegar into it.

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  9. Looks damn good and you're making me hungry!

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  10. Good that you did not throw away the buttermilk but use it after you have determined that it looks and smell ok so that you do not waste food. Glad that the chicken turned out tasty for you.

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    1. I don't like to waste and noted that buttermilk and sour cream are still ok to use one week after expiry.

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  11. These buttermilk grilled chicken are so yummy ! Every piece so nicely browned. Like these golden colour. I've used some leftover buttermilk to marinate some small nuggets bite size chicken. Yeah tasted good.

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    1. Yup, buttermilk makes the chicken so tender and tasty :)

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  12. I think I want to try this recipe. The grilled chicken look so delicious.

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  13. wow looks so delicious. thanks for sharing, gotta try ;)

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  14. Yum yum..... can imagine the taste now....sedap

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  15. Hi PH, buttermilk grilled chicken sounds much healthier and manageable compared to deep frying ;)

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    1. Hi Yen! Yes, less hassle and that's why I prefer grilling :)

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  16. They look so yummy! Buttermilk chicken is something I learn today.
    *LIKE*

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    1. Amy, hope you try it one day. The fried one taste better hah..hah...

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  17. This Buttermilk is new to me and i had no idea how it is supposed to be eaten or drink or cook. Now I know you could fry delicious chicken.

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    1. Some people drink it. I use it for baking and cooking. Buttermilk fried chicken is awesome. Try it!

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