This black pepper vinegar sauce is very much an ode to the vinegar-based barbecue sauce served in the restaurants and homes of eastern North Carolina. When you hear barbecue referred to as “Carolina style,” you know it means that your pulled pork, ribs, or chicken will be paired with a tangy, often mustard-laced, and always tomato-free vinegary sauce. If you have the wherewithal—and the will—to cold-smoke your chicken as we do in the restaurant, by all means do so, but simply roasting the chicken in the oven will more than suffice. Either way, you’ll be looking at an incredibly flavorful chicken dish.
Recipe information
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Black Pepper Vinegar Sauce
Chicken
Preparation
Step 1
To make the sauce, whisk together the mustard, honey, vinegar, pepper, and salt in a medium bowl. Combine the canola and olive oils and then slowly add to the mustard mixture, whisking until emulsified. Let sit at room temperature while you prepare the chicken, or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Step 2
Brush the entire chicken with the oil and lightly season inside and out with salt and pepper. If desired, cold-smoke the chicken for 20 minutes according to the directions on page 249.
Step 3
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Step 4
Put the chicken, breast side up, on a rack set inside a large roasting pan. Roast the chicken until it begins to turn light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350°F and continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh reads 155°F, about 1 hour. Remove the chicken from the oven, tent with foil, and let rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Step 5
Drizzle some of the sauce onto a large platter, top with the carved chicken, and place the spoonbread on the side. Serve extra sauce on the side.
