Blackberry-Barbecued Chicken

Ingredients

Barbecue Sauce

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 cup walla walla onion or other sweet onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 2 pints blackberries (fresh or frozen)
• 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 3 1/2 lbs whole chickens, cut into 8 serving pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Directions

1. 1

   To make the barbecue sauce, in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the canola oil.

2. 2

   Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 5 minutes.

3. 3

   Add the wine, berries, brown sugar, and soy sauce and cook until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes.

4. 4

   Remove from the heat and pass the sauce through a food mill placed over a bowl, or puree in a blender or food processor and pass through a fine-mesh sieve placed over a bowl.

5. 5

   Set aside.

6. 6

   While the sauce is cooking, prepare a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill, or preheat a gas or electric grill to medium-high.

7. 7

   Oil the grill rack.

8. 8

   Sprinkle the chicken with the salt and pepper.

9. 9

   Place the chicken pieces, skin side down, on the grill rack and cook for 5 minutes.

10. 10

    Baste with the sauce and cook for 5 minutes longer.

11. 11

    Turn the pieces, baste again, and cook until the juices run clear when a thigh is pierced, about 5 minutes longer.

12. 12

    Some pieces will cook more quickly than others.

13. 13

    The white-meat pieces, for example, should be moved to the outsides of the rack where the heat is less intense.

14. 14

    Transfer the chicken pieces to a platter and brush with additional sauce.

15. 15

    Serve immediately.