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Grilled Huli Huli Chicken on a wooden platter with fresh herbs and pineapple wedges
5 from 2 votes
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Grilled Hawaiian Huli Huli Chicken

Quick brined chicken grilled and glazed with a pineapple soy ginger bbq Huli Huli sauce.  An easy family favorite chicken dish.

Course Dinner, lunch
Cuisine American
Keyword grilled chicken, Grilled Hawaiian Huli Huli Chicken, huli huli chicken
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Brine time 3 hours
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings 4 servings
Calories 470 kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken roasting

Brining liquid

  • 1 gallon water
  • 1/2 cup kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 2 bay leaves

Chicken Rub

  • 2 tbsp kosher salt
  • 2 tbsp garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp paprika
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp ground pepper
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne

Huli Huli Sauce

  • 1 cup pineapple juice
  • 1/2 cup ketchup
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tbsp ginger fresh grated
  • 1 lime juiced

Instructions

Brining Liquid:

  1. Cut chicken in half and remove the back bone.

  2. In a large pot, bowl, or brining bucket, mix water, brown sugar, 1/2 cup kosher salt, and bay leaves.  Stir until salt has dissolved.  Make sure the water is cool before adding chicken.

  3. Place chicken in brining liquid and refrigerate for 3-5 hours.

Huli Huli Sauce:

  1. In a medium size sauce pan, add all of the huli huli sauce ingredients until smooth.  Simmer over low heat until sauce mixture is reduced by 1/3.  Remove from heat.  Sauce can be made up to 2 weeks in advance and stored in refrigerator.

Chicken Rub:

  1. Place all of the rub ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine.  

  2. Remove chicken from the brine and rinse well under cold water.  Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.  Rub lightly with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle about half of the rub ingredients over all sides of the chicken.  The chicken can be refrigerated overnight or until ready to use.

  3. When ready to cook, place chicken halves on a hot grill.  Turn the grill to low and off set the heat.  Turning off a portion of the grill and cooking the chicken on that side, while the other sections of the grill are on med/high heat.  Cook for 15 minutes per side or until the chicken has fulling cooked basting the last 10 minutes of grill time.  

Recipe Notes

To cook in a smoker (which is amazing):  Follow instructions for brining and making bbq sauce.  Place each chicken half in a smoker heated to 225F degrees, breast side up. Smoke for approx. 45 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the smoker and turn up the heat/flame of the smoker.  Return  chicken breast side up to the smoker and continue cooking until the internal temperature of the chicken breast reaches 165F degrees basting with bbq sauce every 5 minutes or so. 

 

Yummy grilled Huli Huli chicken leftovers will keep well in the refrigerator for up to 3 or 4 days.

Nutrition Facts
Grilled Hawaiian Huli Huli Chicken
Amount Per Serving (4 servings)
Calories 470 Calories from Fat 252
% Daily Value*
Fat 28g43%
Saturated Fat 8g40%
Cholesterol 142mg47%
Sodium 1710mg71%
Potassium 442mg13%
Carbohydrates 14g5%
Fiber 0g0%
Sugar 11g12%
Protein 35g70%
Vitamin A 345IU7%
Vitamin C 3.3mg4%
Calcium 61mg6%
Iron 1.9mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.