Dry-Rubbed Chicken with Potatoes, Coleslaw and Green Beans

Credit: Catherine Roscoe Barr

Save time by seasoning the chicken and potatoes with a ready-made dry rub and cooking them in the same pan

Even without a BBQ, this dry-rubbed chicken with potatoes was perfectly succulent

Last week I attended the Memphis Blues Barbeque House 10th anniversary party at their original location on West Broadway. It was a packed house and guests were treated to a Carolina Whole Pig Pickin’ – two whole pigs were cooked in the BBQ pit for eight hours and then picked clean in a matter of minutes – and an incredibly good selection of wines including a new favourite, Bartier Scholefield’s Rosé Table Wine. Delish!

I have the Memphis Blues cookbook, Bringin’ Southern BBQ Home, out from the library and decided to try some of the recipes last night. For me, the worst thing about the cookbook is that the recipes look lip-smackingly amazing but most of them require a BBQ, which I don’t currently have. Staring at page after page of recipes for succulent pork, tender beef, and juicy chicken was a bit disheartening until I decided to do the best I could with my oven.

As you may know, I like to cut as many corners as possible so I decided on the dry-rubbed rotisserie chicken recipe because I received a Memphis Blues all-purpose dry rub (which will soon be available to purchase at each of their five locations) in my goody bag as I left the party. The all-purpose dry rub recipe appears in the cookbook, and I’ll include it below. 

Even if you don’t have a BBQ, this is a great cookbook with lots of recipes that you can modify to make in your oven. The chicken and potatoes were fantastic but since I don’t have a rotisserie, they needed basting once or twice during cooking to get a similar crispy-skin result.

I also made the creamy coleslaw from the cookbook which was a great accompaniment to the chicken and potatoes. For the green beans, I steamed them for two minutes and then tossed them with a splash of fresh lemon juice and a little bit of butter.

Coleslaw Ingredients

This recipe serves 4

• 2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tsp white vinegar
• 1/2 tsp hot sauce
• 1/4 tsp Lawry’s seasoned salt (I omitted this)
• large pinch pepper, mustard powder and celery salt
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 1/2 cups prepared coleslaw mix (or 1 cup each packed, shredded green and red cabbage, and 1/2 cup grated carrots)

Coleslaw Instructions

1. In large bowl, combine lemon juice, vinegar, hot sauce, seasoned salt, pepper, mustard powder and celery salt.
2. Add mayonnaise and mix thoroughly.
3. Add shredded vegetables and mix thoroughly. 

Chicken and Potato Ingredients

This recipe serves 4

• 1 whole chicken
• 1/4 cup all-purpose dry rub (see recipe below)
• 1 small bag baby potatoes, washed and quartered
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp all-purpose dry rub

Chicken and Potato Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Rinse chicken under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
3. Place chicken on rack in large roasting pan and sprinkle entire chicken with dry rub.
4. In large bowl, toss potatoes with vegetable oil and dry rub.
5. Place potatoes around chicken in roasting pan.
6. Cook for about 90 minutes or until leg easily comes off bird when tugged (this is a great tip to check for doneness).
7. Stir potatoes and baste chicken with pan juices once or twice during cooking.
8. Serve chicken and potatoes with coleslaw and green beans.

All-Purpose Dry Rub Ingredients

This recipe makes 4 cups

• 1 cup dried parsley
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup Lawry’s seasoned salt
• 3 tbsp ground black pepper
• 3 tbsp garlic powder
• 3 tbsp onion powder
• 3 tbsp fried oregano
• 3 tbsp sweet paprika
• 1 tbsp mild mustard powder
• 1 tbsp celery salt
• pinch cayenne pepper

All-Purpose Dry Rub Instructions

1. In large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix with whisk, making sure there are no clumps.
2. Store any leftovers in airtight container in cupboard for up to 6 months.