Pages

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Spicy Chocolate Rub: Turkey for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is at my home this year, and we're Barbecuing the Turkey. We like the smokiness, and it leaves my ovens free for all the side dishes and pies. We usually do a citrus marinade, but this year I was thinking of doing something chocolate. That should come as no big surprise to daily readers of this blog.

So I've been searching for either a marinade or rub, and I found a Spicy Chocolate Rub Recipe on The BBQ Report. I've used chocolate in mole, so I think this would be great. Just combine everything in the Cuisinart until ground fine. This recipe is for chicken, so if you're planning a 20 lb. turkey, you'll need more.

1 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 teaspoons dried red pepper flakes, chopped fine
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Want to get a little more sophisticated with the Rub. Kunde Family Estates (great wine) has a recipe for BBQ Turkey with Ancho Chile/Chocolate Rub. This recipe includes brining the turkey first. Too much work for me this time, but you might want to try it. Here's the recipe for

Ancho Chile/Chocolate Rub

3 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. chile powder
1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. dried oregano
2 tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp. chipotle chile powder

2 tbsp. softened butter

In a small bowl, combine all the dry rub ingredients. Mix well. In another small bowl, mash the butter together with 2 tbsp. rub – set aside.

How are you using chocolate at Thanksgiving this year?

Photo: Milk Chocolate Turkey available at Chocolate.com

No comments: