Waxing philosophical about whether the chicken or the egg came first (it's the egg by several hundred million years) is all well and good, but it won't help get dinner on the table. For the best barbecue of your life, you'll need chicken and an egg, along with some apple cider vinegar, simple poultry seasoning, oil and a hot grill.
I'm talking about Cornell chicken, an iconic summer grill recipe based on food science and developed by inventor and Cornell University food and poultry professor Dr. Robert C. Baker.
Baker wrote the proverbial book on barbecue chicken, according to many, after extensive recipe testing back in the 1950s. "Cornell chicken," as it's known, is beautifully simple and remains one of the most lauded chicken marinades and summer cookout recipes. You'll find Cornell chicken served at restaurants, particularly in upstate New York where the university is located, family picnics, food fairs and festivals across the country.
Dr. Baker is a Northeast barbecue legend.
Cornell chicken is backed by some heady food science and utilizes one unusual element, a beaten egg, to add a creamy coating and let the chicken skin crispy without burning. There's also poultry seasoning for depth of flavor and vinegar to add a sour tang and help the marinade penetrate the flesh. Most recipes succeed when they have balance or "bloom," and Cornell chicken is a prime example of simple elements combining to form a perfect union.
If you're wondering how to make Cornell chicken, it's easy -- use just five ingredients and a similar cooking method to traditional barbecue chicken. This chicken marinade is vinegar-based so it is more akin to a Carolina style than the sweet Kansas City or St. Louis styles. Baker suggests using a charcoal grill to keep unwieldy flames from cooking the skin unevenly.
The barbecue chicken recipe is about as simple as it gets. Baker's cooking technique is a little more meticulous.
How to make perfect Cornell chicken
Ingredients:
- Bone-in chicken pieces
- 1/2 cup vegetable cooking oil
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1.5 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 1 beaten egg
- Salt and pepper to taste
Let the marinade do its thing for at least three hours.
Directions:
- Step 1: Beat the egg. Add oil and beat again.
- Step 2: Whisk together all the ingredients in a bowl.
- Step 3: Add chicken pieces and toss to coat. Refrigerate for at least three hours and up to 24 hours.
- Step 4: Place coated chicken on a medium-high grill (Baker suggests charcoal) and reserve any leftover marinade.
- Step 5: Cook for 15 to 20 minutes flipping and basting the chicken with leftover sauce every five minutes. Basting should be light at first and grow heavier toward the end of cooking.
- Step 6: Cook until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F.
Dr. Baker recommends a charcoal grill but gas works fine, too.
Can you make Cornell chicken in an air fryer?
Yes, and I did. I put half of my batch in the air fryer and the other half over a hot flame the way Baker intended. Both methods worked well. The grill gave me a slightly more caramelized char while the air fryer was faster and there was less to clean up.
Dr. Baker included instructions on how to build a fire pit but you can opt for a charcoal or gas grill and get similar results.
Can you use any type of chicken for Cornell chicken?
Baker's original recipe calls for broilers (small whole chickens) but this recipe can be applied to any bone-in, skin-on chicken. You can use boneless, skinless chicken, but you won't get that coveted crispy skin that Baker's Cornell chicken recipe aces.
If you don't feel like making this sauce, these are the best bottled barbecue sauces we've tried.