Beer and Bourbon Barbecue Chicken Sliders

Halloween again. Kai went as a welder this year. He announced this in late September and I was not sure if he was doing it because it was who I was or because he had seen the welding helmet in the garage and thought it looked interesting, which amounts to the same thing at age four. Hannah put together a costume: my old work jacket, oversized, with the reflective stripes, a pair of leather gloves that came to his elbows, and the spare welding helmet that I gave him to play with last spring. He was very pleased with himself. Several parents on the block did not understand what he was and asked if he was a robot. He explained: "I'm a welder. I make things with fire." This is accurate. This is the whole job description.

I grilled brats again, same as last year. The neighbor tradition. The cooler on the driveway. Bill Kesterman's ghost present in the ritual. Luna came out with me this time, standing at my knee in her little dinosaur costume — Kai's T-rex from last year, passed down — and watching the grill with the focused attention she gives to anything hot and interesting. I kept her from the coals. She was not pleased with this restriction but accepted it eventually when I gave her a piece of sausage to eat.

Danny called in the afternoon. He wanted to hear about the costumes. I described Kai's welder costume in full and Danny laughed, which is a sound I do not hear often enough. He said: "He is going to be a welder." I said I did not know about that. He said: "He is going to be something that makes things. I can tell." I have been thinking about that since. Not the specific profession — I do not know what Kai will be, and it is not my job to know. But making things. That might be right. The compulsion to make things: it runs through this family like a gene. Like the welding gene Danny said I had when I was seventeen and first picked up a rod. It is not a gene. It is a teaching. But by the time it has been taught for three generations it might as well be a gene.

The brats are the ritual — I am not changing the brats — but some years the crowd gets bigger and one pack of sausages does not stretch far enough for every neighbor who drifts over with a kid in a costume. These sliders came out of one of those years. Beer in the sauce, bourbon to deepen it, chicken thighs because they stay juicy over a grill you are only half-watching while you also keep a four-year-old away from the coals. Luna ate two of them in her dinosaur costume and did not share. That felt right.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 8 (16 sliders)

Ingredients

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp neutral oil (vegetable or canola)
For the Beer and Bourbon BBQ Sauce:
3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup amber beer (lager or ale)
2 tbsp bourbon
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp brown sugar, packed
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
For Serving:
16 slider buns or Hawaiian rolls
1 cup coleslaw (store-bought or simple cabbage slaw)
Sliced pickles, optional

Instructions

Make the BBQ sauce. Combine ketchup, beer, bourbon, vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire, smoked paprika, onion powder, and cayenne in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir to combine and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook 12–15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and set aside. Sauce can be made a day ahead and refrigerated.
Season the chicken. Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towels. Combine salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic powder in a small bowl. Rub the spice mix evenly over both sides of the chicken. Drizzle with oil.
Grill the chicken. Heat grill to medium-high (about 400°F). Grill chicken thighs 6–7 minutes per side until cooked through and internal temperature reaches 165°F. During the last 2 minutes, brush generously with BBQ sauce on both sides, letting it caramelize slightly.
Rest and chop. Transfer chicken to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes. Chop or pull the meat into rough pieces, then toss with an additional 1/4 cup of the BBQ sauce until well coated.
Toast the buns. Place slider buns cut-side down on the grill grates for 1–2 minutes until lightly toasted. Watch closely — they go fast.
Assemble. Pile chicken onto the bottom buns. Top with a spoonful of coleslaw and pickles if using. Add the top bun and serve immediately with remaining BBQ sauce on the side.

Nutrition (per serving, 2 sliders)

Beer and Bourbon Barbecue Chicken Sliders — The Grill Doesn’t Come Inside Just Because It’s Halloween