I made some BBQ chicken thighs this weekend… they came out pretty good. Not quite as good as some of the competition chicken that I have had, but a respectable effort none the less. I am working on refining my timing for every meat that is entered in BBQ competitiion. I will put the recipe up here in a bit, just have to decypher my notes.
Feb 22, 06. The post continued…
I was happy with how good the chicken came out. It wasn’t the best chicken that I had tasted, but it was damn good. Chicken thighs are what most BBQ teams use for that category, they have more fat and cook relatively quick so I picked up a pack of Zacky Farms thighs from Costco. I know this is pretty average chicken, but I wanted to see how the different sizes of thighs cooked up with regards to seasoning and time on the grill. Next time I will avoid the pre-packaged thighs and ask the butcher to give them to me all the same size, it just looks better when it’s plated. It also evens out the cooking time somewhat.
I started with a recipe from the Cook’s Illustrated The Best Recipe Grilling & Barbecue book that called for the use of a brine. The brine was simple, a quart of water with 3/4 cup each sugar and salt, mixed together until dissolved. I added a little pepper and some crushed garlic for good measure. Put the chicken in a large zip-lock back along with the brine and let them sit in the fridge for about an hour. I am still working my BBQ rub out for chicken, but rest assured that it will be posted in the upcoming weeks. I sprinkled the aforementioned rub all over the chicken.
I lit the coal in my chimney starter and soaked my apple wood chips. I used a 22.5” kettle grill with all of the lit coals placed on one side. The chicken was placed on the grill away from the coals fat side up and the wood chips were place on the coals, then the grill was covered. The chicken cooked for a half hour and then was turned over gently. I let it cook for another fifteen minutes and then glazed it with a BBQ sauce then flipped it over again. I then glazed the top (fat side) of the chicken pieces and let them cook for another 20 minutes…or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
The chicken was then removed and tasted. I was happy with the chicken texture (it was tender, moist and not overcooked) and appearance (two of the three BBQ judging criteria)… I was just a little unhappy with the seasoning and the sauce. It was ok, and probably would get me some props around the neighborhood, but it wasn’t to the level that competition BBQ demands.
I will keep you posted on how the recipes evolve for this BBQ chicken experiment.
February 20, 2006 at 9:40 am
Did you brine the thighs before cooking them?
February 22, 2006 at 8:06 am
yes, the brine recipe is now part of the post.
February 22, 2006 at 10:31 am
I would recommend not soaking the wood if you must use chips. Instead, wrap them in a foil packet, cut a few slits in it and toss it directly on the coals. That way you get smoke and not steam from the water evaporating.
Best case scenario would be to get wood chunks instead of chips.
February 22, 2006 at 12:15 pm
That is one thing that I forgot to mention… the chicken did need a little more smoke flavor. This was due partly to the fact that I had reduce the air intake (to lower the temperature) so much that I was essencially baking the chicken without smoke. I needed some more smoke flavor. This week I repeated the process without closing the intake and I got some good smoke flavor… it just got a little too hot in there. This weekend I will try a few batches, one with the air intake somewhere in the middle. And, the other with using less coals.
February 28, 2006 at 6:14 am
I would love to BBQ your thighs.
April 2, 2006 at 4:27 pm
Soak larger chunks of wood. Two chunks usually suffice. Place them on cool coals …according to Cooks Illustrated, they impart enough fuel to keep a cooler coal going yet impart enough smoke – a steady supply through the cooking process.
May 12, 2006 at 4:22 pm
I’m using this technique tonight (coals on one side, hic chips on top). I used a bbq sauce as a marinade for 1/2 hour and then sprinkled with dry rub. Chicken placed as in post (two leg portions, three breasts bone in). Will cook exactly as in post. Will let you know how it goes! May seem a bit basic but I’m just learning about how to cook on the grill—mostly concerned with the texture of the meat.
August 31, 2006 at 7:15 am
When cooking chicken for competition do you leave the skin on during cooking? Do you de-bone the thighs?
October 10, 2006 at 6:20 pm
I tried something new the last time I cooked, I sliced the chicken thighs then also shredded some, placing all meat in all four corners. It worked out really well we placed 174 out of 486 at the American Royal in Kansas City.
January 9, 2010 at 6:45 pm
This thread is almost 4 years old. Anyone doing anything with thighs today? Cooking em right now…brine + rub + apple wood chunks (no soak); about 1 hour of cooking…sauce last 20 minutes…always good.