Smoked Chicken Thighs with BBQ Sauce

Chicken thighs are the easiest part of the chicken to cook! Taking the time to create your own sauce will provide a unique flavor that most backyard cooks will not bring to the table when serving smoked chicken.

• Preparation Time: 45 mins
• Cooking Time: 2 hr
• Total Time: 2 hr 45 mins
• Calories: 356 Calories

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups ketchup
• ¼ cup white wine vinegar
• 3 lemons, juiced
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
• 2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
• 12 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
• 30 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
• ¼ cup Sriracha sauce
• 5 tablespoons light brown sugar
• ½ tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ tablespoon onion powder
• 1 pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Combine olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and jalapeno peppers in a bowl for a marinade. Allow to rest for at least 1 hour.

Step 2

Place the chicken thighs in a large, shallow container and cover with the marinade. Chill and marinate for at least 6 hours, or up to overnight.

Step 3

Combine ketchup, water, cider vinegar, white wine vinegar, Sriracha, brown sugar, lemon juice, mustard, Worcestershire, 1/2 tablespoon black pepper, and onion powder in a medium saucepan. Simmer for 25 minutes.

Step 4

Remove the skin from each chicken thigh, one at a time. Trim excess fat from the edges of each thigh; if there are any veins on the bottom of the thigh, trim away as well. Scrape the fat off from the bottom side of the chicken's skin using a sharp knife until the skin is essentially transparent.

Step 5

Re-wrap the trimmed thighs with the skin. Liberally coat with sea salt and pepper.

Step 6

Place chicken thighs, unstacked, onto wire racks. Place the racks into the smoker. Add pecan wood chips according to manufacturer's directions and heat to 265 to 285 degrees F (129 to 140 degrees C).

Step 7

Smoke until chicken thighs are no longer pink in the centers, about 2 hours. During the final 45 minutes of cooking, liberally apply the BBQ sauce 2 to 3 times. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone of a thigh should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).