I have made Char Siu Pork on the mini (see http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/186230/char-siu-pork-on-the-mini). I love it and it has become one of my favourites. I had to tale some food to a picnic and I decided to try cooking chicken thighs with the same technique I use with the Char Siu Pork.
I started with 2 kg (4 pounds) of chicken thighs. I mixed a marinade of:
I covered the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge overnight. I did stir it a couple of times.
I took it out and put it on a platter.
I fired the WSM Mini up to just over 400 F over apple chunks and with no heat deflector.
I brushed the thighs with vegetable oil. I find brushing with vegetable oil before and during smoking gives a nice bite through skin texture. I put the chicken on the mini.
I smoked it for 40 minutes turning the chicken and brushing it with oil ever 10 minutes.
A word of warning, keep an eye on the smoker. This amount of chicken drops a lot of fat on the coals and they may flare up. Mine didn't but it is a possibility.
With opening the lid every 10 minutes, the temperature drops. However, the faithful mini held just below 350 F.
I made sure the internal temperature of the chicken was over 165 F (it was about 173 F) and served.
I set some aside for the picnic to serve cold.
The Verdict
This is very tasty. The skin gets sticky but is bite through. The sweet/spice taste of the Char Siu marinade goes great with a chicken thigh. It was great cold at the picnic and disappeared rapidly. This is another dish on my rotation.
Disco
I started with 2 kg (4 pounds) of chicken thighs. I mixed a marinade of:
- 175 ml (2/3 cup) soy sauce
- 50 ml (1/4 cup) hoisin
- 5 ml (1 teaspoon) five spice
- 8 ml (1 1/2 teaspoon) sriracha (could substitute 3 ml (1/2 teaspoon) hot pepper sauce)
- 375 ml (1 1/2 cup) brown sugar
- 7 ml (1 1/2 teaspoon) red food colouring
I covered the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge overnight. I did stir it a couple of times.
I took it out and put it on a platter.
I fired the WSM Mini up to just over 400 F over apple chunks and with no heat deflector.
I brushed the thighs with vegetable oil. I find brushing with vegetable oil before and during smoking gives a nice bite through skin texture. I put the chicken on the mini.
I smoked it for 40 minutes turning the chicken and brushing it with oil ever 10 minutes.
A word of warning, keep an eye on the smoker. This amount of chicken drops a lot of fat on the coals and they may flare up. Mine didn't but it is a possibility.
With opening the lid every 10 minutes, the temperature drops. However, the faithful mini held just below 350 F.
I made sure the internal temperature of the chicken was over 165 F (it was about 173 F) and served.
I set some aside for the picnic to serve cold.
The Verdict
This is very tasty. The skin gets sticky but is bite through. The sweet/spice taste of the Char Siu marinade goes great with a chicken thigh. It was great cold at the picnic and disappeared rapidly. This is another dish on my rotation.
Disco
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