The purpose of this post isn’t to share a great recipe for chicken thighs / legs . . . but to discuss the actual cooking method I use.
When I first got my bullet smoker I was naive to think that a single method would do just fine, but oh how wrong was i!
Cooking chicken pieces ‘low and slow’ produced the most rubbery skin imaginable. Although I didn’t try . . . I’m pretty sure I could have torn off a strip and used as a replacement elastic band to fire across the garden . . . it was disgusting!
Now I’m sure that you could produce some great chicken this way . . . but it wasn’t for me. Instead I adopt the ‘Hot and Fast – Long Range Direct’ method.
. . . let me explain:
You’ll be glad to know there’s no snake or anything involved in this setup . . . simply fill your chimney starter up with your fuel of choice and light.
Let the chimney starter do its ‘thing’ until the fuel is burning nicely . . . around 15-20 minutes for me.
Once the fuel is burning nicely simply chuck them all in the basket and spread them around a little to ensure the entire area is covered.
P.S Is this anyone else’s favourite step? I just love pouring the fuel in when you get embers flying around . . .
No deflector needed, no water pan . . . just a shelf on the highest point possible within your bullet smoker . . . remember, we’re going for:
- Long Range – – – so for me this means using two stacks on the ProQ
- Direct – – – no water pan . . . just the coal, flames and chicken
That’s everything set up, now just to wait for a few minutes until the bullet is up to temperature . . . for me that’s around 325f to 350f.
Once the oven is hot enough its time to put that chicken on the top shelf.
For me, I just have a selection of thighs . . . some in a Chinese marinade and others in a rich garlic butter . . . simples!
I start off with skin side up.
Once the chicken is around 125f I flip them over to be skin side down . . . as you can clearly see, the colour / skin is already looking nice on the underside.
Then sit back and wait for the chicken to reach 165f . . . job done!
For me, total cooking time was 38 minutes today . . .
Chicken was moist, skin was crispy . . . family were happy . . . what more could I ask?
P.S And “Yes” . . . it did rain again as is customary when I fire up the BBQ . . . oh I love living in England.
