How To Smoke Competition Chicken Thighs On A Pellet Grill

We all love a juicy, tender bite of smoked chicken. And sometimes it's fun to go all out on grilling up something delicious.
For this episode of "What's For Dinner" we invited the competition-winning BBQ team Meat Whiskey to come up to Smoke Hollow from Nashville. Brian and Brian showed us how they trim, season, sauce, and cook one of the tastiest chicken cuts ⁠- the bone-in thigh ⁠- and serve up a next-level flavor experience to some of the most discerning judges in the circuit.
In this episode you'll learn:
🔥 How the team cuts and trims thighs for uniform cooking and competition appearance
🔥 How they season beneath and over the skin for layers of flavor
🔥 The "butter bath" they use to lock in the rub flavors and keep the thighs tender
Whether you're preparing these to try for a trophy or for family and friends in the yard, these competition chicken thighs are sure to impress every BBQ lover.
Ingredients:
10+ Bone-in, Skin-on Chicken Thighs
Parkay Squeeze Butter
MW Smokers Championship Hog Toss Rub
MW Smokers Championship Stack House Rub
Meat Whisky BBQ sauce
An even blend of Royal Oak Charcoal Pellets and Smokin Brothers Hardwood Cherry Pellets
Steps:
1. Use a sharp knife to remove excess fat, then square up and trim thighs to roughly the same size and shape so they'll cook evenly.
2. Season underneath the skin with your base rub, an SPG like MW Stack House rub.
3. Season over the skin with a flavorful rub like MW Hog Toss. We recommend a heavy layer to prevent the seasoning from washing out in the butter bath.
4. Get a pan and coat the bottom with an inch of Parkay butter.
5. Season the butter with plenty of Hog Toss.
6. Place the thighs skin down into the butter.
7. Come over the top of the thighs with a little more Hog Toss seasoning for color and an extra bit of flavor.
8. It's time to cook. Smoke at 300F until you reach an internal temperature of 170F (around 90 minutes).
9. Remove thighs from the butter coated pan and transfer to a new clean pan, with the skin facing up and spread out across the chicken.
10. Put the thighs back on the smoker for another 15 minutes to crisp up the skin.
11. Either dip for a full coat, or sauce and mop the thighs with your Meat Whiskey BBQ sauce.
12. Put the thighs back on the smoker for another 15 minutes to let the sauce cook in and caramelize.
Serve and enjoy!

[@jefffreeman4563]

Tried this method Saturday and it was absolutely perfect. I followed their instructions and its first time I have EVER had bite through skin! Thank you!

[@megankrug9726]

Thanks so much for these videos!!!! My Dinners have gotten way better!!!

[@Doug6714]

Great video. I haven't done thighs yet, but a great recipe to try. Keep smoking

[@Ohscaryone1]

Did this method and the results were spot on!

[@ElCazador44]

Yep. It Worked. Thx!

[@PAPATexas]

Yummy!

[@kevinpeyton33]

Nice video do you keep the smoker at 300 for the entire cook or after they hit 170 do you turn up the heat to help the skin get a bit more crispy..thanks

[@joeljay8471]

Parkay is most certainly not butter and is a plant based oil versus genuine butter or clarified butter (which is NOT ghee, btw). I don’t know if his terminology is just calling butter Parkay or if it’s real Parkey but I don’t use anything but butter because of the lower temps I use in smoking, and then will utilize Clarified Butter at the end for taste (your welcome for that pro tip). Can you tell us if it is real butter or Parkay Vegetable spread? Always love your work, videos and guests! Thank you!

[@rlgman]

Do nothing with the bone or knuckle? Trying to learn.

[@edbritton2453]

Can you substitute another type of butter?

[@jessethabarber]

yes, try with any butter, i like a higher fat.

[@kaivonmortazavi8656]

Looks like yoiu had 8 or 10 thighs in that pan - how much Parkay did you use for this amount of thighs?

[@tjpowell9779]

I noticed that you did not scrape the fat off the skin. Thought that was essential (& and pain in the butt)