Smoked chicken lollipops are named due to the built-in handle on chicken legs. Push the meat up to the top and smoke them for a great way to eat smoked chicken.
Course Entree
Cuisine Hot Smoking
Prep Time 45 minutesminutes
Cook Time 2 hourshours
Total Time 2 hourshours45 minutesminutes
Servings 5-6
Author Jeff Phillips
Ingredients
12-14chicken legs/drums
Jeff's original rub
Jeff's original barbecue sauce
Cherry juice for making a glazeoptional
Foil
Instructions
Make the Lollipops
Rinse chicken legs under cold water
Lay one of the chicken legs on the cutting board or hard surface.
Make a cut through skin, meat and tendons all the way around the chicken leg, just below the knuckle
Push meat all to one end leaving at least half of the bone on the knuckle end as a handle.
Snip off any extruding tendons, meat, fat, etc. to clean it up.
Repeat process on all chicken legs.
Season & Marinate the Chicken Legs
Apply mayonnaise to outside of chicken to create a stick surface for the seasoning to stick to.
Sprinkle Jeff's original rub onto each chicken leg making sure to coat all sides thoroughly.
Place all of the seasoned chicken into a lidded bowl or ziptop bag and place it in the fridge for 2 hours minimum. You can also marinate overnight if desired.
After marinating time is complete, remove chicken from fridge.
Wrap Handles with Foil
To prevent the handles from getting too dark or burnt, cut a square 4-inch pieces of foil for each chicken leg.
Wrap the foil around the handle (bone) of each chicken leg.
Smoking the Chicken
Preheat smoker to 250°F
Place chicken directly on smoker grate
Let chicken cook for about 2 hours or until it reaches 175°F in the thickest part.
If you want to add sauce to the chicken (highly recommended) do so during the last 30 minutes of the cooking time.