Smoked cupcake chicken is a recipe that was made popular by Myron Mixon in the competition circuit. It is a way to make smoked chicken thighs so that they come out uniform, juicy and properly seasoned for the judges.
Course Entree
Cuisine Hot Smoking
Prep Time 30 minutesminutes
Cook Time 3 hourshours
Total Time 3 hourshours30 minutesminutes
Servings 6
Author Jeff Phillips
Ingredients
6or more chicken thighsbone-in and skin on
Muffin pan with 6 compartments
Large cookie sheet
¼cupJeff's original rub
¼cupJeff's original barbecue sauce
Instructions
Remove skin from thighs and set aside, snip knuckles from bones and remove any excess fat.
Sprinkle Jeff's original rub onto chicken thighs on top and bottom then place the thighs into a zip top bag and into the fridge overnight or about 8 hours.
While the chicken is in the fridge, find an old muffin tin with 6 compartments and drill a ¼ inch hole into the bottom center of each compartment to allow the juices to drain off. File off any burrs for safety then wash with soap and warm water.
The next morning, lay the thighs on a cutting board and replace a piece of the chicken skin onto each thigh.
Place each chicken thigh, skin side down, into special, pre-drilled muffin pan.
Set up your smoker for cooking at 275°F (135°C) using indirect heat. If your smoker uses a water pan, leave it dry.
Place a cookie sheet filled with ¼ inch of chicken broth onto the smoker grate and then set the muffin tin with the chicken onto the cookie sheet. Smoke cook for 1.5 hours.
Flip chicken over in muffin pan to skin side up, add some seasoning and smoke cook for another 45 minutes.
Remove chicken from muffin pan and place skin side up onto cookie sheet.
Sauce top and sides and smoke cook for an additional 30 minutes to let the sauce caramelize or until the internal temperature reaches 175℉.
When the chicken is finished cooking, remove it from the smoker and serve immediately.