This Smoked Jalapeno Chicken Thighs recipe combines smoked chicken, bacon, jalapeno, ham and cheese. A tasty cut of meat, chicken thighs are perfect for the smoker. You may consider these bundles a little tricky to make. However, follow the instructions and all the effort will pay off.
Yield: Serves 8
Ingredients
16 Bacon Slices (about 1 pound)
8 Large skin-on boneless chicken thighs
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
16 Dill pickle slices
2 Jalapeño chilies, thinly sliced into rounds
4 Ounces cheddar cheese, grated
4 Ounces sliced cooked ham, slivered
Butcher’s string
Bradley Flavor Bisquettes – Mesquite
Directions
- On a cutting board, make a cross from 2 pieces of bacon; lay the perpendicular piece down first. Position a bone-in chicken thigh on the intersection of the bacon, skin-side down. Season the thigh with salt and pepper, then spread with mustard (about 1 tablespoon). Place 2 pickles in the center of the thigh and top with jalapeños, cheese, and ham.
- Bring the sides of the chicken thigh up over the toppings to make a neat bundle. Carefully, turn the bundle over, so it’s skin-side up (still positioned on the intersection of the bacon). Bring the ends of the bacon up (perpendicular piece first) to wrap the thigh. Slip and 18-inch piece of butcher’s string under the chicken bundle, parallel to the edge of your work surface. Tie the string as if the chicken was a package (it is!). Snip excess ends of string with scissors.
- Set up your Bradley Smoker and preheat to 250°F. I like to smoke the chicken with mesquite.
- Arrange the chicken thighs skin-side up on the wire grates. Smoke them until the outsides and bacon are browned, the cheese is melted, and the temperature in the center reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer. It takes about 1 to 1½ hours. Snip the strings and remove before serving.
Recipe by: Steven Raichlen
Photo courtesy of Richard Dallett
