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I have to say that I have become quite addicted to smoking bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs on my Weber Smokey Mountain smoker. They’re crazy easy and a lot more forgiving than say brisket or pork butt. And when they’re on sale they’re a tremendous bargain. I can fill my freezer with delicious pulled, chopped or shredded smoked chicken for darned near nothing. This right here is my go-to method for awesome smoked chicken thighs. You can use boneless and/or skinless but the bones and skin keep them moist and add tons of flavor. I pull the meat away and just chop it for whatever I want, be it sandwiches, nachos, backed potatoes…

Perfect Thighs with Tons of Flavor

I do not sauce my thighs while I’m smoking them. Since I’m not sure exactly how I’ll use the meat I keep it ‘dry’. You can always add sauce later, but you can’t un-sauce it. Well, not easily that’s for sure!

I prefer to use fruit or nut woods when I smoke unless I want a heavier smoke flavor. Pecan, apple or cherry are my favorites.

Weber Pecan Wood Chunks, for Grilling and Smoking, 4 lb.

Weber Apple Wood Chunks, for Grilling and Smoking, 4 lb.

Weber Cherry Wood Chunks, for Grilling and Smoking, 4 lb.

If you prefer your chicken thighs cooked over charcoal, try my grilled sweet-n-spicy chicken thighs. Or go big and make my whole smoked turkey on a WSM (or any smoker for that matter).

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Awesome Smoked Chicken Thighs

This right here is my go-to method for awesome smoked chicken thighs.

Course Main

Cuisine American

Keyword chicken thighs, smoked

Prep Time 12

Cook Time 2 30

Total Time 14 30

Servings

Calories 5235kcal

Ingredients

5 pounds chicken thighs family pack, bone in, skin-on
brine see below
Your favorite chicken seasoning

For the brine

1 cup water
1 cup apple juice
12 ounces Sprite
½ cup kosher salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Place chicken into a large resealable container.
Whisk together the brine ingredients until the salt has dissolved. Pour over the chicken.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Fire up your smoker for 225 F cooking. Use whichever wood you prefer (I went with apple).
Remove chicken from the brine and rinse with cold water.
Pat dry then sprinkle liberally with the rub on both sides.
Tuck the skin underneath of the thighs and transfer to the smoker.
Smoke for 2 hours or more until the internal temperature has reached 165 F.
If you wish to sauce your thighs do so in the last 15 minutes of cooking.

Notes

Smoked skin-on thighs will not have a crispy skin because of the low cooking temperature. I prefer to remove the skin, pull the meat away from the bones and chop for sandwiches.