Chicken legs include the drumstick and thigh. When the two chicken pieces are left together, they’re often called a leg quarter and sometimes a hindquarters, though some people use leg when referring to the drumstick alone.
A whole chicken comes with the advantage of turning all those bones into stock, but if we’re simply considering the meat, whole legs deliver the best value.
Chicken legs are made up of the thigh—the portion above the knee joint—and the drumstick. Both portions are dark meat, meaning they stay moist in the oven and are difficult to overcook. Choose inexpensive skin-on, bone-in legs and you’ll have the base for many delicious recipes.
How To Smoke Chicken Legs Recipe
Equipment
- grill
Ingredients
- Chicken drumsticks
Olive oil
Salt
Black pepper
Garlic powder
Smoked paprika
Chili powder
Onion powder
Instructions
- Gather all your ingredients and equipment to be used.
- Oil the surface of your grill.
- Drizzle some oil on the surface of the meat and in a small bowl, mix all your dry ingredients and sprinkle on the meat and allow it to marinate, possibly overnight in your refrigerator.
- When ready to smoke, Preheat the grill
- Smoke the chicken legs directly on the grill grates for approximately 1½ hours. The target temperature for these chicken legs is 175 degrees F. If saucing your legs: Brush your favourite BBQ sauce or any sauce of your choice when the legs reach 165 degrees.
- If the BBQ sauce you’re using is too thick, add a splash of apple cider vinegar to thin it out.
- The best way to tell is to check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer. Baked chicken should be cooked to a temperature of at least 165 degrees, but for legs I let them cook longer. Sometimes there are red spots in the meat near the bone and if you cook them a little longer those disappear. The meat will still be really juicy and tender!
- Enjoy your meal.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Lillian
Lillian loves to try her hands on new recipes. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise: food is the way to everyone's heart.
