At long last! More Kamado Smoked Chicken.

Hello Kamado grillers...

First off I need to apologize for taking soooo long to post another recipe. I have been dabbling with a few, and just haven't taken the time to perfect the ones I want to share. And there are some great ones on the way. Today isn't about lamenting though, today is about sharing another recipe and rub for a slightly different smoked chicken.




This rub recipe started as a different seasoning on some boneless, skinless chicken thighs. I wanted to try out some different flavors, and it worked rather well. Of course, I hadn't written down the spices that I used that night, but I think I remembered ok. So I tried it again on some baked chicken wings, and again it seemed to work ok.

It was then that I decided that I had to try the recipe with a little smoke flavor. And today was that day. So i mixed up a small batch of the rub, seasoned up some chicken thighs (bone-in and skin-on this round), let marinate for a few hours, and smoked to juicy perfection.

So the inspiration for this was simply to try some new spices in my spice drawer, and expermient with the flavors. Included is a simple 6 spice blend that works well both in the oven, on the stove (even roasted potatos), and as I discovered tonight, in the smoker as well. The blend includes salt, pepper, oregano, parsley, tumeric, and curry powder. Yes, I know that curry powder includes a variety of spices and that it means this is more than simply 6 spices... but since it can be bought as a pre-blended mix, I included it as a single spice.

Sean's Indian Chicken Rub

3/4 cup Sea Salt
3/4 cup Curry Powder
3/4 cup Tumeric
3/4 cup Oregano
3/4 cup Parsely
1/4 cup Ground Pepper

Combine all the ingredients in an airtight jar and sprinkle on whatever tickles your fancy.

As I mentioned before, I started off tonights chicken the same way I do all my smoked chicken. Because my powered vaccuum seal marinator is still offline, I marinated with the rub the old fashioned way this time... a plastic zip-top bag in the refrigerator. A few hours did fine, and gave me time to finish brewing up a batch of beer before getting the kamado ready.

It was pretty cold outside today, -17°C and snowing. But I'm a trooper, and the thought of smoked chicken as a reward easily spurred me onwards. The kamado did take a little longer to heat up than normal, but only by 10 minutes or so. While it was firing up I grabbed my wood chips and smoke box. I chose cherrywood for a nice light smoke. Applewood or maplewood would have worked just as easily too, and is up to your preference.

I set up the cooker for about 250°F, and placed the chicken skin side down on the upper grill and left it to cook for an hour and a half. Being so cold out meant that I ended up checking on the kamado far more often than I usually do, but it held the temperature steady despite the frigid weather. That made me quite happy!

After the allotted time, I removed the chicken and let rest for a few minutes before serving up. The chicken came out tender and moist, as it usually does. The spice blend and smoke flavor worked very well, with a nice crisp seasoned skin, and a wonderful smoky flavor that penetrated deep into the chicken. I would certainly have like to marinate this for longer with the spice blend, perhaps up to 24 hours, but it still worked out well.

Summary

Chicken: whole, broken down, or assorted chicken parts
Cherrywood smoke chips
Sean's Indian Chicken Rub
Remote meat thermometer (for ideal results)

Cover the chicken parts with a liberal amount of chicken rub and refrigerate for 2-4 hours, or preferably more. Prepare your kamado for 225-250°F and cherrywood smoke chips. Cook the chicken, skin side down, for 1 1/2 - 2 hours, or until the internal temperature measures 79°C with a meat thermometer. Remove from heat, let rest for 5 minutes, then eat like there's no tomorrow.

Warning: This meal contains real flavors. Diner discretion is advised.