I like to mix things up when cooking for parties. Burgers and dogs are great, but they get boring. Plus, I like smoke. Plus, people keep telling me they love when I bbq chicken.
So, unique + smoke + chicken = Chicken Thigh Sliders.
This makes so much sense it’s silly. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are cheap. I bought a pack of 30 at Sam’s for less than a buck per pound. They’re crazy easy to make. Brine, sprinkle with chicken rub, smoke for 1-2 hours (or grill for 20 minutes), serve. They’re diverse – use bbq sauce, mustard, pickles, cheese, lettuce – have a whole condiment bar set up for your guests!
Most importantly, of course, they’re fantastically delicious.
The most important piece to this is brine. I know, I know, I’m beating a dead horse here. But, whatever it takes for you to be a believer in brine. I brine my thighs overnight – makes the next day that much easier. Mix it up a bit – I used my basic brine recipe, but threw in about a cup of Italian Dressing for some extra zip.
The second most important piece is not to overcook. Chicken is scary for many people – I get that. It needs to be done, but when it’s overdone, it’s terrible. So be careful with these little suckers. I smoked mine at 225 for about 90 minutes – until the internal temperature of the thighs were 165-ish. Here is a full post about smoked chicken thighs to get you more up to speed.
You could also grill over direct heat – with a handful of wood chips thrown in of course – for about 20 minutes. They’re small, so over high direct heat they won’t take long.
When your guests see that they get to make a sandwich out of a smoked chicken thigh, they will be giddy with excitement. Nobody does this! And I really don’t understand why. I’m pretty sure you’re going to make this a standard at your bbq parties.
Chicken Thigh Sliders
Ingredients
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs
- Chicken Rub
- Brine
- Condiments of your choice
Instructions
- Brine thighs for half an hour up to over night.
- Rinse thighs and pat dry.
- Sprinkle thighs with chicken rub.
- Place over indirect heat on grill (or use your smoker) for 1 - 2 hours or when internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
- Garnish as desired.
I did the chicken thigh sliders for our Packer/Viking party tonight. They were great, I will definitly be doing them again. Go Packers!
what an awesome idea. i just smoked my first thighs yesterday and they were great. the slider idea it’s right alley, you just solved the weekends dinner dilemma