Recipes

Mai Thai chicken thighs

Samantha Evans Shauna Guinn
Sat Apr 30 2016 - 03:00
Serves: 10
Course: Main Course
Cooking Time: 2 hrs 0 mins
Ingredients
  • Cooking methods Indirect Grilling/Smoking or Oven Wood: Apple, Pear, Cherry, Beech, Alder, Birch
  • Serves 10-12
  • 10-12 bone-in chicken thighs
  • For the marinade:
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • Juice of 1 medium orange
  • 100ml pineapple juice
  • 2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
  • 50ml sesame oil
  • 50g soft light brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh ginger
  • 10 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 2 long red chillies, sliced lengthways
  • 5 spring onions, sliced
  • Small bunch Thai basil, chopped
  • For the basting mixture:
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 125ml groundnut oil
  • 2 tbsp soft light brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp soft dark brown sugar

Use a sharp knife to trim away any extra fatty parts from the chicken thighs and place in a large zip-lock bag. Whizz the marinade ingredients in food processor or blender and pour into the bag, massaging the marinade all over the chicken. Push out as much air as possible and seal the bag. Put in the fridge and allow to marinate overnight for maximum punch.

The next day, combine the baste ingredients in a small bowl and set aside while you prepare your smoker (don’t panic if you don’t have one: oven cooking directions below too).

Set up your grill for indirect heat, maintain the temperature at 108°C/225°F and put in some cherry wood chunks/chips. With the wood smoking, place the chicken on the grills, away from the coals and close the lid. Cook for a total of 2 hours, basting the chicken with your baste mixture every 20 minutes during the final one and a half hours. Crisp the skins up over the coals just before serving and check that the internal temperature of the chicken reads 75°C/165°F on an instant-read thermometer. Take off the heat and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

No Smoker? No problem. You can cook these thighs in the oven. Simply follow the recipe up until you put them in the smoker. Preheat your oven 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. place the thighs on a wire rack over a roasting tin and cook for 45-50 minutes, basting once during the final 15 minutes. Make sure that the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 75°C/165°F on an instant-read thermometer before serving.

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