Smoked Chicken Lollipops
Smoking-Meat.com is supported by its readers. We may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you if you buy through a link on this page.
Read this article without ads
Sometimes a chicken leg is just that.. a chicken leg. But sometimes, a chicken leg is so much more! In this smoked chicken lollipop recipe, I am going to show you how to turn an ordinary chicken drumstick into something that is fun and exciting to eat for kids and adults alike.
These make great appetizers or they can be served with sides as an excellent entree for lunch or dinner.. breakfast too I suppose.
Let's get started!
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 1.5 – 2 hours
- Smoker Temp: 250°F
- Meat Finish Temp: 175°F
- Recommended Wood: Cherry
- 12-14 chicken legs/drums
- Jeff's original rub
- Jeff's original sauce
- Cherry juice for the glaze (optional)
- Foil
Rinse the chicken legs under cold water. Lay one of the chicken legs on the cutting board or other hard surface to begin turning it into a lollipop.
Using a sharp knife, make a cut all the way around the chicken, down to the bone, just below the knuckle.
This is how it looks once your cut is made. Holding the bone in one hand, pull all of the chicken meat down to one end away from the knuckle.
Clean up the bone just a little bit removing any stray fat or meat and snipping off any tendons that might be sticking out beyond the ball of meat.
The first couple of chicken legs might be a little slow going but you'll get the hang of it quickly and the rest of them should go a lot faster.
Place all of the “cleaned up” chicken legs into a bowl or large ziptop bag for seasoning.
If you want to use a sticking agent, mayonnaise works really well on chicken. I just used the original rub by itself in this particular batch but I often use mayonnaise, olive oil or mustard to create a nice sticky surface that the rub can adhere to.
Once you are ready for the rub, pour on about ¼ cup of Jeff's original rub and stir the chicken around to make sure it's well coated.
A more methodical way to season these chicken legs is to lay a single layer of chicken legs into the bowl, sprinkle with seasoning, flip them over and sprinkle the other side with seasoning.
Lay down a 2nd layer and repeat.
Continue this same process until all of the chicken has been thoroughly coated with rub.
Place a lid on the container or zip it closed and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours to allow the flavors absorb into the skin and meat of the chicken.
You can also leave the seasoned chicken in the fridge overnight if time allows.
Once the chicken is done marinating, remove from the fridge and proceed.
To keep the handles (bones) from burning and turning dark, cover them with foil.
It is easier, in my opinion, to cut enough squares of foil before you get started wrapping.
Wrap each handle in foil and lay the finished legs onto a pan/rack or cookie sheet for easy transport to and from the smoker.
The chicken is now ready to cook!
This step can easily be done while the chicken is marinating in the fridge.
Fire up the smoker (or plug it in if you have an electric model) and set it up to smoke cook at about 250°F.
You can definitely cook hotter if you want to but as with most small things, I like to cook low and slow to make sure and get plenty of smoke flavor time.
If your smoker has a water pan installed from the factory, be sure to use it. It helps to keep the temperature stable and creates a barrier between the heat and the food.
Once the smoker is up to temperature and holding steady, it's time to cook.
Place the chicken directly on the smoker grate or if you used the bradley rack, just lay the entire rack of chicken on the smoker grate.
Maintain 240°F for about 2 hours or until the thickest part of the chicken reads 175°F using a digital meat thermometer.
Thermometers
There are several thermometers that I like to use, one is the Thermapen for quick and easy checking of each piece. I also like to use the Smoke and Smoke X by Thermoworks which I have been very impressed with since I started using them.
There are lots of options when it comes to thermometers, but these are the ones that I use now and recommend to anyone who really wants to get serious about smoking meat.
The first thing you learn about smoking meat is that you don't cook by time very much, it's usually more about temperature.
Smoke Wood
I used cherry wood for this chicken and kept the smoke going the full 2 hours. You can use any smoking wood and it will work fine. Some of my favorites are Mesquite, Pecan, apple and of course cherry.
There is no reason, in my opinion, to soak wood chips/chunks before using them. I get better results and better smoke flavor by using the wood completely dry.
Saucing the Chicken
If you want to sauce the chicken, brush it on about 30 minutes before the chicken is finished cooking.
To glaze the chicken while it cooks, take 1 part Jeff's barbecue sauce and add it to 1 part beer, wine, water, juice (cherry juice is great if you can find it), or other liquid. Mix well to make a really flavorful and beautiful glaze.
These chicken legs were glazed several times during the cooking/smoking process:
Once the smoked chicken lollipops have reached 175°F, remove them from the smoker and remove the foil from around the handles.
Serve the smoked chicken lollipops immediately or you can also place it in a pan covered with foil and into a warm oven to hold it for an hour or so until dinner.
- For smoked chicken, lots of folks complain about rubbery chicken. Using this method, you will usually get chicken skin that has good “bite through” but it won't be crispy. You can improve the texture of the skin on the grill or under the broiler of your oven but you risk burning the rub and/or sauce.
- These smoked chicken lollipops can be used as an appetizer or as a main entree making them very versatile.
Smoked Chicken Lollipops
Ingredients
- 12-14 chicken legs/drums
- Jeff's original rub
- Jeff's original barbecue sauce
- Cherry juice for making a glaze (optional)
- Foil
Instructions
Make the Lollipops
- Rinse chicken legs under cold water
- Lay one of the chicken legs on the cutting board or hard surface.
- Make a cut through skin, meat and tendons all the way around the chicken leg, just below the knuckle
- Push meat all to one end leaving at least half of the bone on the knuckle end as a handle.
- Snip off any extruding tendons, meat, fat, etc. to clean it up.
- Repeat process on all chicken legs.
Season & Marinate the Chicken Legs
- Apply mayonnaise to outside of chicken to create a stick surface for the seasoning to stick to.
- Sprinkle Jeff's original rub onto each chicken leg making sure to coat all sides thoroughly.
- Place all of the seasoned chicken into a lidded bowl or ziptop bag and place it in the fridge for 2 hours minimum. You can also marinate overnight if desired.
- After marinating time is complete, remove chicken from fridge.
Wrap Handles with Foil
- To prevent the handles from getting too dark or burnt, cut a square 4-inch pieces of foil for each chicken leg.
- Wrap the foil around the handle (bone) of each chicken leg.
Smoking the Chicken
- Preheat smoker to 250°F
- Place chicken directly on smoker grate
- Let chicken cook for about 2 hours or until it reaches 175°F in the thickest part.
- If you want to add sauce to the chicken (highly recommended) do so during the last 30 minutes of the cooking time.
Finishing Up
- Remove foil from chicken and serve immediately.
WILL YOU GET THE SAME RESULTS IF YOU TAKE OFF THE SKIN?
I thought this recipe turned out great. I love wings but they are so expensive any more, it was nice to have a great recipe for drumsticks. I followed the recipe except for the cherry juice. I didn’t have cherry juice so I substituted grenadine syrup in its place. I only used two tablespoons to one cup of Jeff’s sauce. For those who don’t know, I didn’t, grenadine is from pomigranite. It was wonderful! My wife generally doesn’t want me to put the sauce on in the cooker but this time all she said was OH WOW! Big success! Save some basting sauce for dipping too!
Rick, I too have a Masterbuilt 40 inch. I love it. I’ve had it for two years and it is wonderful. Temps stay very close to where you set them. I think the new design of the Masterbuilt would be better than mine because the drip pan is accessible from the front. I highly recommend it. My brother recently bought one and really likes his so far. However to be honest it is the only smoker I have owned but I think it may be the one I replace it with should the need arise.
Jeff: I have tried other rubs but they do not hold a candle to yours. I have been using yours for several years and kick myself every time I take the time to smoke a piece of meat and DON’T use yours. Unquestionably the best. I do have a question: I am tired of the inconsistent temperature of my Camp Chef 24″ Smoke Vault Gas Smoker and having to tend it nearly constantly. I am considering an electric model and would like your opining on the Masterbuilt Sportsman Elite 30″ Black Electric Smoker with Meat Probe. What do you think?
Rick, I read your note to Jeff asking his opinion about the Masterbuilt Electric Smoker. I’m not Jeff and I don’t have a website and my own meat rub so I’m not sure you would be interested in my opinion or not. But, I have the Masterbuilt electric and I absolutely love it. I use it no less than 2 times each week and have not had a disappointing meal yet. It maintains the temperature settings very well. The hard wired meat probe is invaluable. It works so well, it is easy for me to get distracted and forget that I actually have something cooking. Since buying mine more than 2 years ago, my best friend and my Brother-in-Law have purchased their own. It has held up extremely well. I replaced the interior light bulb once. Hows that for dependability. Good luck in making your decision. – Mike
In the past, I haven’t had great results smoking chicken. I’ve only done whole chickens though. The taste isn’t bad, but they come out tasting pretty much like a johnsonville smoked sausage. Not necessarily a bad taste, but any flavor that the chicken had is completely overpowered by the smoke process. Is that what it’s supposed to taste like?
You might back off on the amount of smoke. I absolutely love the chicken and turkey we prepare in the smoker, but I generally do not subject the poultry to as much smoke as other people tend to do. You didn’t go into much detail with your question but this may apply.
Good luck,
Mike
you may be using the wrong flavor of wood i.e. hickory. try something milder like apple or cherry if you want a lighter smoke flavor.
Use fruit wood, like apple or cherry, and only apply smoke for half the cooking time, maybe 2/3 at the most.