Hi all,
Ok, here is the deal....
Last night I did a cook that came out wayyyy better than I thought. Now do not get me wrong, I expected a good meal... but I did not expect such a mouth watering savory set of treats! The juice dribbled down our chins. My GF said she did not know if she should eat the chicken or drink it. I think it had a lot to do with the acid of the 2 fresh squeezed lemons and the punch of them zested.
It started out like this:
-5 cloves of garlic
-2 heaping Tbs. of Oregano
-1 Tbs fresh cracked black pepper
-1 Teaspoon of kosher salt
-1+1/2 Tbs Konriko Greek seasoning
-1/2 teaspoon of cayenne
-3 Tbs canola oil(usually use olive, but wanted lighter flavor this time)
-2 Tbs Apple Vinegar
-2 lemons, fully microplaned and squeezed.
1) Mixed all ingredients in mini processor, except lemon juice and zest.
I had those items in a larger bowl, where I zested the skin into.
2) Dump processed spice batch into the larger bowl with the lemon. Give a good stir, then add the chicken thighs. Mix well by hand for a couple of minutes, really getting the wet paste/marinade into the chicken thighs crevices and under the skin.
3) Marinate a total of 4 hours.
4) Got a full chimney of coals going, and arranged around the perimeter of the charcoal grate in a horseshoe pattern.
Leaving an opening in the ring of coals just like a big U.
5) Put the chicken on indirectly in the middle of the coals skin side up, with none directly over a lit coal. Put a stick of pecan from my tree on the back of the U of the coals. Sprinkled lightly with the Konriko then closed lid, and let cook for 35 to 40 minutes.
5) When thighs where just under 160F, I flipped them and moved over direct. The skin at this time was already a nice glowing golden smoke kissed brown. Kept them upside down on the coals for about 5 minutes to render the skin a little more.
6) Took them off and let them sit for about 10 minutes.
I usually have photos of the prep and cook... but was in a bit of a hectic state last night doing other tasks while trying to cook. Sorry about not having them this time. I will definitely do this cook again. The lemon taste with the oregano and Greek spice mix was soooo SAVORY! Pecan added just the right amount of smoke flavor too. Turning over the last 5 minutes rendered enough of the fat off that these were bite through. Personally, I think it was the most flavorful chicken I ever cooked. I look forward to cooking this for friends!
Right off the grill, the color was amazing. Did not want to wait out the rest time to dig in, but I did!
Couple of close ups. You can see the oregano, juiciness and spices. Yummm.
My GF's lovely contribution.
All of it together.
