The focus of today's recipe is chicken legs! They taste best when cooked over indirect heat on a Kamado grill. There are no flare-ups when cooking over indirect heat, unlike when you first light the charcoal over direct heat. To achieve the stunningly crispy results you see here, the chicken legs are first cooked on the side opposite the charcoal before being moved over to that side to crisp them up.
I achieve this by lighting my charcoal on only one-half of the grill's side. To slowly cook the legs to 150 degrees, they are positioned on the opposite side of the charcoal. Depending on the temperature of your grill—mine was at 250 degrees with the lid closed—it takes between 60 and 75 minutes. My kamado grill's bottom vent was set to 2 1/2, and the top vent to 2. By adjusting the vents to allow more air in, you can raise the temperature to 350 degrees if you don't have that much time. This step will take about 45 minutes. The next step is to finish them over direct heat, which takes 20 to 30 minutes. Depending on the temperature of your grill, cooking times change.
A four-hour marinade of garlic, cider, and herbs was applied to these chicken legs. Before placing the chicken legs in the marinade bag, I made a few small cuts in the legs to help the marinade penetrate. You don't need to be concerned about salmonella because we will cook these legs to 165 degrees, which takes care of any worries about a raw egg in the marinade.
These chicken legs were marinated in a herbal, cider, and garlic marinade for four hours. I made a few tiny cuts in the chicken legs before putting them in the marinade bag to help the marinade penetrate. Salmonella worries are unfounded because we will cook these legs to a temperature of 165 degrees, which allays any concerns about a raw egg in the marinade.
To ensure that the chicken legs are cooked to the proper temperature while cooking on the grill, it's crucial to use a meat thermometer. Because I can quickly determine the temperature, I use a digital thermometer. Before transferring the chicken legs to the direct heat over the charcoal, they should reach a temperature of 150 degrees. At 165 degrees, the chicken legs will be fully cooked. Using the juices to determine when the chicken is done is risky; instead, use the temperature!
About 75 minutes had passed with the temperature at 250 degrees above these legs. They have just been shifted to the side with direct heat underneath them in the image below to finish cooking. The skins will become crispy and beautiful at this point. In the bottom of this picture, you can see a tiny bit of bacon. Soon I'll share a mouthwatering bacon appetiser with you that is to die for!
Author: Alyssa Gardiola
Recipe type: Chicken, Kamado, Grilling
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 1 hour 45 mins
Total time: 2 hours
Serves: Serves 4
These chicken legs' gorgeous co-lour is a result of Kamado Grill marinated chicken legs being cooked over indirect heat before being crisped up over direct heat.
Author: Alyssa Gardiola
Recipe type: Chicken, Kamado, Grilling
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 1 hour 45 mins
Total time: 2 hours
Serves: Serves 4
These chicken legs' gorgeous colour is a result of Kamado Grill marinated chicken legs being cooked over indirect heat before being crisped up over direct heat.
Find a Barbeques Galore store near you - Here