Fruity Chicken

In our softball league we have several picnics. Our head umpire brings dogs and buns and beer. Just about everybody else brings a dish to pass. More often than not I bring something off the smoker or grill. This year I did drumsticks.

Meat:
30 chicken drumsticks

Marinade:
46 oz (1 can) pineapple juice
8 oz lime juice
1/2 cup salt
2 oz Frank's Red Hot

Mix juices, salt and hot sauce in a bowl. Put chicken in a 2 1/2 gallon zip top bag, cover in marinade (you may have to add a bit of water to cover the chicken completely), get all the air out of the bag and let marinade in the fridge overnight.

Next day, fire up the smoker and let the chicken cook for between 3 and 4 hours. We, sadly, got eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, but people were hungry and they grabbed chicken cold out of cooler, not wanting to wait for the other games to get done and have them heated up on the grill. Everybody that had some said it was delicious, even cold.

The above picture doesn't really do them justice. Most of them were really a beautiful mahogany color when they came off the smoker and they were tasty, with a nice fruity aroma. A little more red hot or a stronger hot sauce may have been a good idea, but I wasn't interested in spicy this time around. The sweet smoky pineapple smell was intoxicating. It was definitely a nice change from the heavy, earthy and sometimes peppery flavors that usually define barbecue. If you are looking for a change give this a try. I know I'll be cooking this again.