How To Give BBQ Chicken Thighs The Perfect Texture Every Time

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Chicken thighs are super flavorful, forgiving, and simple to grill — as long as you take your time. Morgan Bolling, executive food editor at America's Test Kitchen, talked with us about the steps you can take to create tender chicken thighs with crispy skin every single time you toss them onto the fire. Bolling knows her way around a grill, especially after America's Test Kitchen released "The Complete Grilling and Barbecue Cookbook."

Bolling recommends taking a two-zone approach when you're grilling chicken thighs, creating a hotter side and a cooler side. "I start the chicken thighs on the cooler side to cook them through gently, then move them to the hot side, skin-side down, to render the fat and crisp the skin," she says. According to Bolling, this lets you take a more controlled approach so you can slowly get the chicken thighs up to the appropriate temperature (around 185 degrees Fahrenheit). "While it may seem counterintuitive, that higher temperature actually helps break down connective tissue, resulting in more tender, juicy meat," says Bolling.

Many of us who spend time grilling have had the unfortunate experience of burning BBQ sauce, which can turn perfectly crispy chicken thighs into a nightmare. It doesn't take much to turn tangy, perfectly spicy BBQ sauce into a charred mess. According to Morgan Bolling, adding BBQ sauce to meat so it doesn't burn on the grill comes down to timing. "Once the chicken is mostly cooked through, I begin brushing it on so it an caramelize and develop that sticky texture without burning," she says. She also recommends adding an additional layer of BBQ sauce once your chicken has finished cooking (use a different brush and container of BBQ sauce to prevent cross-contamination).

In addition to adding BBQ sauce at the right time, choosing the right BBQ sauce also makes a serious difference. While there are plenty of great store-bought options that easily complement the rich flavor of chicken thighs, you can also go the extra mile and make your own. Whether you go with a simple three-ingredient BBQ recipe or you add your own twist to store-bought barbeque sauce to make it taste homemade, make sure you've followed Bolling's tips and let your chicken thighs come up to almost fully cooked before you make your first pass with sauce. This helps you preserve the crispy skin without the all-too-common charred BBQ sauce issue.