Smoking chicken is another one of my favorite things to do.. done correctly it can be quite tasty and very healthy as well.
I have been doing quite a few test runs on my new wood fired smoker to get everything right before I begin giving instructions on how to smoke chicken
I have to say I have been getting some very good results.. tasty results I might add.
I am going to release the details that have recently become the standard for smoking chicken at my house.
Go to the local supermarket or meat market and pick out a few plump chickens in the 3 to 3.5 pound range for the best flavor. I like to buy ones that are not full of solution.. look for words like "all natural" or "minimally processed" on the outside of the package.
Brine the chickens in a solution of:
- 1 gallon water
- 1 cup kosher salt
- 1 cup sugar
- anything else you might like to add such as wine, fruit juice, spices, worcestershire, etc..
You can double the recipe if you need to. please read the page on brining for more information.
You will only need to brine the chickens for around 4 hours or so.
Build a fire that will maintain around 225 degrees using oak as a base wood and while the fire is getting started wash the brine off of the chickens and coat the chickens with my rub for the best results or you can use some lemon pepper and cajun seasoning.
Place the chickens on the smoker breast side down and immediately throw on some hickory and let the smoke roll relentlessly out of the smoke stack. you can also mix in some apple or other fruit wood if you have a favorite.
Let the smoking chickens go for an hour and a half and then turn the chickens to breast side up so that it does not dry out the tender white meat.
You can mop the chickens with some butter or spiced olive oil if you like.. I do not mop the chickens at all as I have found that it is really not needed. The outside of the chickens tend to stay nice and moist throughout the entire smoke.
I like to use a Taylor meat thermometer to check the temperature of the chicken since the entire success of smoking chicken lies in not overcooking the chicken.
Or.. if you want to get fancy you can get my favorite remote meat thermometer.. the Maverick ET-732. The sending unit stays with the smoker and monitors the smoker temperature AND the meat temperature. The reciever stays in your pocket or on the table next to you and you always know what's happening. The range is about 300 feet and I'm loving it.
Better yet.. it's only about $60 bucks on Amazon.com and it is well worth it!
Pull the chicken when the temp reaches 165 in the thickest part of the breast.. sometimes I will pull it a few degrees shy of 165 since I know the temp will continue to rise for a few minutes after it comes out of the smoker.
I have to tell you… prepare for the attack! I did a batch of these this past weekend and you should have seen the family huddles over the counter like a crew of barbarians pickin' that chicken to the bone!
Feel free to come up with your own variations but hopefully the details listed above will help you get started smoking the world's favorite white meat.
Want the Skin to be Crispy?
Smoked chicken skin tends to be a little chewy at times.. if you prefer crispy chicken skin then you will need to make just a couple of adjustments to the process.
Crispy chicken skin requires about 20-25 minutes of high heat to render the fat in the skin and make it crisp up so you can either crank up the heat in the smoker to about 300-325 degrees F for about the last 25 minutes or so or.. you can remove the chicken once it reaches about 140 degrees or so and finish it off over high heat (300-325) on the grill.
Watch the chicken carefully and turn as necessary to make sure the skin does not burn but browns evenly on all sides.
Remember.. if you have placed a sugary rub or sauce on the bird, it will burn really fast over that high heat so be careful.
About Jeff Phillips
Kind of new to smoking and just have a few quick questions in regards to smoking chickens. Do you have to inject the chickens with any Tenderquik or other solution prior to smoking so bacteria does not form? Should you always brine your chickens prior to smoking? Was worried about smoking at a low temperature and bacteria forming? Any help would surely be appreicated. Thank you so much!!
The kind of smoking that I teach here mostly is hot smoking which is just cooking the meat with smoke added. We do cook the meat a little lower than you would in the house but there is no need for adding tenderquick or any other curing salts.
Chickens are usually cooked at about 240-275 degrees F in most cases and will get done in about 4 hours or so.
You don’t have to brine the chicken but it is a good practice for making sure they are juicy, tender and flavorful as they can be. I highly recommend it.
Just smoked a drunk chicken and it turned out amazing. It was juicy and tender. I didn't brine it as suggested. It took about 3 hours @ 250-275 degrees. Every hour I applied a mop made with apple cider vinegar and eevo.
Just smoked a drunk chicken and it turned out amazing. It was juicy and tender. I didn't brine it as suggested. It took about 3 hours @ 250-275 degrees. Every hour I applied a mop made with apple cider vinegar and eevo.
Can you add liquid smoke to the brine?
You can add almost anything that you like to the brine and it will end up flavoring the meat all the way through. I’m not a big fan of liquid smoke personally but if you like it then go for it. I add things that I like to the brine like hot sauce, crab boil, etc. and it always amazes me how it gets so deep into the meat.
I’d say go easy with it the first time until you find out how it does.
Should I delete salt from my rub recipe if I brine the chiken before smoking? If I don't will it be too salty?
I can speak from personal experience on this one. I just smoked a couple of chickens this weekend after first brining overnight and using a rub that had added salt. The chickens were too salty, in my view. My wife loved them because she loves salt but next time around, I'll ease off the salt in the rub.
I tried your "Smoking Chicken" brining and smoking process and it worked great. This was my first attempt at a whole chicken. I was able to even get the skin crispy by following your suggestion. I picked up digital/portable meat thermometor which helpled immensely. Thanks for the help.
What is the usual total cooking time? I will be smoking 4 – 3.5lb to 4lb chickens today.
Or how much longer usually after I turn them over should they take?
Thanks,
Super Novice
Perhaps too late but just so you’ll know, whole chickens usually require about 3.5 to 4 hours if cooked at 225-240 degrees. Just remember to watch the thermometer closely and let that be the judge of when the meat is done cooking rather than time.
You might need to figure on a little extra time for 4 chickens since that adds quite a bit of cold mass to the smoker.
I hope they turned out great for you!
Thanks to your newsletter and website I've become well known around the 'hood and office as "Meatman". Butts, ribs, briscuits . . . all good. I am now venturing into smoking chicken (which I personally think is one of the toughest things to get right). I've got an amateur competition coming up in a few weeks and my team assigned me chicken (halves). I've tried your rub on chicken one other time and felt it a little "heavy". Do you have a rub or alteration that you use for poultry? I was thinking of toying with either ginger or cinamon. Obviously the office and family will be eating lots of chicken over the next couple of weeks as I experiment but I'm really wanting a drop dead, sure fire chicken. Any suggestions?
thanks
what about beer can chicken in smoker? or is it not nessasary after brining?
I have this site saved on my favorites list. I bought an electric smoker about 3 months ago, and have been smoking everything from chicken to fish to ribs and lamb. Than you so much for this site!