Cooking a whole chicken is one of the most affordable ways to feed the whole family. But before you make a last-minute run to the supermarket for a pre-bagged rotisserie chicken, consider smoking your own instead. It will take some forethought, as it can take up to five hours to smoke a whole chicken, but it's an extremely hands-off approach to cooking. The end result? A juicy, tender, and irresistibly smoky meat-main dish that the whole family will love.
You don't need a professional-grade smoker to prepare a restaurant-quality smoked chicken. It can all be done with a simple charcoal grill — or whatever you use to grill. With our step-by-step guide, you'll be able to smoke a whole chicken at home.
To get your bird ready for smoking, you'll need to take a few preliminary steps to make sure you get the best results. If they aren't already, the wings of the chicken should be tucked underneath the front of the chicken to keep them from burning on the tips. You'll also want to tie up the legs with a piece of twine to keep them from burning.
Remove any giblets from the cavity if they haven't already been removed. Now you're ready to season and smoke your turkey.
Best Wood for Smoking Chicken
This is going to come down to personal preference. The best wood for smoking chicken is any wood that complements the poultry flavor.
Some popular options include, apple, hickory, cherry, mesquite, pecan, and maple woods — all of which can be found at your local grocery store. Regardless of which one you choose, wood chips are essential to giving the chicken that desired smoky flavor.
How to Turn Your Grill Into a Smoker
How Long to Smoke a Whole Chicken
Depending on the size of the bird and the temperature that it's cooked at, it can take anywhere from two to five hours to smoke a whole chicken. The easiest way to know when your chicken is done is to use a digital meat thermometer to check the internal temperature. The breast should read between 160 and 165 degrees Fahrenheit, while the thigh should be between 170 and 175 degrees Fahrenheit.
How to Smoke a Whole Chicken Step-by-Step
For a simple, smoked, whole chicken, we're going to be using this recipe from Allrecipes Community Member CAJUN MOMMA who says, "I use chunks of history in my grill to impart a smoky flavor to the meat."
Equipment:
Outdoor grill, charcoal grill, or a smoker
Wood chips
Meat thermometer
A fork
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Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, about 4 pounds
3 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon of fresh chives, finely chopped
Instructions:
Preheat an outdoor grill on low heat or preheat a smoker to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Load wood chips of your choice into your grill or smoker. Refer to the manufacturer instructions for how to load and use wood chips in your grill or smoker.
Pat the chicken dry and loosen the skin around the breast area.
Place butter in various places under the skin. Mix herbs together and place half under the skin and the other half inside the chicken cavity.
Place the chicken, breast side up, in the center of the preheated grill or smoker. Close the lid and let the chicken cook until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit, or until the juices run clear when poked with a fork. This could take anywhere from 3 to 5 hours, so be sure to check on the chicken periodically.
How to Cut and Serve a Whole Smoked Chicken
How to Cut a Whole Chicken Step-by-Step
First and most importantly: Let your chicken rest for at least 15 minutes on the cutting board before you cut into it. This allows the juices to evenly disperse throughout the meat.
Insert your knife between the body of the chicken and the leg. Pop the leg off. Repeat on the other side.
Use your knife to separate the leg from the thigh.
Pop off the wings one at a time using a knife.
Cut right down the middle, slightly to the side of the backbone. Cut all the way through. Cut to the other side of the backbone and all the way through. This leaves you with two breasts, two thighs, two legs, and two wings. You can also cut the breasts in half to more pieces.
What to Serve With Smoked Chicken
Make no mistake — the chicken should be the star of the show. But it needs a vegetable side dish to make it a wholesome meal. Go for lighter dishes to balance out the charred, smoky chicken, such as a broccoli salad or some lemony grilled okra. Refer to our list of the best side dishes for barbecued and grilled chicken for more inspiration.
Related Content:
How to Cook a Whole Chicken in the Instant Pot
How to Make Smoked Turkey Legs
10 Easy Dinner Recipes Featuring Flavorful Smoked Turkey Legs
Place chicken into the smoker. Make sure to tuck the wings under to prevent overcooking. Smoke at 225 to 250 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 5 hours or until the breasts and thighs have reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove from the smoker and allow to rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
Smoking a whole chicken can take between 3-4 hours, but it all depends on the temperature you choose, the size of the bird, and whether you spatchco*ck it or not. For best results, follow your recipe, but if you're feeling nervous, monitor the internal temperature with a MEATER 2 Plus wireless meat thermometer.
IF you have time, it's always recommended that you brine the chicken in a salt and water solution for up to 24 hours. Brining isn't a must, but it ensures that your chicken is juicy, moist, tender, and seasoned really well.
Rough math says it should take approximately 45 minutes per pound of chicken. A good rule of thumb is to start checking the internal temperature of the chicken at the 2 ½ hour mark. You want the chicken legs and chicken thighs to reach 180˚F and the white meat to hit 165˚F on a digital thermometer.
We recommend selecting your favorite spices that go well with the particular type of meat you want to smoke. Seasoning is equally important to achieving a juicy and tender piece of smoked meat. The rub or spices applied before cooking help hold in the moisture throughout the cooking process.
Pre-heat your smoker to between 225 and 250°F (107 and 121°C). Use whatever wood you like for smoke. We used Billows BBQ Control Fan and Smoke X2 to set our temperature just where we wanted it and decided on 240°F (116°C). Pat your chicken dry.
Fill a spray bottle with a combination of apple cider vinegar and a little water. Spray the chicken with this mixture while it smokes to keep the chicken moist. This has the potential to prevent a crispy crust from forming, depending on how often you spray the chicken.
You can use different options to wrap your brisket, pork, or chicken before putting it into the food smoker. These include Aluminium foil and butcher paper. Wrapping your brisket in aluminum foil speeds up cooking time and keeps in the meat's fat and juices, leaving it tender.
The FDA-approved temperature for cooking chicken is 165, but your chicken doesn't stop cooking the moment it comes out of the smoker. The bones of the bird hold heat, so you should actually remove from the smoker between 155 and 160 degrees.
It's important to oil the food so that the meat doesn't dry out, and so that it does attract the smoke. After the chicken is brushed with a thin layer of olive oil, season lightly with a rub or simply use salt to flavor the chicken—the wood smoke is your major flavoring agent.
The soaking chicken in brine leads to the meat being wet and soggy. This then leads to the chicken skin being soft and not crispy, which can also make the skin rubbery. Alternatively, try dry brining. Applying salt the day before will enhance the chicken's flavor.
How Long to Smoke a Whole Chicken. It takes approximately 2.5-3 hours to fully smoke a whole chicken at 275 degrees F. The final internal temperature of the breast should be between 160-165 degrees F, and the thighs should be between 170-175 degrees F.
I like to smoke whole chicken at 300-325 degrees. This temperature works best to really crisp up the skin. Place the bird on the smoker grates for 1½-2 hours – this is typically how long to smoke a chicken.
Place the chicken in the smoker and smoke, maintaining a smoker temperature of between 200° and 225°F, replenishing the wood chunks or chips as needed, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of a leg registers 165°F, 3 to 5 hours. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes.
Fill a spray bottle with a combination of apple cider vinegar and a little water. Spray the chicken with this mixture while it smokes to keep the chicken moist. This has the potential to prevent a crispy crust from forming, depending on how often you spray the chicken.
Before adding your chicken to your smoker, coat the cooking grate in a layer of heat-tolerant oil. As your chicken smokes, the exterior will naturally cook faster than the interior. And if the cooking grate isn't oiled, your chicken may stick to it. The dry exterior of your chicken will bind to the dry cooking grate.
Introduction: My name is Saturnina Altenwerth DVM, I am a witty, perfect, combative, beautiful, determined, fancy, determined person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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