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Smoked Chicken

  • 20m Prep Time
  • 3h Cook Time
  • 3h Ready In

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  • Cuisine : American
  • Course : Dinner

4 to 6 servings Please read about Barbecuing. To avoid the rigmarole of removing the bird and cutting off the breast meat, you may cut the chicken into pieces beforehand and remove them as they cook through—or simplify things further by using 3 to 4 ½ pounds chicken thighs or whole legs instead of a whole chicken.

Ingredients

Servings:
½× 1× 1½× 2× 3×
Units:
As Written US Metric
  • One 4- to 6-pound chicken
  • 1
    • ½ cup sweet or hot paprika
    • ¼ cup packed brown sugar
    • ¼ cup chili powder
    • ¼ cup salt
    • ¼ cup cracked black peppercorns
    • 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
    • 2 tablespoons ground cumin
    • 1 teaspoon ground mace
    Sub-recipe steps
    1. Stir together well in a small bowl: ½ cup sweet or hot paprika; ¼ cup packed brown sugar; ¼ cup chili powder; ¼ cup salt; ¼ cup cracked black peppercorns; 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper; 2 tablespoons ground cumin; 1 teaspoon ground mace
  • One small chunk of dry hickory, oak, or mesquite wood
  • 1
    • 2 cups distilled white vinegar
    • 2 teaspoons salt
    • 1 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
    • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
    • 1 small onion, thinly sliced
    • 1 jalapeño pepper, thinly sliced
    Sub-recipe steps
    1. Whisk together in a bowl until the salt dissolves: 2 cups distilled white vinegar; 2 teaspoons salt; 1 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste; 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
    2. Stir in: 1 small onion, thinly sliced; 1 jalapeño pepper, thinly sliced
    3. Use the same day.
  • 1
    • 1 cup mayonnaise
    • ½ cup cider vinegar
    • 2 garlic cloves, minced or grated on a rasp grater, or 1 tablespoon garlic powder
    • 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
    • 1 tablespoon drained prepared horseradish
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • ½ teaspoon black pepper
    • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
    Sub-recipe steps
    1. Whisk together in a medium bowl: 1 cup mayonnaise; ½ cup cider vinegar; 2 garlic cloves, minced or grated on a rasp grater, or 1 tablespoon garlic powder; 1 tablespoon yellow mustard; 1 tablespoon drained prepared horseradish; ½ teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon black pepper; ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
    2. Cover and refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Let's Prepare

Collect

Gather these ingredients - no prep needed yet.

  • One 4- to 6-pound chicken
  • 1 ¼ cup Southern Barbecue Dry Rub, or 1 tablespoon salt and 1 tablespoon black pepper
  • One small chunk of dry hickory, oak, or mesquite wood
  • 1 (Basic Mop or Beer Mop)
  • 1 Alabama White Barbecue Sauce or Chipotle Barbecue Sauce

Let's Cook

  1. Step 1.

    Remove the neck and giblets from: One 4- to 6-pound chicken

  2. Step 2.

    Rub all over with: ¼ cup Southern Barbecue Dry Rub, or 1 tablespoon salt and 1 tablespoon black pepper

  3. Step 3.

    Refrigerate, uncovered, on a wire rack overnight. Heat a smoker or grill set up for indirect cooking to 225° to 250°F (preferably with a water pan). Add to the coals: One small chunk of dry hickory, oak, or mesquite wood

  4. Step 4.

    Add the chicken to the cooler side of the smoker or grill and cover so that the top vent pulls smoke across the bird. If possible, position the chicken so that the legs are closer to the coals than the breasts. Adjust the vents to maintain the temperature. If you do not have a water pan inside to keep the smoker or grill humid, baste the meat every 20 minutes with: (Basic Mop or Beer Mop)

  5. Step 5.

    If you plan to keep the breast meat moist for serving in pieces, transfer the chicken to a rimmed baking sheet when a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast registers 155°F, about 2 hours. Sever the legs at the backbone and return them to the smoker or grill and cook for 20 minutes longer (tent the breast and wing portion with foil to keep warm).

  6. Step 6.

    If you plan to pull or shred the meat and dress with a sauce, smoke the bird whole until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the inner thigh registers 175°F, 2 ½ to 3 hours. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet, loosely cover with foil, and rest for at least 15 minutes.

  7. Step 7.

    Cut the bird into serving pieces (see About Carving Poultry) or remove the skin and shred the meat off the bone with a fork. Chop up the skin and add back in, if desired. Dress the pulled chicken or serve the pieces with: Alabama White Barbecue Sauce or Chipotle Barbecue Sauce

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