There are thousands of ways to cook a chicken well and just as many ways to overcook it, leaving the meat dry and flavorless. While smoking is more time-consuming than other cooking methods, it imparts a unique flavor to the chicken and is also healthy. Smoking does not add fat through the use of oils like other cooking techniques, including frying. In order to maintain a tender chicken throughout the long smoking process, a salt brine is used to increase the moisture content.
Brining
Step 1
Prepare a brine of ½ cup salt and ½ cup sugar for every one quart of water. Depending on the size and shape of your brining container, you will need approximately 1 quart of brine for every 2 lbs. of chicken.
Step 2
Pour the brine into a large container and submerge the chicken in the brine. Refrigerate for one hour per lb. of chicken. If your container is too large for your refrigerator, use a small cooler and ice packs to brine your chicken and keep it cool.
Step 3
Remove the chicken from the brine at least 30 minutes before smoking and pat dry with paper towels.
Smoking
Step 1
Set your smoker at approximately 250 degrees Fahrenheit and add your wood chips. If you are placing hardwood chips directly on charcoal --- as opposed to a tray in an electric smoker --- soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before adding to the heat. If dry wood chips are added to charcoal they will ignite and burn your food.
Step 2
Fill your smoker's water or drip tray with chicken stock or apple juice. Adding liquid to the drip tray will keep the air in the smoker moist, preventing your chicken from drying out and adding flavor.
Step 3
Place the chicken on the smoker grate and close the lid. Smoking a whole chicken will take approximately fours hours for a whole 5-lb. chicken. If you are cooking chicken halves, or chicken pieces, smoking time is reduced.
Step 4
Add more hardwood chips approximately every 30 minutes to keep the smoke level constant.
Step 5
Check the interior temperature of the chicken with a meat thermometer every time you add hardwoods to your smoker. The USDA recommends that you cook chicken to 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Remember that the temperature of the meat will rise an additional five degrees after you remove it from the smoker.
Step 6
Remove the chicken from the smoker when done and tent loosely with foil, allowing it to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving. Resting the meat forces the juices to reabsorb and helps maintain a tender chicken.
Tips and Warnings
- Try using different types of hardwood to influence the smoke flavor of your chicken. Popular choices include maple, hickory, walnut, pecan and apple wood.
Things You'll Need
- Kosher salt
- Sugar
- Large container
- Smoker
- Hardwood chips
- Meat thermometer
- Aluminum foil
