Smoking chicken

[mskyfshntchr]

I have a bunch of chicken legs in the freezer. Thinking of smoking them up. I couldn't find much info. on how people smoke chicken, so I thought I would ask a few questions.

1. Do you soak in a brine beforehand? What do you use?

2. Is it better to lay the legs down on racks or hang? Does it matter?

3. Favorite wood to use?

4. What temps are you running?

Thanks for the help guys!

[Big Dave2]

I have a bunch of chicken legs in the freezer. Thinking of smoking them up. I couldn't find much info. on how people smoke chicken, so I thought I would ask a few questions.

1. Do you soak in a brine beforehand? What do you use?

You could brine if you want to but personally I don't bother when doing dark meat. If you do it right it will come out moist and juicy anyway! You can also marinate too if you want a specific flavor but personally I like a goog thick coating of rub and thats it.

2. Is it better to lay the legs down on racks or hang? Does it matter?

They make racks for just this purpose but if there is room on the smoker grate for all of them then I see no need to hang them.

3. Favorite wood to use?

I prefer apple wood for chicken but thats just me.

4. What temps are you running?

I try to keep it arounf 250 until the very end then I open everything up and get it good and hot so the outside gets crispy.

Thanks for the help guys!

Chicken is about the easiest thing there is to smoke so don't fret too much.

[reinhard1]

Dave got it down pretty good. dark meat in general is more moist than white. i usualy just put them on metal grates sprayed with oil. if you do brine them, they dont need the time white meat does. 2 or 3 hours is fine. if you season or rub them, put the seasoning or rub under the skin. normaly at 225 to 250 deg it usualy takes around 2 hrs. i have been using Hickory for everything, but i'm going to try cherry wood after i saw some postings about cherry on another thread. good luck.

[OnAFly]

You'll get lots of opinion on this one. I go 275F for poultry usually, but dark meat is so fatty it probably won't matter as much. Dry rub will be great. I use apple or cherry, both are good. In fact, I think I'll be limiting my wood purchases to only those two. They seems to always give good results.

[eyeguy 54]

Cherry Chicken is great. Apple will be a little mellower but also great. Play with the temps, the lower temp the more you can smoke. Kinda depends how smokey you want it. I gotta try hickory on a chicken. I slit the breast on this one to get more smokey flavor in it. Havn't done just legs but I did a buncha thighs 2 weeks ago. No brine or anything, just smoked them. Dang good.

[DonBo]

but I did a buncha thighs 2 weeks ago. No brine or anything, just smoked them. Dang good.

Me too. Just a simple rub, then smoked them for about 3 hours at around 200 degrees. Hickory wood for me, but I like a heavier smoke flavor.

[Big Dave2]

Me too. Just a simple rub, then smoked them for about 3 hours at around 200 degrees. Hickory wood for me, but I like a heavier smoke flavor.

When I smoke chicken it is almost always whole hind quarters with the leg and thigh still attached.

[LABS4ME]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I still always brine my poultry... I had been taught it helps prevent botulism growing on the meat with low temps in the smoker and the time it takes to get the meat up to temp... plus I have learned that the brining process helps to begin the cooking process in the meat by breaking down the proteins, so the end product while almost always moist is also generally more tender... I did a couple chickens without brining a couple of years ago but smoked them at 275... kinda seemed more like 'grilling' them than smoking them...

Is this thinking wrong?

Good Luck!

Ken

[otterman91105]

Put a good rub on the chicken then place them in the fridge overnight. Cook at around 220 for about 3 hours or so till internal temp is 170. I always use apple goes good with chicken, but i have not tried anything else. Good luck

[Scott K]

What do you use for a rub? Do you mix your own, or purchase it? What do you use?

[pikestabber]

McCormick Grill Mates makes a BBQ rub that I really like...rub your chicken in olive oil, then a generous dose of the dry rub, then into the smoker.

I agree that brined chicken is generally the way to go. The salt does help breakdown proteins and makes for a more tender piece of meat. As for preventing botulism, I believe the only way to do that is to use a meat probe and make sure your meat is cooked to a safe temp of at least 165 (always check the thickest part of your meat (near the bone, but not touching the bone) for the most accurate reading.

[Big Dave2]

What do you use for a rub? Do you mix your own, or purchase it? What do you use?

Here is a simple but good rib rub recipe. I use it on chicken as well.

Ingredients:

1/4 C. paprika

2 tbsp. brown sugar, packed

... 2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper (optional)

1 tsp. dry mustard

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. onion powder

Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Mix with a fork. Store until needed. Keeps in a cool, dry place for six months.

[reinhard1]

i have used some rubs but not with brown sugar in them for chicken. this one sounds good, i will give it a try. i think the crushed red pepper would blend it just fine with the brown sugar for a little sweet and heat. good luck.

[thirdeye]

I have a bunch of chicken legs in the freezer. Thinking of smoking them up. I couldn't find much info. on how people smoke chicken, so I thought I would ask a few questions.

1. Do you soak in a brine beforehand? What do you use?

2. Is it better to lay the legs down on racks or hang? Does it matter?

3. Favorite wood to use?

4. What temps are you running?

Thanks for the help guys!

To some degree I think everyone has made some good points and gave you some good suggestions. But the truth is... the reason you got such a variety of answers is that chicken is not as easy to cook as you think. On the competition side of BBQ, chicken is one of the toughest categories. That said, I can't give you the 1-2-3 to good chicken but I can share what works good for me.

1. I always brine white meat and often brine dark meat.

2. When you cook legs on the grate you have to tend them by turning. If you use a rack, there is no turning and I think they cook more even.

3. Contrary to what most folks say about chicken being a smoke sponge, I use good quality cherry, apple or pecan and use the same amount of smoke as I do on something like ribs.

4. Depending on the pit and what kind of pieces, I'll go everywhere from 250° to 400°. Thighs are easier to cook as they are more forgiving and will usually stay moist. I cook them to an internal of at least 175°-180°.

Here are the drumstick racks I'm talking about.

This is why I like to cook thighs.

[eyeguy 54]

Nice, I did 6 legs last night for supper. 3 for me and one for the mrs and 2 in the fridge. half hour later none in the fridge. 2 more in me lol

[otterman91105]

We smoke chicken quite often, I really like those drumstick racks never seen them before i will have to pick a couple up.

[mskyfshntchr]

Thanks for all the tips, guys. Here is what I did- and it worked out.

I smoked the legs last weekend.

I didn't brine- meat turned out tender.

I layed them on the racks- might make a hanging rack- those look slick.

Cherry wood.

For rubs- I tried a few different ones I had- I had a garlic herb butter rub, Wee Willy's sweet rub and 2 from Oklahoma Joes- all purpose BBQ and Hog Squeal. All tasted good- The All purpose BBQ and Hog Squeal were the 2 favorites.

Temps- ran about 225 and it took around 3-4 hours.

Figuring on doing them again soon cuz they sure were tasty!!

[Fish Head]

That sounds great. I'm definately going to do this. I'll bet they would freeze well too.