Smoking whole Chicken

[muskiemanAD]

Per my previous post I got a new electric smoker. I am tasked this weekend to cook 2 racks of ribs which I got great responses from in my previous post. Also I want to cook 2 whole Chickens. My question is how long do these take to cook on a smoker and what temp should I cook them at?

Any other tricks for Chicken would be greatly appreaciated! I seriously thought about calling in sick today cause I wanted to try out the new smoker so bad!!

[otterman91105]

I would cook the chicken around 225. Your best bet is to go to walmart and buy a thermometer that you can read from the outside of the smoker so you don't have to open it up. I just put a rub on the outside of the chicken.

[hockeybc69]

I would brine the chickens for at least 24 hours too. Maybe even 2 days if they are big plumpy chickens.

[hockeybc69]

I inject my brine into the breast at the start.

Here is my poultry brine notes.

For each gallon of water, add the following:

1 cup Tenderquick or other liquid meat tenderizer

2 cups apple juice

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp Liquid Smoke (just in case)

1 Tbsp black pepper

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 Tbsp garlic powder

Use hot water to help dissolve everything. Make one gallon to start with and omit the pepper (it clogs the syringe). Inject the bird all over. Next, add the pepper and submerge the bird in the mixture. A five-gallon bucket works well. Make enough to cover the turkey and soak in a refrigerated area for 3-4 days. Before smoking, air dry for one hour and rub with brown sugar.

Put smoker at 200-225. Ensure 175 to 180 internal temp on bird before removing.

[reinhard1]

i started a post but i think your brine method and recipe here is very helpfull. thanks for the brine recipe and methods used. i've done more chicken in my barrel smoker/grill than in my smoker so guy's like you can give better info than me. i think the key to a great chicken either way is like you said with brinning or injecting with proper internal moisture the key. good luck.

[eyeguy 54]

doing my first beer can chicken in an hour. :>)

[nofishfisherman]

Any guidelines as to how long a chicken would take to cook in a smoker?

What about doing something like chicken leg quarters?

[reinhard1]

i have made many of those. great way to do them. i still inject them and spray them during the proccess. let us know how you do. good luck.

[rexlan]

I personally dislike the brine on chicken because it make the meat mushy.

I smoke my whole chickens at 250 and they take about 2.5 hours with constant smoke (I use Oak. I use a water pan too. I also stopped injecting them as I have found that adds nothing to the flavor at all but a lot of mess in the smoker when they leak.

Prep the bird with a good cleaning. Generous amount of salt/pepper inside the cavity. I carefully lift the skin a little on the breast and leg and put rub under it. Then tie the bird with string so the legs and wings are against the body, and put a good rub on the outside.

I do 4 at a time. Remove from the smoker and immediately place on a piece of meat film (serian wrap) and wrap them. The stuff will shrink instantly. Double wrap them then foil .... put 3 in the freezer and eat one for dinner.

When you want another one take it out in the morning and let it thaw on the counter to room temp. Put in the microwave at 80% power for 15 minutes until it is hot (duh .. take the plastic wrap off please!) ... enjoy and it will taste exactly the same as the one straight out of the smoker, moist and juicy! Almost an instant meal for working folks.

[hockeybc69]

How long are you brining a chicken that would make it mushy?

Never ever had that issue. Succulent, dripping with moisture goodness here.

PS - I do put them in a glass pyrex dish to cathc the drippings and that also helps keep them moist by the drippings slowly boiling off.

I finish the chicken direct on the rack for the last hour or so. Last thing I am worried about is drippings in my smoker. Thats just a part of the process.

[rexlan]

How long are you brining a chicken that would make it mushy?

Never ever had that issue. Succulent, dripping with moisture goodness here.

PS - I do put them in a glass pyrex dish to cathc the drippings and that also helps keep them moist by the drippings slowly boiling off.

I finish the chicken direct on the rack for the last hour or so. Last thing I am worried about is drippings in my smoker. Thats just a part of the process.

Well .... you said brine at least 24 hours and maybe 2 days .... no thanks. I tried it a couple of times for an overnight ... junk, IMHO. A properly smoked chicken is very moist and the texture is very nice. Most folks, IMHO, use too low of a temp for chicken in their smoker. 250* is actually on the low side with 275 being better. But if you're happy with a method then that is what you should stick with.

Never tried smoking anything in my smoker in a glass dish ??????

Then another hour or so on the rack ... hum. We are talking about a simple 5# whole chicken right?

[hockeybc69]

Yes, simple 5# chicken.

At 225, a couple hours roughly in the pan and an hour on the rack. Whats so crazy about that?

People use pans in the oven so is it illegal to use a pan in the smoker?

To each their own. Works wonderful for me, and never had a complaint.

Enjoy whatever works and enjoy experimenting.

[reinhard1]

whole chicken hind quarters dont need to be brined or injected. just season them the way you like them and put them in the smoker or on indirect heat on a grill. i do spray them with apple juice though until the very end when i want the skin to crisp up some. i have a instant read thermometer to stick in the thigh once in awhile to see if i'm getting the temp to 160 internaly. after awhile you'll be able to eyeball the dark meat and go by feel to tell they are done. good luck.

[BLACKJACK]

I do whole chickens all the time on my large weber, I just pile the briquets on one side of the grill and put the chicken on the other side, turning the chicken occaisionally from breast to back and then back over again, moving it closer or farther away from the heat. Takes me about 2 hours. Throw on some wood chunks at the start to get some smoke. Theres usually enough room on the grill for potatoes in foil. My method may be a bit more labor intensive with the turning and tending but with some cold ones and the Twins on, thats what barbecueing is all about. Whatever works for people.

What I like about leaving them whole is that the meat stays moist. For a change of pace I cut my last chicken up and barbecued the individual pieces, didn't like it as well, seemed drier.

Not trying to start a can of worms but I've eaten meat that has been injected, not really a fan of it when you can see the lines of injected fluids in the finished product, I think brining the whole piece of meat is the way to go. Read a couple of articles about brining recently and have some questions but think I'll start another post....

[rexlan]

I like to spray the chicken along the way too. I admit to using the oil-in-the-spray-can too much but it sure makes it look nice. I really like the apple cyder for a spray on most things, including the chicken.

When I was injecting, I put it (mostly butter) in the breast at the bottom against the bone which may be why there was excessive leakage for me. They always came out so moist that I just stopped doing it all together.

The only problem in the smoker is that the skin is a little rubbery. I have tried using the propane torch but generally just burn it so I gave that up too.

Hard to beat a good smoked chicken just about any way it is prepared ... except burnt!

[Kyhl]

If you were to brine, do you brine the whole chicken?

The reason I ask is that I brined a pheasant for 24 hours before smoking and the breast meat was awesome but the thighs ended up salty.

Decided that I wouldn't do that to fowl again. Does chicken not have that issue?

[fischer69]

I'm a big fan of Beer Can chicken. Just make sure you get a pounder. Sometimes I will just drink the whole can & fill halfway to 3/4 with O.J. or apple juice. I generally rub it down with olive oil & put on whatever rub or spices that I want. For those of you using a Weber to smoke, I have great way to get your temps more regulated. On the side where I put all my coals & wood, just behind the charcoal cage, I put 2 firebricks. Also on the rest of the charcoal grate, I cover in tinfoil so the airflow is going directly under the coals. Get a cheap oven thermometer from Wally world or order a 2 probe Maverick(1 probe goes into meat, the other on the grate. After a bit of experimentaion, you can dial in almost any temp you want very easily.

[frostbite]

thanks for the info fischer69 i'll have to try that next time i always have a hard time getting the temp dialed in .may sound stupid? but when you say firebricks what are they?

[fischer69]

They are just bricks made to withstand higher heat, you can find them at Menards or most other places like that. If you get close enough to St. Cloud or can get near Blaine, I'll give ya a couple, I have about 8 more & they are taking up space! And no, that doesn't sound stupid, I have been experimenting for awhile. Found that trick out on another forum I use, if you like smoking, grilling or BBQ'ing, you should check out a site called BBQbrethren, the people there will answer anything you want & are a good group of people as well. Also sending you a PM about your late cousin.

[3pronghook]

i just did 3 of whole 3.5 lb GP chickens this weekend. brine is about 1 cup canning salt, 3/4 cup brown sugar and 3/4 cane sugar. i use a plastic mop bucket from the dollar store to soak them in so im guessing its about 3 gallons of water to cover the chickens. i brined for 3 hours. i put them on my electric smoker when temp was 250. i maintain temp between 200 and 225 and in 2.5 hrs they were done. i use a blanket to cover my electric smoker to help control temp. i unplug when thigh meat is 175 and let sit. brine flavor present, not salty, sweet cherrywood smoke. one sandwich is all i could salvage from carcasses. i do not believe in an extended brine time for chickens. anyone else seem to think using white table sugar helps crisp chicken?

[hockeybc69]

Quote:

i do not believe in an extended brine time for chickens.

I am here to say, I just brined pheasant breasts last Thursday and had them in the brine for a full 2 days.... And my friends were nuts over them this past weekend.

People,,,, its about the ingredients... Not the time in the brine.

Carry on.....

[Kyhl]

They are just bricks made to withstand higher heat, you can find them at Menards or most other places like that. If you get close enough to St. Cloud or can get near Blaine, I'll give ya a couple, I have about 8 more & they are taking up space! And no, that doesn't sound stupid, I have been experimenting for awhile. Found that trick out on another forum I use, if you like smoking, grilling or BBQ'ing, you should check out a site called BBQbrethren, the people there will answer anything you want & are a good group of people as well. Also sending you a PM about your late cousin.

After reading the Weber forum, I picked up a box of fire bricks at mynards this weekend. They are shelved near the fireplace and ductwork area. I walked around for a bit before asking thinking they'd be in the patio or outdoor area. One employee said to look in the plumming dept. LOL. He was quickly corrected that it was the ductwork section.

I'm looking forward to trying these new tricks on some ribs this weekend.

[frostbite]

thanks fischer69 was'nt sure if it was some kind of fire strater or something to hold the heat? the high temp bricks makes cents. i'll have to look at menards or i will let you know if i make it to the blaine area .thinking about going to the thorne bros get together on sept 22. if i don't have to work.will be checking out the other form as i love to grill / experiment with the smoker

[fischer69]

Just an FYI, you will either have to stagger them or cut one to make them sit side by side. If I remember right, I leave the exhaust vent open all the way & I close 1 intake & it normally sits around 250. I don't the aforementioned Maverick dual probe thermo but know alot of people love them & would make it easier to figure out where your vent should be set too to reach the temps that you want. I did 6# of country style ribs on the 4th & they turned out awesome with this method. Hope some of this info helps.