This Smoked Whole Chicken will be the star of your summer grill out! Tender and juicy chicken smoked with a simple BBQ rub.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
Whole chickens are so easy to make and a great way to get both dark and white meats for a crowd.
We made this for a summer BBQ party and it was the star of the show!
With tons of flavor, this chicken comes out juicy with minimal effort.
Use a smoker or grill with a pellet pack.
Ingredients
These are the ingredients you need to make this smoked chicken recipe:
- Whole Chicken
- Chili Powder
- Dry Mustard
- Onion Powder
- Cayenne Powder
- Garlic Powder
- Paprika
- Cumin
- Brown Sugar
- Salt
- BBQ Sauce (optional, for basting if desired)
Equipment
- Smoker
- Grilling Meat Thermometer
- Small Bowl
- Kitchen Twine
- Cutting Board or pan for applying rub
- Smoking Chips/Pellets – Luckily you can use just about any flavor wood that you may be using for other recipes.
- Hickory pellets are our favorite go to since it has a strong and slightly sweet flavor.
- Oak pellets are another great option as it is a lighter flavor.
- Mesquite pellets are a popular choice that has a strong flavor like hickory but is also sweeter.
Grilling Meat Thermometer – A thermometer with an app is the best so you have real-time updates of your temperature at your fingers.
Instruction Overview
Remove any packages inside the chicken.
Pat dry your chicken with paper towels.
Tie the chicken legs together with kitchen twine.
Make your dry rub and apply the rub over all surfaces of the chicken.
Put the chicken in the smoker with meat thermometers inserted into the dark meat, without touching bones.
Cook about 4-5 hours until the dark meat registers 165F.
Let rest 10-15 minutes before serving.
Smoking with a Pellet Smoker versus a Grill
A pellet smoker is specifically designed for smoking, typically just called a smoker. You would use pellets which are small pill-like pieces of wood that have been pressed together.
You can also smoke in a grill by using wood chips that are soaked in water and place in a covered dish with holes.
What is preferred?
We have a combo grill/pellet smoker that has both options side by side. The pellet smoker makes it super easy as things are “automated” where the temperature stays constant and you have to do little maintenance during cooking.
A grill requires more work with reloading new chips with water once they run out of steam. It is more effort but a great option if you do not want a literal smoker.
If you plan to do a lot of smoking, I recommend getting a smoker or the combo grill/smoker!
Modifications and Substitutions
Use any BBQ rub that you like.
Add more cayenne if you want the rub to have a spicy kick.
Kim’s Tips
Use a meat thermometer that can be left in the chicken so you know when it is done and can check on it. We use the Meater digital wireless meat thermometer which is amazing because it has preset options, timers, and alarms.
The pink ring around the outer edge of the chicken is the smoke ring! This is a good sign and does not mean it is undercooked.
Tying the legs together helps give you an even cook since the chicken is being bundled up into one mass.
Smoked Whole Chicken
Equipment
- Hickory Pellets or flavor of choice
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken about 4-5 pounds
BBQ Rub (or use 2/3 cup of your favorite rub)
- ¼ cup chili powder
- 1 Tablespoon onion powder
- 2 Tablespoons salt
- 1 Tablespoon cumin
- ½ Tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ Tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dry mustard
- ½ teaspoon cayenne or more if you want it spicy
Instructions
- Preheat your smoker to 225°F with your wood chips or pellets (I like to use hickory, but use any flavor you like).If using a grill, put the chips in a metal pant, covered, with venting holes on the grill.
- Mix the rub ingredients together in a small bowl.¼ cup chili powder, 1 Tablespoon onion powder, 2 Tablespoons salt, 1 Tablespoon cumin, ½ Tablespoon brown sugar, ½ Tablespoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon dry mustard, ½ teaspoon cayenne
- Remove any packages inside the chicken.Pat the chicken dry with paper towels.1 whole chicken
- Tie the legs tightly together with twine.
- Rub the spice rub into the chicken, covering all surface areas.If the rub will not stick, use a very small amount of vegetable or canola oil to wet the chicken just enough for the rub to stick.
- If desired, let the chicken sit with the rub for at least 30 minutes to help the flavors absorb into the meat (not required).
- Put the chicken into the smoker, beast side up, after it has preheated to 225°F.Put a grilling meat thermometer into a leg at the thickest part, not against any bones.
- Smoke until the internal temperature is 165°F in the thighs, typically 4-5 hours.You might need to smoke longer just depending on your smoker and if the meat stalls at all.
- Let rest 10-15 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Let the chicken sit uncovered in the refrigerator up to 1 hour before smoking
- For the last 5 minutes of cooking, amp up your smoker or grill to 400-500F to expose the skin to a high heat.
