Hey guys, welcome back.
Today we’re making a barbecue smoked chicken, on the Weber Kettle.
Let’s do this!
Alright so this is what you’ll want to have on hand for the dry rub.
I like mine on the spicy side, with a touch of sweetness from the brown sugar.
This mix will also be low enough on salt so you can apply it liberally without worrying
about over salting the chicken.
The Chili powder and paprika will give it some nice color as well.
Once I have the dry rub mixed, I like to add a handful to a mixture of melted butter and
olive oil.
This will form a seasoning paste that will help keep the chicken juicy while it roasts.
Today I’m smoking a 5 and a half pound chicken.
After drying it off a bit, I’ll remove the backbone.
This will let it lie flat on the grill, which will speed up the cook, and allow it to cook
more evenly.
You can also make a small cut right here to help it lay as flat as possible.
Now coat the chicken well with the seasoned butter paste.
Always make sure to get up under the skin where you can, that way the meat can soak
up plenty of flavor.
I’ll sprinkle on a bit more rub to any areas that may need it, and this chicken is ready
for the grill!
Now for the coals, I only want to light about a quarter of a chimney full of charcoal.
Since I’m using the BBQ Dragon heat deflector, I’ll spread a bed of unlit coals across
the whole grill, that way I won’t have to refuel.
For the smoking wood, I’m going with apple.
About 4 chunks should for this smoke will do just fine.
If you don’t have a heat deflector, you’ll want to bank the coals to the side of the
grill that you won’t have the chicken on.
Since this is the 22 inch Original Weber kettle, the grids that come standard are not hinged.
I would recommend upgrading to grids like these if you plan on smoking a good bit.
Now for the lid, just make sure the top vent is over the side you’ll be cooking the chicken.
This will force the smoke and heat to draft past it on the way out.
For temp control, I made a few marks on the kettle, so it’s easy to see where the vents
are at.
For smoking temps, I’ll keep the bottom set to a quarter open, and the top vent set
to half way open.
I’m shooting for an ambient temp between 250F and 275F degrees.
After preheating for about 10 minutes, it’s time to get the chicken on.
I’ll be using a probe to monitor the internal temp as well as the ambient grill temp.
Just make sure to place it in the thickest part of the breast.
Now, just let the bird cruise for about an hour before checking in.
Alright, at an hour in it has some nice color on it.
I like that this deflector has a small space around the edge for smoke to roll through.
I like to baste the chicken with some melted butter at this point in the cook, this will
help it stay juicy.
This smoked chicken serves up great by itself, but it can also kick up any dish you make
with it.
Smoked chicken spaghetti is one of my favorites, and of course jambalaya is always a solid
bet.
We’re a little under halfway through the cook, so I’ll rotate the chicken for good
measure.
I’m Shooting for 165F, but I like to set the alarm for 160, so that I have time to
grab what I need to pull it from the grill.
After smoking for about 2 hours, I like to raise the grill temp to around 310F degrees.
By this point I know it has plenty of smoke flavor, and this will speed up the cook a
bit.
At a little over 2 and a half hours, this chicken is ready to come off, and it’s smelling
delicious!
Now just tent it with foil and let it rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.
For serving, I like to remove the leg quarters and wings to make the chicken breast easier
to slice.
This came out super tender, I think I’ll have to make a sandwich melt with some of
this..some provolone and pepper jack would be tasty on some french bread.
And hey, for my Keto friends - it’s delicious on it’s own as well!
It comes out so juicy when you smoke it like this.
Definitely worth throwing together your own rub, the brown sugar, chili powder, cayenne
just all mixes together so well.
Little sweet, little heat - and beats a rotisserie chicken from the store any day.
So, I hope ya’ll will give it a shot, cheers!