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BBQ Chicken

Been trying to master the art of smoking some chicken halves.. Been brining and smoking around 250 (i know i generally like to smoke them around 325 but usually have some other meat in the smoker) .. Any how they come out to dry.. Tried throwing some butter on them 1/2 way thru and still just cant seem to get it right..
 
If it's dry, it's likely overcooked. You may need to get an instant-read thermometer (or a remote thermometer) and monitor that temperature closely the first few times you smoke it, and make sure it doesn't get overdone. 165° is a good target temperature for doneness. Once you get the hang of it, you can usually guess how long it will take to cook and be pretty close. You might also want to pull them out of the refrigerator at least a half hour before you put them on the smoker or grill, maybe more like 45 minutes, so the outside doesn't get overcooked and the inside remains raw.

One recipe I've seen calls for 225° smoker temperature and three hours on the smoker, until the interior reaches 165°. Anything higher than 275° is more like baking/roasting.

When I make chicken pieces on the kettle, I do them over indirect medium heat (coals in baskets along the side, chicken in the middle), and it only takes about 35-45 minutes (depending on the size of the meat) for a crispy skin and juicy insides. Dark meat is less sensitive to overcooking than light, I've found. I will sometimes use one or two large chunks of applewood on the coals (never wood chips, since they burn/ignite and expire too quickly) which gives the skin a really dark color and enough smoke flavoring. I prefer this to messing around with a smoker for chicken, as it's usually only a couple of pieces for us.

I never wet brine the meat--brining is not done to add moisture, but to season the meat. I prefer to season it dry with a good rub. (Some call this "dry brining" as you can let the seasoning sit for an hour or two to absorb into the meat.)
 
I was making pork loin on the smoker the other day and had some boneless skinless breasts ready to go on after. My plan was to raise the temp to 375 after the pork came off but I just left the temp there and put the chicken on. I cooked it to 140 internal and then wrapped to let it carry over a little closer to 150. I found it to be extremely tender but not as moist as when i got hot and fast. So next time I will bump the temp up after the pork comes off. I like to cook once and then bag a whole bunch of portions in the food saver for the days i just don't have time to cook. The pork was amazing, so tender and juicy, you can cut it with a fork :)


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C6Bill said:
I was making pork loin on the smoker the other day and had some boneless skinless breasts ready to go on after. My plan was to raise the temp to 375 after the pork came off but I just left the temp there and put the chicken on. I cooked it to 140 internal and then wrapped to let it carry over a little closer to 150. I found it to be extremely tender but not as moist as when i got hot and fast. So next time I will bump the temp up after the pork comes off. I like to cook once and then bag a whole bunch of portions in the food saver for the days i just don't have time to cook. The pork was amazing, so tender and juicy, you can cut it with a fork :)


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That pork looks perfectly cooked!

I like to go hot and fast when cooking chicken on my Weber.
 
I'm convinced not everything should be done on a smoker. I find it works best for bigger, denser cuts of meat.
 
C6Bill said:
I think "smoker" is becoming a generic term. I use a ceramic cooker and many who do just call them a smoker out of habit, you can use it as a smoker as a grill or as an oven so it is extremely versatile.
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For sure. Weber has a new wood pellet grill that can work as both, and they have their Summit charcoal grill from a few years ago that is double-walled and designed to do both as well. I think it's nice that companies are able to design products now that can do both, as it allows grillers like us to keep only one of these on hand vs. needing two. I don't think one style or brand is particularly advantageous over another (beyond, say, using wood pellets vs. briquettes) so a lot of it is personal preference, and the grill/smoker giving us the results we want. I don't use a smoker often enough to spend big bucks on anything more expensive--mine was a Craigslist find that was only used a couple of times (the insides were not even "seasoned" yet) for a lot less than a new one, and I snapped it up immediately since these rarely become available.
 
I havent had BBQ chicken in along time...... Last chicken I had was sweet and sour chicken at a chinese buffet a few days ago....
 
I barbequed some wings this past Saturday. Using my Weber kettle with a generous chimney load of hardwood briquettes and a Vortex clone I had it running 575-degrees.. They were grilled straight up, no seasoning. Even though they cooked a little too long they were still delicious. Next batch I'll season 'em up so they'll even be tastier.
 
augustine said:
Been trying to master the art of smoking some chicken halves.. Been brining and smoking around 250 (i know i generally like to smoke them around 325 but usually have some other meat in the smoker) .. Any how they come out to dry.. Tried throwing some butter on them 1/2 way thru and still just cant seem to get it right..
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Late reply. Try putting a 8x8 pan of water/apple juice underneath the chicken to give it continuous moisture. This will help. I know it helps with my ribs and whole chicken.
 
Chicken that's smoked at say 225 deg is soggy. The trick is to smoke then finish over high heat to crispen the skin.

Wings - I cook them on the gas grill and when they're done. Put them on a kettle with Durkeys hot sauce and butter to coat.
 
Anytime I smoke chicken, I marinate it overnight beforehand. A mix of 75% pineapple juice and 25% soy sauce seems to work well. So does any decent beer. Sear first, then smoke at 200-225, depending on the cut. Baste regularly, and put a pan of the liquid in the bottom of the grill. Sometimes I soak my wood chips in the marinade too. You can get a crap ton of flavor combining the marinade/basting/smoking and it's really not as complicated as it sounds.

I really only do bone-in, skin-on thighs these days, you get so much more flavor
 
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