How to Smoke a Whole Chicken

How to smoke a whole chicken in an electric smoker or pellet grill

Smoking a whole chicken is quite possibly the most popular meat that I smoke. It may only pork ribs that I smoke more often than a whole bird.

We love smoked chicken and it is far superior to any rotisserie chicken you can purchase at the grocery store. The meat is moist and juicy with a wonderful smokey flavor.

One other thing we love about about smoked chicken is that it is outstanding for leftovers. We always make extras, knowing that the meat will be great in wraps, sandwiches or on pizza. Use the carcass to make some smoked chicken broth for a soup with so much flavor.

Here is a recipe for my Smoked Chicken Chowder Soup. It is AMAZING!

How to Smoke a whole chicken-4

Make sure that you generously rub the chicken with a good bbq spice rub before placing it in the smoker.

Steve’s Basic BBQ Rub

This is my ‘go-to’ rub that is great with so many things, including chicken.

How to Smoke a whole chicken-3

Set the smoker for 250F. Some smokers work more in a ‘temperature range’. If that is the case, keep it over 250F. Anywhere between 250-275F is great.

Poultry is great with many different wood choices. Some of the wood I usually use are hickory, apple, oak, pecan and maple. For this particular smoke, I used Bradley’s Whiskey Oak wood bisquettes. They resulted in a really nice flavor.

How to Smoke a whole chicken-5

Smoke the chicken until the internal temperature of the leg reaches 165F.

Some electric smokers struggle to crisp up the skin.

The taste of the meat is amazing but the skin can be on the rubbery side. If you love a crispy skin, it may be necessary to transfer the chicken to your oven for the last 30 minutes or so.

I have done this and it works really well. In this case, remove the chicken from the smoker when the internal temperature is around 145-150F. Place the bird in a 375F oven and cook until the internal temperature is 165F. 

How to Smoke a whole chicken-2

Let the chicken rest 15-20 minutes before carving. This will draw all the juices back into the bird.

Bradley, traeger, Masterbuilt, Cookshack and other smokers result in amazing chicken!

While the majority of pictures show the chickens being smoked in an electric smoker, I also love to cook them in my pellet grill. The picture just above shows 6 whole chickens in my pellet grill and they are amazing!! Perfect for a big BBQ party!!

To smoke the chickens in a pellet grill, follow the same instructions as for the electric smoker.

How to Smoke a Whole Chicken using an Electric Smoker

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Step by step instructions for smoking a whole chicken with final internal temperature of 165F. Great for electric smokers, pellet, grill and more. Bradley, traeger, Masterbuilt, Cookshack and other smokers result in amazing chicken!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours
Total Time: 4 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 1 or more whole chickens
  • 3 tbsp of rub for each whole chicken

Instructions

  • Setup up smoker for 250F using wood of choice. Some great wood options for poultry are hickory, apple, oak, pecan and maple. I used Bradley's Whiskey Oak wood for this smoke.
  • Rinse the chicken under cold water. Trim any excess skin or fat around the neck area or in and around the cavity of the bird.
  • Tie the legs together using kitchen string or butcher's twine. If desired, fold the wings back and under the back. This is not necessary, but nice for presentation.
  • Generously rub the bird with the spice rub. Make sure that you get all areas of the chicken covered with the spices as this will greatly enhance the flavor.
  • Place the birds on the smoker racks and leave in the smoker until they reach an internal temperature of 165F. The time it takes to reach this temperature varies greatly. Depending on the smoker and the amount of food you are smoking it can take anywhere from 3-5 hours.
  • Let the chicken rest for 15-20 minutes before carving.

How to Smoke a Whole Chicken - in the Bradley Electric Smoker

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How to smoke a whole chicken in an electric smoker or pellet grill

Did you try this recipe?

Leave a comment and let me know how it turned out. Or, take a picture to share on Instagram and tag me @theblackpeppercorn.

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62 comments

  • I first brined the chicken’s over night then seasoned lightly, set smoker on 400° for 30 minutes then set on 250 I used hickory, then finished with cherry last hour, these were the best I’d ever had, fall apart, so juicy, they were a smash hit.

    • Reply
    • So glad that you enjoyed the smoked chicken!

  • Thank you for the information

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Sounds amazing. I always brine poultry overnight to just add to juiciness. I also strongly suggest drying skin with paper towels after rinsing. You could also dry and leave open on a tray in fridge for a couple hours to get that skin dry. Then rub with olive oil and spicy mustard, especially under the skin before adding the spices.
    Now I’m getting hungry!

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Wow, so good. Probably the best chicken we had in a long time. I haven’t smoked anything in a while either, so glad I decided to. I also smoked a pork tenderloin using the same rub, again delicious. Thank you. Took 3.5 hours at a 225-240 temp.

    • Reply
  • 4 stars
    I am using a Masterbuilt electric smoker and I controlled the swing temp and kept it between 225-250 the entire time. I put in two whole chickens and they reached 189 degrees in 2 hours.

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Tried your recipe for smoking chicken in the smoker. OMG. My wife said the best chicken she has ever had. It was juicy, moist and beyond good. Thank you for sharing.

    • Reply
    • Thanks so much Troy! So glad that you and your wife enjoyed it. Happy Smoking!!

  • 5 stars
    Turned out so good ended up sticking it in the oven to crisp the skin!

    • Reply
  • learning process. I like the way the chicken came out. my question is why do we need to brine the chicken before put in the smoker

    • Reply
    • I have found that you don’t NEED to brine chicken for it to come out moist and delish. I do usually brine turkey and turkey breasts as turkey in general tend to have much less fat.

      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Steve ,

    I am new to smoking. Have an electric Masterbuilt, happy so far. Have done ribs a few times that’s it so far. Want to do chicken tonight. I noticed on this site and others where you are smoking vegetables at the top shelf, sausages on another and then chicken at the bottom shelf. When putting different meats at different levels don’t you run the risk of the chicken tasting like sausage?

    • Reply
  • Have you ever tried an apple rub with cherry chips? I’ve also have researched that some people cut the backbone out and lay it flat….. Have you ever tried this, if so which way produces better results?

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Made this tonight and it turned out incredible. It is a definate make again. The white meat was just a juicy and the dark meat. I used black cherry chips soaked in water with a little apple whisky for flavour. Soooo good.

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    I have a basic Masterbuilt electric smoker. It is simple to regulate the temperature, and I’m sure the meat tastes just as good as it would in a $500 smoker with digital temperature control. I made perfect ribs the first time and I’ve never used a smoker or made smoked anything before. I got mine on sale for $99.99.

    • Reply
    • 5 stars
      Hey great recipe! First time use of my Bradley smoker! Do the foil on top racks will hold the smoke into the smoker?

      • Reply
  • We love smoked chicken and it is far superior to any rotisserie chicken you can purchase at the grocery store. The meat is moist and juicy with a wonderful smokey flavor.

    • Reply
  • 4 stars
    I also brine the bird, and stuff it with rosemary and onions. Brine it with whatever you like, it works fantastic. Used fruit wood, but not too much because chicken is so delicate and a little goes a long way. These directions are perfect, four hours on the nose for my electric smoker, I don’t mess with the skin with five dogs, they do! Thanks for your great tips.

    • Reply
    • Love what you stuffed it with. I am sure it added a lot of flavour!

      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    When you transfer the chicken from the smoker to the oven are you leaving the chicken uncovered until it reaches the internal 165 temp?

    • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Is it necessary to add or replace the wood chips at all while the chicken is smoking?

    • Reply
    • If your smoker does not have a feeder to advance fresh wood chips then you likely will need to add/replace the wood chips. Once you notice that the wood chips in there are no longer producing any more smoke you will need to add more.

      • Reply
  • 5 stars
    Do you use the water pan to keep it moist? If so do you use water or another liquid like Apple juice? I always do beer can chicken in my smoker because I’m afraid the chicken will dry out if not.

    • Reply
    • No I have not ever really used a water pan and don’t find it dries out. I just make sure that I am monitoring the temperature and remove the bird from the smoker once it reads 165F

      • Reply
  • Great instructions! Saving this recipe… We often grill whole chickens, but we definitely need to try your recipe. They look so, so good!

    • Reply

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