First Time Smoking Chicken Breasts

[mikeinbk]

So, I bought myself three large chicken breasts and decided to throw them in the smoker and see what happened.  I had never smoked chicken before, but I did my research and fired up (er...plugged in) the smoker.

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• mikeinbk
• Jul 21, 2014

Smoked them at 235F until the internal temp was 165F at the thickest part of the largest breast.  Pulled them out and let them rest for a few minutes as the rest of the food was being finished.  The chicken came out very moist with a mild smoke flavor (cherry).  Put on a touch of barbecue sauce left over from last week's ribs and threw it on the grill for a minute or two.  I tried to get those beautiful grill marks, but the grill didn't get hot enough for "picture perfect".  Oh well...still tasted great!

It was sort of a last minute thing, so I used some rub (also leftover from last week's ribs) and let them sit for a couple of hours beforehand.  No brine or injecting.  I figured that I'd get a good baseline and start using different techniques from there.  I'm absolutely throwing chicken into my regular repertoire of smokey goodness!

For the curious, that's leftover grilled asparagus from the night before and some improvised rice & beans rounding everything out. 

 

[knifebld]

Looks great Mike...once I smoked my first chicken...I could never have it done any other way!

 

[padronman]

Looks fine to me!!   Love smoking chicken for salads......dinner.....sammies......etc.  Save a ton of cash smoking your own.  I buy in bulk and sometimes I'll smoke 6 at a time then vac seal the meat for later use.

Scott

 

[mikeinbk]

I will say that they were very good the day after. Had a few bites cold and it would absolutely make a great sandwich. I gave a taste to my sister and her eyes nearly popped out of her head! Kept telling me that the chicken was the best thing I've ever smoked. Next time I'll definitely do a bunch and freeze them.

 

[padronman]

Make smoked chicken salad with grapes, dried cranberries and celery mmmmm mmmmmm good!!!

 

[bluewhisper]

That's how I got my smoking start: split breasts over windfall maple, in a Weber.

Do you make soup stock from chicken bones? Consider using bones from smoked chicken as a broth base for a batch of chili or pinto beans.

 

[padronman]

 
That's how I got my smoking start: split breasts over windfall maple, in a Weber.

Do you make soup stock from chicken bones? Consider using bones from smoked chicken as a broth base for a batch of chili or pinto beans.

I do use all the bones for stock.  I make my own Beef, Chicken, Shrimp and Veggie stock.  Put them in ice cube trays, freeze then Vac Seal.  Take out as much as I need for meals. 

 

[bluewhisper]

Yep, same here, learned that from my mom.

 

[padronman]

So much better than store bought and I can control the salt.  Nothing beats homemade stock!!!

 

[oldschoolbbq]

Nice looking Breast.

 

Chicken , easy , pleasing and fun to experiment with...

Have fun and . . .

 

[edward36]

Looking good!!!

Ed