Smoked Whole Chicken is an easy, tender dish prepped with a flavorful butter and seasoning mixture. It will easily serve your whole family.
A whole Roasted Chicken makes a great dinner that’s easy enough for weekends but nice enough for holidays. This smoker method packs it full of flavor while keeping your kitchen cool – perfect for the summer!
Sabrina’s Smoked Whole Chicken Recipe
Smoking might sound fancy but it’s actually an easy process that makes amazing meat with a fantastic smoky flavor. My recipe for the American classic stands out with its herb-infused butter and slow smoking process. With my step by step instructions, anyone can master their BBQ smoker for juicy, mouthwatering chicken! Try it with comforting favorites like Roasted Potatoes and Baked Mac and Cheese or let it be the star of a cookout dinner with easy deli salads on the side.
Ingredients
Main:
- 3-4 pound whole chicken , preferably air chilled
- 4 cloves garlic , peeled and lightly smashed
Butter Mixture:
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 sprig rosemary , leaves stripped and minced
- 1 sprig thyme , leaves stripped and minced
- 8 tablespoon unsalted butter , melted
- 1/2 lemon , (squeeze 1 tbsp juice and use same lemon to stuff chicken)
Gravy starter:
- 1 cup chicken stock
Instructions
- Preheat smoker to 225°F. Most pellet grills don’t need it, but you can add a pan of water in the corner of the smoker to keep moisture inside.
- In a bowl, add all of the butter mixture ingredients. Mix well to combine.
- Remove giblets from chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Separate the skin from the breasts with your fingers being careful not to tear the skin.
- Stuff the cavity of the chicken with crushed garlic cloves and squeezed lemon. Optionally, truss the legs together with kitchen twine.
- Slather 2/3 of the butter mixture under the skin and the remaining mixture over the skin of the chicken.
- If you’re planning on making gravy from the drippings, pour chicken stock into pan – either type. If using an aluminum pan, place it on the smoker below the chicken to catch the drippings. Place the chicken directly on the grill grates above the pan. If using a roasting pan with rack, place the chicken on the inner rack so it’s floating above the stock. Place baking pan on smoker.
- Continue cooking the chicken to an internal temperature of 145°F and then increase the grill temperature to 375°F for the remainder of cook. This will help get the skin crispy.
- Make sure the chicken reaches 160°F into the thickest part of the breast.
- Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let rest for 20 minutes before carving. The finished internal temperature will rise to 165°F.
- If you're making gravy, use the chicken drippings to make your favorite gravy recipe.
- Slice and enjoy!
Notes
- Click on the yield amount to slide and change the number of servings and the recipe will automatically update!
- Click on times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer while cooking.
- To convert measurements to grams, click on the Metric option next to Ingredients in the recipe card.
Nutrition
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