Cooking with Chef Doug
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chefdoug@ibbp.com
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It is time to dust off that old water smoker or unpack th smoker received as a gift, but sitting idle. Using a smoker is very simple but there are a few tricks that will make your first try successful. This smoked chicken recipe will familiarize you with all of the techniques necessary to create great meals. The chicken requires preparation 12 hours ahead. A Kettle BBQ can also be used in place of a smoker.
Enjoy!
Smoked Chicken
Ingredients
You will need:
Chicken (to be prepared 12 hours ahead of smoking)
1* 4lb Chicken ( * or as many chickens as your smoker will hold
)
1-1/2 Tbsp Seasoned Salt, per chicken. Lawry's brand works well
Equipment
You will need:
1 Vertical water smoker (price range $30 to $200)
1 Charcoal Chimney, uses newspaper to start charcoal
10 lbs Charcoal Briquets, (NOT the self starting type)
1 Thermometer, Instant read (for meat temperature reading)
1 Thermometer, (100 to 400 degree dial with Metal Stem Probe)
As required Hickory Chunks (not chips)
As required Boiling water, for smoking process
Procedure:
Step 1: Prepare the Chicken
Rinse chicken then pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the chicken inside and out with the seasoned salt. Place chicken in a container, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove the chicken from refrigerator
Step 2: Prepare the Smoker (for your safety, follow the manufactures recommended procedure):
1. Soak Hickory chunks in water for a couple of hours before
starting charcoal.
2. Start charcoal chimney per manufactures procedure.
3. If the smoker does not come with a thermometer or uses a 'low-mid-high'
type thermometer, install the Thermometer (100 to 400 degree)
either through one of the lids vent
holes or in place of the 'low-mid-high' thermometer. Bets are
the replacement thermometer will be loose in either of these situations
so use a crumpled ball of aluminum foil around the replacement
thermometers metal stem for support.
4. After the charcoal is glowing in chimney, carefully pour hot charcoal onto charcoal grate. (note: the less expensive smokers may not have this charcoal grate. The grate allows for better air flow to keep coals burning. )
5. Pour hot water into the smokers water pan.
Step 3: Smoking the Chicken
1. Place chickens on the smoker grill ensuring that the chickens do not touch each other (if touching, chicken skin will be pale in that area).
2. Put smoker's lid in place.
3. Place a wet chunk of hickory on hot coals (adding too much hickory wood at one time will make the meat bitter) and adding another chunk of hickory when smoke stops coming from smoker vents. Try to keep temperature of smoker between 200 to 275 degrees F, adding briquets and adjusting vents as necessary.
4. Keep smoker lid in place for 3-1/2 hours before checking temperature of chickens. Chickens are done when their internal temperature measured at the thigh reaches 170 degrees F.
5. If after 3-1/2 hours the chickens have not come up to temperature, and you are hungry, place chickens into a 350 degree F oven and finish the cooking process. Otherwise keep chickens in the smoker and keep cooking. At the 3-1/2 hour point, the chickens have had enough smoke so stop adding hickory chunks (leave the one on the coals that is already there) but keep feeding the fire with briquets as required.
Smoking Using a Kettle Grill (for your safety, follow the manufactures recommended procedure):
If using a kettle grill, follow the steps for the smoker except for the following:
Previous Month's Recipes:
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