Smoked Pulled Chicken Recipe
It’s crispy, juicy, and tastes great just like a pulled chicken. This recipe uses granulated sugar, BBQ sauce, unsalted butter, and olive oil. It is easy to make and looks delicious!
Ingredients
- 3.5-4 pounds whole chicken giblets removed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or canola, or avocado oil
- 1/2 cup dry rub
- 1/2-1 small apple
- 1/2-1 small yellow onion
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
Brine for the chicken:
- 2 quarts lukewarm water
- 1/4 cup coarse salt
- 3 tablespoon white granulated sugar
- 2-3 tablespoon dry rub
- 1 lemon sliced
BBQ Sauce (optional)
- 1/2-3/4 cup BBQ Sauce use your preferred BBQ sauce
Instructions
Brine the chicken:
- Put salt, sugar, spices, and lemon slices into 2 quarts of warm water (not hot).Ensure that the chicken is fully submerged in the brine solution. Put the mixture in the refrigerator for at least four hours with a lid or plastic wrap.
Prepare chicken:
- Place the chicken on a rimmed baking sheet after taking it out of the brine, letting the water run off back into the pot. Pat the chicken dry after rubbing it on a rimmed baking sheet rather than a cutting board.
- Add about 2 tablespoons of softened butter to the mixture. Divide the dry rub into two equal portions. The cavity will be filled with half the chicken and the breasts with the other half.
- Slice the apple and onion into quarters or eighths. Inside the cavity, season with salt and pepper. In the cavity, stuff the apple, onion, and half of the butter together. Tying cooking twine around the legs will keep them together.
- By running your hand underneath the skin, you can gently separate the skin from the breast meat. Spread some butter evenly between the skin and the breast meat.
- Make sure the skin of the chicken is rubbed with oil. On the back of the chicken, sprinkle about 1/3 of the seasoning mix, pat it on (don't rub), and turn it over. Over the top, sprinkle about two-thirds of the seasoning mix evenly. Pat, it is on instead of rubbing.
Smoke the chicken:
- Prepare your smoker and get it up to 225°. Place the digital meat thermometer probe on the grill grate and insert it into the chicken breast.
- When the chicken is done, close the lid immediately and do not open it again. Depending on the size of the chicken, it will take about 2 1/2 hours to cook.
- When the chicken reaches 165°, it's ready to be pulled, so I usually cook it to about 170°.
Rest:
- Remove chicken from the smoker, place it on the cutting board, and tent it loosely with aluminum foil. Before pulling, let it rest for 20-30 minutes.
Pull the chicken:
- Once the meat has cooled, carefully remove it from the bone, one section at a time. In a mixing bowl, place the meat you are pulling. It is your choice whether to keep or discard the skin. The dry rub can be rubbed off of it if you want to discard it.
- Pull the chicken meat with two forks or your hands. Once that's done, you can either mix in your favorite barbecue sauce or leave it as is.
Nutrition
Calories: 484kcal
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!