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Smoked Chicken Breast – a quick and easy chicken breast recipe that is juicy and super flavorful. One of the easiest recipes you will ever make on your smoker!
In case you couldn’t tell by all the different smoking recipes this summer, I am absolutely loving cooking on the smoker this year! We have had a smoker for a few years and usually stick to a couple basic recipes, but this year that all changed. And I have to say this smoked boneless chicken is going to turn into a regular occurrence. It is so easy to make, and ready in about an hour. Which with a smoker is super fast!
To brine or not to brine that is the question. You will see a ton of recipes that call for putting your chicken in a brine for a few hours up to overnight before you actually smoke it. The claim is that the chicken is more tender and juicy if you do this. But I find if you use good quality chicken breasts this is an unnecessary step. Not to mention it saves a decent amount of time and work. You don’t have to plan days ahead that you are going to make smoked chicken, you can plan the day of. Which is much more my style!
Now if you want to brine your chicken first, go for it! Just start this recipe once your chicken has soaked for at least 4 hours. If you have a favorite dry rub you can use it here, or use the spice blend in the recipe below. The Best Dry Rub is super versatile and works great with chicken, especially if you are serving with barbecue sauce. Otherwise the rub below is delicious on its own or even when grilling chicken.
How To Smoke Chicken Breast
- Start by making your spice blend. The blend I am using below works really well with chicken. It is full of flavor and goes well if you want to serve with barbecue sauce, ranch, or even on its own. But if you have a favorite spice blend you can use that here.
- Season the chicken on both sides and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil.
- Start the smoker and heat to 225 degrees F.
- Place the chicken on the smoker and cook until it reaches a temperature of 160 degrees F.
- Remove the chicken from the smoker and cover with foil to let it rest for about 5 minutes. This should be enough time to get the temperature to 165 degrees F, which is the desired doneness for chicken.
How Long To Smoke Chicken Breast
For your average chicken breast it will take about an hour up to 90 minutes to cook at 225 degrees F. But that is subject to how thick your chicken is, so you really want to use a temperature probe so you can know when it is fully cooked. I use this one from Thermoworks every time we grill or smoke. You can measure the temperature of the meat and the smoker, so it is makes getting it done right super easy with no guess work. You can up the temperature to 250 degrees to speed up the cook time a little bit.
We have the Weber Smokey Mountain Smoker and it is great for home use. So if you are looking for one, I highly recommend it!
This smoked chicken breast recipe is so easy to make, you are going to be breaking out your smoker more often. I love that you can have it done in about an hour and end up with a juicy and tender piece of chicken. You can throw on as many pieces of chicken as you can fit, and it will take the same amount of time. So if you want to have leftovers or cooked chicken in your freezer, this is a great way to meal prep and get ahead.
What to Serve with Smoked Chicken
More Smoking Recipes
Smoked Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 4 boneless chicken breasts
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
Spice Blend
- 1/2 Tablespoon paprika
- 1/2 Tablespoon black pepper
- 1/2 Tablespoon sugar
- 1/2 Tablespoon garlic powder
- 1/2 Tablespoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Instructions
- Mix together the spice blend in a small bowl.
- Season the chicken on both sides and drizzle with olive oil.
- Start the smoker and heat to 225 degrees F.
- Place the chicken on the smoker and cook until it reaches a temperature of 160 degrees F.
- Remove the chicken from the smoker and cover with foil to let it rest for about 5 minutes.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Yum! This looks so delicious and tasty! My family is going to love this recipe! Can’t wait to make this!
What a great dinner! I love the tasty flavors!
I showed this to my husband and he’s making it tomorrow!
We will be trying this soon! I just bought my husband a new smoker not too long ago!
Wow the smoke chicken breast looks delicious!
This smoked chicken looks incredibly delicious!! I can’t wait to try it!
Oh wow, this smoked chicken is fantastic! I LOVE the flavors!
This will be our family’s new favorite recipe! Delicious!
wow amazing recipe. i try it. now this become my favourite recipe!