Why you’ll love this easy smoked chicken recipe
- You’ll get juicy chicken breasts seasoned with a delicious chicken rub and an amazing smoky flavor.
- No brine needed to keep it juicy, just season it up and pull it off at the right temperature.
- Great for feeding a crowd or meal prep, you can smoke as many chicken breasts as your smoker or pellet grill will fit. Just scale the seasonings in the recipe accordingly and you’re good!
- Serve with any kind of bbq side dish for the perfect family meal.
Related ->> Check out this recipe for a juicy smoked whole chicken with crispy skin.
Step-by-step instructions for smoking a chicken breast
- It’s really very simple! Start by heating up your smoker or pellet grill to 225° Fahrenheit. Then, follow the steps below.
How long to smoke chicken breasts
Depending on the size of the chicken breasts, it will take about 2-3 hours to smoke them.
You want to smoke chicken low and slow at 225° so the smoke has time to penetrate the chicken and give it that smoky flavor.
Watch the chicken closely during the last hour of smoking. Using an instant read thermometer, you’ll be able to to check it quickly to see when it’s getting close to the required temperature (see below).
The best internal temperature for smoked chicken
For the best tasting, juicy (and fully-cooked safe to eat) chicken, I recommend cooking smoked chicken breast to an internal temperature of 150° Fahrenheit.
I know that every package of chicken states to cook it to an internal temperature of 165°, but that is the temperature that kills all bacteria instantly and is appropriate too use when cooking with high-heat.
If you smoke your chicken breast to this temperature it will be dry and rubbery.
When smoking chicken, it’s all about time at temperature. So, if you bring your chicken to an internal temperature of 150° and hold it there for 5 minutes, that is sufficient to kill any bacteria.
This is covered in the USDA’s guidance on cooking poultry.
Recommended sides for smoker chicken breast
Some of our favorites are potato salad or creamy coleslaw, but the possibilities are endless.
Serve this smoky chicken with:
- A green salad or roasted veggies
- Asian cucumber salad
- Air fryer potato wedges
- Regular or cauliflower rice
Making a Traeger chicken breast
This recipe will work on any pellet grill or smoker. I highly recommend a Traeger pellet grill, it’s what I’ve always used. It’s great for both high-heat and smoking and is very easy to use.
For this recipe, if you’re using a newer Traeger, just poke the probe into the thickest breast and set it to alert you when it reaches 150° – easy peasy!
We hope you love this recipe as much as we do!
Don’t forget to leave a quick star rating and review below, we read every comment and truly appreciate your feedback. Also, be sure to browse the rest of our easy grilling recipes to find some other favorites too!
Juicy Smoked Chicken Breast (Traeger or Pellet Grill)
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, (about 2 lbs)
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
For the rub:
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp coconut sugar, (or equivalent sweetener of choice, omit for low-carb)
For basting:
- 1/2 cup BBQ Sauce, (can use any preferred BBQ sauce, omit or use no-sugar sauce for low-carb)
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat your smoker to 225° Fahrenheit.
- Make the rub by combining all of the rub ingredients in a small bowl and mixing.
- Brush the chicken breasts on each side with a little oil. Then, season the chicken on both sides with the rub. The chicken should all be completely covered in the seasoning.
- Place the chicken in the smoker to cook for 2-3 hours, or until it reaches and holds an internal temp of 150° for 5 minutes.
- When the internal temp reaches 140°, brush the chicken on both sides with BBQ sauce.
- When the chicken reaches and holds an internal temp of 150° for 5 minutes, remove it from the smoker.
- Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
Delicious and easy! This was our first time smoking chicken breasts and it was fantastic.
Happy to hear that Anne, thanks for coming back to leave a review!
The internal temp of chicken should always be at least 165F to ensure food safety for salmonella poisoning. Not sure it will achieve this using this method.
The recommended internal temp for this recipe is safe as noted in the post above.
Tried it (great)!!! Thank you.
Happy you enjoyed it! Thanks for coming back to share!
So simple and so good!
I absolutely loveeeee making this. I don’t add any sugar or sweetener and I use Kraft mesquite bbq sauce (the best flavor) and it’s so delicious! The only thing is on my pitboss, I swear this cooks to the right temperature in 1 hour set at 225. Not sure why, ideally I’d like for it to smoke longer but it still comes out juicy and tender and super flavorful. Thanks for this recipe!!
You’re very welcome, thanks for coming back to leave a review 🙂