Do You find your grilled chicken is dry and tasteless?
This recipe is a proven favorite. I should know…I’ve been eating it most of my life.
My family grilled over charcoal but these days we use our Green Mountain Smoker to do our grilling. Here are some of the secrets I’ve also found to improving the overall taste and texture of the chicken.
It all begins with a salty brine.
The Brine
- 3 1/2 Cup Vinegar
- 3 quart Water
- 2 Sticks Butter
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 1 1/8 Cup Salt
- 2 TBSP Garlic Salt
- 2 TBSP Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 TBSP Pepper
Combine Ingredients and stir in Large Stock Pot. Bring to a boil and add 12 Chicken Halves
Preparing The Chicken
If You are going to grill these on a regular gas grill or charcoal fire go ahead and cook these in the brine. After Cooking for 45 minutes turn off heat and allow to cool down a few hours before refrigerating chicken in the brine for up to 24 hours before grilling. The longer you soak the chicken the more flavorful and tender your chicken will become.
If you are smoking your chicken, you will bring the Brine to a boil then turn off heat and immerse chicken. Allow your stock pot to cool and then refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
Grilling To Perfection
The beauty of cooking the chicken ahead of time is that you don’t have to grill it for long. Basically you need to grill it long enough to get the flavor and markings of the grill. So if you followed the steps for a gas or charcoal grill, It will only take 20-30 minutes total grill time.
If you are smoking it go ahead and smoke as usual. We typically smoke ours for 2 hours at 250 degrees. Make sure to use your meat thermometer to check internal temp when cooking raw meat.
Although the recipe calls for 12 halves I do use the same brine for up to 24 halves. So if you happen to need to stretch this you can easily cook more than 12 halves per recipe.
The Best Tender Smoked Chicken
Tender and Tasty Smoked Chicken
Ingredients
- Brine
- 3 1/2 Cup Vinegar
- 3 quart Water
- 2 sticks Butter
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 1 1/8 Cup Salt
- 2 TBSP Garlic Salt
- 2 TBSP Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 TBSP Pepper
- Chicken
- 12 halves
Instructions
- Combine Brine Ingredients and bring to a boil
- Add 12 Chicken Halves
- For Smoked Chicken turn off heat. Allow to brine for up to 24 hours. Refrigerate if letting it set overnight.
- For Grilled Chicken Cook the halves for 45 minutes. Turn off heat. Cool down and let marinate in refrigerator over night.
- Smoke for 2 hours at 250
- Or Grill for 15-20 minutes until heated through.