Smoked Spatchcock Chicken With Crispy Skin

Name: Smoked Spatchcock Chicken With Crispy Skin
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 180 min
Total time: 1630 min
Ingredients: 1 whole chicken; 1 heaping tablespoon salt; 2 teaspoons chili powder; 2 teaspoons packed brown sugar; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon black pepper; ½ teaspoon smoked paprika; ½ teaspoon onion powder; ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper; ½ teaspoon ground cumin; ¼ teaspoon mustard powder; 2 tablespoons olive oil; BBQ sauce (optional)

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For all those summer grill-outs, make sure your dinner menu includes this succulent smoked spatchcock chicken, featuring everyone's favorite perfectly crispy skin! A simple dry rub gives the chicken those classic BBQ flavors with just the right kiss of smoke. You only need about 10 minutes of hands-off preparation time, and it smokes even faster than a traditional trussed chicken.

An aerial view of the smoked spatchcock chicken in a black cast-iron skillet with a jar of BBQ sauce to the left.

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What Is Spatchcocking?
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Ingredients
Step-by-Step Instructions
Final Internal Temperature
How to Store and Freeze Leftovers
Delicious Serving Ideas
Recipe FAQs
Expert Tips
Perfect Pairing
Get More Smoker Recipes
📖 Recipe

What Is Spatchcocking?

This is essentially butterflying a whole chicken. We cut off the backbone, flip it and use our hands to flatten the chicken.

While this may sound complicated, I promise the process is surprisingly easy. For a little visual help, we’ll review the process with step-by-step photos, and you can check out the accompanying video if that’s also helpful.

So why spatchcock a chicken? Since we flatten the whole bird, it makes the chicken cook faster and more evenly.

This means the white meat and dark meat cook at a similar pace, so overcooking one section of the bird isn’t really an issue. Once you spatchcock your first chicken, you’ll see how easy it is, and I won’t be surprised if it becomes your go-to method for cooking a whole chicken.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Wonderfully crisp skin: Don’t let anyone tell you smoking a chicken means gummy skin. That rumor exists, but with proper preparation, it’s not true. We follow three easy steps to avoid rubbery chicken skin.

Dry brine the chicken before smoking.
Coat the skin with olive oil.
Blast the chicken with high heat after smoking low and slow.

Faster cooking time: If you’ve ever tried my trussed smoked whole chicken, it’s a relatively quick smoker recipe, though it still calls for 45-60 minutes per pound. However, spatchcocking significantly decreases the smoking time, which is great if you have an especially large cut or find yourself behind schedule.

Ultra juicy meat: No dry chicken here. Every bite is tender, juicy and oh-so flavorful. It doesn’t get better than smoked chicken.

Related: Put that smoker to use. You'll also love my smoked chicken wings, smoked chuck roast, smoked brats and smoked corned beef.

Ingredients

Whole chicken: A typical whole chicken is about 4 to 5 pounds, but you can use an even bigger chicken if that’s what’s available. I actually once smoked a massive chicken that was nearly 7 pounds, and it turned out great.

Spices: We use a mixture of chili powder, brown sugar, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, ground cumin, mustard powder and cayenne pepper. Of course, you’re welcome to use another favorite spice blend.

Salt: This is what we used for dry brining.

Favorite BBQ sauce: This is optional. Some people prefer their chicken without sauce, but I love a nice slathering. For a homemade option, I have a few flavors you’d love.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Prep and Dry Brine the Chicken

Step 1: To dry brine the chicken for that perfect skin, we pat the surface dry with a paper towel, sprinkle salt all over and refrigerate the chicken uncovered (photo 1). Overnight is best, but at least eight hours works if you’re short on time.

A hand holding a tablespoon over the chicken on a brown cutting board before dry brining the skin.

When we dry brine chicken, the salt initially pulls out the moisture from the skin and meat. As it rests, that moisture dissolves the salt, which is reabsorbed into the chicken.

This makes for a more tender, juicy chicken. Plus, it dries out the skin for that crispy texture.

Spatchcock the Chicken

Step 2: After dry brining, we’re ready to spatchcock the chicken. We flip the chicken so that the breasts are facing down on the cutting board. At the bottom of the cavity, you’ll notice a triangle-shaped flap, which is the end of the backbone.

We take a pair of sharp kitchen shears and cut along the side of the backbone (photo 2), and then we cut along the other side of the backbone to remove it (photo 3).

The chicken on a brown cutting board with a pair of kitchen shears making the first cut on the right side of the backbone.

The chicken on a brown wooden cutting board with the kitchen shears making the second cut along the backbone on the left side.

Now we flip the chicken and press down on the breast bone until it cracks and flattens (photo 4). Our chicken is now spatchcocked.

Season With the Dry Rub

Step 3: With the chicken prepped, we stir together our spices in a small bowl and apply the dry rub all over the entire chicken (photo 5). Along with coating the outside, we also want to gently lift the skin to season the meat.

The chicken after it's been spatchcocked on a brown cutting board with the dry rub covering the skin.

Smoke the Chicken

Step 4: Now we put the spatchcocked chicken cut-side down on the grill grates of a 225-degree F smoker with a water pan and close the lid (photo 6).

The chicken on the smoker grill grates with a leave-in meat thermometer inserted into the breast meat.

Step: 5: When the chicken reaches about 130 degrees F, we crank up the smoker from the lower temperature to 400 degrees F and brush the skin with the olive oil (photo 7). If you’d like a sauced chicken, you can brush it a few minutes before it finishes cooking.

A silicone brush coating the chicken with a layer of olive oil before cranking up the heat of the smoker.

With the chicken ready, we remove it from the smoker and let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes. This allows the juices to redistribute to ensure every bite is nice and moist. We carve on a cutting board with a sharp knife and serve.

Note: I tested this smoked spatchcock chicken recipe on a vertical pellet grill, but any kind of traditional or electric smoker works.

Final Internal Temperature

The chicken is done when it reaches a final temperature of 165 degrees F in the breast meat. For the legs and thigh meat, 175 degrees F is the sweet spot. Those pieces have connective tissues that need extra time to break down.

To ensure the chicken cooks to perfection, I like to insert a leave-in meat thermometer in the thickest part of the breast. That way, I always know the temperature and don’t have to frequently open the smoker and lose the heat.

How to Store and Freeze Leftovers

If you have any leftovers, allow them to fully cool and then keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for three to four days.

For longer storage, you can keep the chicken in a freezer-safe bag or container for up to four months. While you can safely enjoy the frozen chicken after four months, the quality eventually starts to degrade.

When you’re ready to eat those leftovers, you can use the chicken in so many ways. Think Buffalo chicken dip, tacos, salads, grilled cheese, mac and cheese, or quesadillas. Believe me, you will get plenty of uses out of those leftovers.

Delicious Serving Ideas

Of course, a good backyard BBQ is always a feast, so let’s give you some additional serving ideas to keep your guests full and happy.

For appetizers, you already have the smoker fired up, so try some smoked salsa, smoked cream cheese or smoked jalapeño poppers. Both are crowd favorites and so simple to make.

If you’re hosting an especially large party, you might want another smoked meat option. These recipes are always hits with our friends and family.

And then there are side dishes. Don’t miss my smoked bourbon baked beans and smoked macaroni and cheese. I’m especially partial to that mac and cheese — it’s an absolute dream for cheese lovers.

If you're smoker is already full, you can also try this spaghetti squash gratin, bacon macaroni salad and Hawaiian potato salad.

Recipe FAQs

Why is spatchcocking faster than trussing a chicken?

That flatter surface area evenly exposes the whole chicken to heat. When it’s trussed, the chicken breast meat naturally plumps up, which makes it thicker and inevitably requires more cooking time.

Do you flip a spatchcock chicken while smoking?

No, we don’t have to flip the chicken. We just leave it with the skin side facing up during the entire smoking process.

How long does it take to smoke spatchcock chicken?

Plan for about 2 ½ to three hours of smoking time. That said, many factors can play into the total smoking time, such as the weather, the size of the chicken and the efficiency of your smoker to hold heat. When smoking, I always recommend being a little flexible with your serving time.

What’s the best wood to use for smoking?

Chicken works nicely with a lot of wood varieties, but hickory is my favorite. Hickory gives a noticeable smoky flavor without overwhelming the meat.

If you prefer a lighter smoke flavor, apple wood, cherry wood, pecan wood or maple wood would make a nice option. Some people like mesquite with chicken, but I think it’s a bit overpowering for lighter meats. But you do you — if it works with your palate, that’s all that matters.

Can you smoke this chicken on a grill if you don’t have a dedicated smoker?

Sure, you can turn your gas or charcoal grill into a smoker by using a smoke box. If you’re unfamiliar with the process, here’s a guide on how to use a smoker box.

A side view of the smoked spatchcock chicken in a black cast-iron skillet on top of a red and white napkin with parsley sprinkled around it.

Expert Tips

Don’t skip the dry brining if you like crispy skin: This step makes a huge difference in the final result.

Save the backbone: It’s great for making a flavorful chicken stock.

Thaw the chicken first: We don’t want to smoke or dry brine a frozen chicken. Make sure it’s fully thawed before dry brining. Otherwise, it won’t properly dry brine or absorb the smoke.

Pat the chicken skin thoroughly with paper towels before salting: We want the skin as dry as possible.

Let the chicken sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before smoking: This takes off the chill and allows for more even cooking.

Bonus: For more ways to smoke a chicken, you can also try my smoked chicken leg quarters and smoked chicken breasts.

Perfect Pairing

What’s a good BBQ without plenty of beers on hand? Try this chicken with an American amber ale. You’ll love how the strong malt profile melds with the brown sugar while adding contrast to the dry rub spices.

If you’re feeling a little fancier and prefer wine, an oaked chardonnay is great with smoked chicken. The char from the oak barrels makes for a nice match with the touch of smoky flavor.

Your family and friends will devour this smoked spatchcock chicken at your next backyard BBQ. With that juicy, flavorful meat and crispy skin, this chicken is absolute perfection.

Cheers!

The smoked spatchcock chicken in a black cast-iron skillet on a brown wooden surface with sprigs of parsley to the left.

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Smoked Spatchcock Chicken With Crispy Skin

What Is Spatchcocking?

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Ingredients