Second crack at Chicken in SM025 - PICS

Picture of finished Chicken in Smoker.

Chicken Leg/thigh quarter after crisping under broiler.

Overall thoughts and observations...

1) The chicken was very juicy. Skin tasted great and had a good bite.

2) The pecan smoke flavor was very subtle - too subtle for my taste even in the leg quarters. I thought there was good smoke coming from the smoker that smelled nice. I really thought 1.5 ounces would be a good amount since pecan is supposed to be a little milder than hickory. This is my first time using pecan so my expectations may not have been realistic. Perhaps I should have used more wood? Or maybe should have used a single 1.5 ounce chunk vs. 2 small chunks weighing the same (thinking I would get a longer smoke out of a larger chunk). Maybe the wood is old, although I just opened the box (the wood was purchased in August).

3) Based on my experiences eating BBQ chicken (thighs and leg quarters), I prefer chicken that is almost falling off the bone (not mushy, though). This chicken was juicy and we definitely enjoyed eating it, but I'd like to pull the meat off the bone easier.

Has anyone tried cooking the leg quarters longer (e.g. 4 hours or more) to get chicken that just pulls right off the bone? I would think brining would help keep the chicken moist on longer smokes.

So far I've done thighs with apple and quarters with pecan. I prefer quarters and I like the apple more than the pecan (simply because I didn't get much smoke flavor from the pecan, but that's with only 1 try). Has anyone tried oak or cherry?

I'd love any thoughts, questions, and feedback. Of course I'll need to keep smokin' and taking notes. Sucks, doesn't it?

By preheating, your chicken had less time to take on smoke, cause I've been taught that the product only takes smoke to 140*.

I like to use cherry with a small piece of hickory, but hey I use oak on most everything else.

I agree with cal!
I don't preheat and it take on smoke great. I have used many many cords of pecan over the years, it is very mild. I usually use a mix of cherry and hickory, or using pecan put in some hickory with it.
Starting out in a cold smoker you will need more time, and get more smoke flavor.
Keep trying, you will get it to your satisfaction.

Thanks for the tips! I do start in a cold smoker when I do pork, but I thought I read a few threads where others recommended pre-heating for chicken. Next time I'll start cold.

Thanks for sharing your experience with pecan, tigerfan. I didn't realize how mild pecan was. The cherry/hickory combo sounds good too. I'll have to experiment with that and maybe oak! So many smokes to do, yet so few days in a week.

The other folks was just trying to get crispy/nicer skin out of their CS, I've tried too and it's not possible,oh well.

When smoking big meats I like to use oak,cherry,a little hickory with the oak being the biggest part of my wood assortment.

The learning/practicing is the best part of smoking and yes, my freezer is full of smoked food.

fall off the bone is overcooked. If you want it that way, cook it longer. The CHALLENGE is to not cook it so long that it dries out and that's a challeenge.

For me, 2 hour brine on dark meat isn't enough.

For more smoke flavor, you can go more wood or go with a lower temp and longer. Keep in mind that while it will always take on more smoke flavor by clinging to the outside, the smoke will only penetrate until around 140. After that, no more smoke will penetrate.