Fire up your pellet grill and make juicy, flavorful smoked chicken breast. Smoking chicken breasts low and slow keeps them moist and tender, while a simple dry rub adds bold flavor to every bite. Whether you’re cooking just a couple or loading up the grill, always make extra — the leftovers are perfect for tacos, salads, or quick lunches. The result? Smoky, succulent chicken you’ll want on repeat.
I’ve always loved smoky flavor and the smell of wood smoke. When we built our backyard, I was thrilled to finally have space for a pellet grill (also called a pellet smoker). Food from a pellet grill is tender, juicy, and full of flavor. This smoked chicken breast recipe has become a weekly staple because it’s so easy and always turns out delicious. Never smoked chicken breast before? This simple method is sure to please.
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Why You'll Love Smoked Chicken Breasts
- Easy and mostly hands-off – Let your smoker do the work while you relax.
- Great for dinner and leftovers – Perfect for meal prep or sandwiches the next day.
- Cook a little or a lot – Make two for a small meal or a dozen for a crowd.
- Simple, everyday ingredients – No special shopping trip required.
If you have an air fryer, try these crispy golden air fryer chicken cutlets! Dinner made in minutes.
What You'll Need
- Chicken: Get boneless chicken breasts the same size so they smoke at the same time.
- Mayonnaise: Instead of olive oil, I use mayo as my 'binder' for dry rub. I prefer the light clean taste of this brand, but use your favorite. I use the soy-free. Use just a little to make the rub stick.
- Dry rub: Use your favorite BBQ seasoning. I use my homemade BBQ spice rub, a blend of smoked paprika, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, and more. Check out the link and make a batch. It's super versatile.
Please see the recipe card for measurements. You'll also need avocado oil spray.
Chef's tip: For my BBQ dry rub you need smoked paprika, granulated garlic, ground cumin and coriander, brown sugar, onion powder, ancho chili powder, ground black pepper, and a little chipotle powder for some kick. There is no salt in my dry rub, as you have more control salting the meat separately. It also helps salt-sensitive people. Find the dry rub recipe here.
Substitutions and Variations
- If you prefer dark meat, use boneless skinless chicken thighs, cook to 175°F.
- Try different dry rubs.
- Try brining to understand the texture difference, and what you prefer.
For more smoker recipes, try my smoked salsa recipe, or this smoked queso dip.
Chef's tip: Always smoke to temperature, not to time. Time varies with weather conditions, your grill, and other factors. Use a digital kitchen thermometer to check the internal temperature of the meat. Be sure to insert the probe in the thickest part of the breast. Smoked chicken breasts will be firm with a little give but not rock hard when done.
How to Smoked Chicken Breasts
Get the chicken breasts out of the refrigerator and unwrap them 45-60 minutes ahead of time to get the chill off. Yes, this is food safe.
Ready The Grill
Make sure your grill grates are clean and check the pellet level, then pre-heat your pellet grill to 225°F. I use the smoke plus setting. My pellet grill is a Twin Eagles but other grills like a Traeger pellet grill, Camp Chef, or Pit Boss, all work. I have not tried this on a charcoal smoker or an electric smoker.
For pellets, I use a blend of hickory wood, cherry, hard maple, and apple pellets from this company.
Step 1: Get the chicken ready. If you're using my dry rub (no salt recipe), sprinkle the chicken breasts with salt on both sides. Next, smear the chicken breasts with 1-2 teaspoons of mayonnaise per chicken breast. You only need a thin coat.
Lastly, shake a good amount of BBQ dry rub on the chicken on both sides so it is well coated. Start on the under side, the do the top side last so it's stays nicer.
Note - If you brined your chicken breasts, pat them dry with paper towels, skip the salting and just use the mayonnaise and dry rub. Discard the brine. If you're using your favorite seasoning blend, check the label as most contain a lot of salt (it's the first ingredient). You won't need extra.
Those last few degrees will rise when you pull the chicken off the grill due to carry over cooking. Cook time is between 60-75 minutes. Remember to cook to temperature, not time. Large chicken breasts could take longer.
Chef's tip: A little before the chicken breasts are done, I give them a quick spray with avocado oil. It gives them a little shine and moisture, which is why mine don't look dry. I do this when smoking other meats too such as boneless pork chops.
Basic Chicken Brine (If Brining)
While I am a big fan of brining (see my how to brine a turkey post), for simple smoked chicken breast I skip brining. It's up to you. The texture is good, and not brining gets the chicken on the grill faster.
Brining is like seasoning and adding moisture from the inside out. By using the mayonnaise, you're adding moisture plus the dry rub adds big flavor. Additionally, these chicken breasts are smoked at a fairly low temperature compared to high heat grilling (less risk of drying them out).
Brining changes the physical structure of the protein in chicken (the texture). If you cook the chicken to the correct temperature (don't over-cook it), it will be moist without brining. This is one time you can skip brining and still get great results.
If you want to brine, use my simple basic brine recipe. Smoked chicken breasts are fine with a short brine. Brine for 1 hour, and you can do this at room temperature as long as your kitchen is below 90°F (yes it is food safe to do so). If you are brining longer, say 2 hours, the chicken must be refrigerated.
You need enough brine to completely cover the chicken breasts:
- 4 cups of water (a quart). You can also skip the sugar and use part apple juice here.
- ¼ cup kosher salt (1 tablespoon per cup). Don't use table salt.
- ¼ cup of sugar (either brown sugar or white).
Serving Suggestions
Here are suggestions for side dishes and what to do with leftover smoked chicken breast:
- Slice it up and make a chicken salad with greens.
- Dice it up, mix with a little mayo, more of the dry rub, and make a creamy smoked chicken salad.
- Swap the shrimp in these tacos for smoked chicken breast and make terrific tacos.
- Serve with a cold green bean, corn, and tomato salad.
- Cool and creamy coleslaw is another terrific side.
- This Mexican-style rice with vegetables is a perfect side and easily made ahead and frozen.
For a terrific dipping sauce, make a batch of my favorite BBQ sauce. It's great alongside the smoked chicken.
Leftover chicken keeps refrigerated in an airtight container up to 4 days. If frozen after smoking and cooling, cooked chicken will taste best if kept frozen up to 4 months.
Recipe FAQs
The food safe temperature for smoked chicken (and all chicken) is 165*F. Plan to pull your chicken a few degrees short of that temperature and allow carry over cooking to finish the job as the chicken rests for a few minutes. This insures moist smoked chicken breast.
Simply put, no. Thaw frozen chicken completely in the refrigerator overnight before smoking or use the quick thaw method. To quick thaw frozen chicken, place the chicken in an airtight bag and squeeze out the air. Submerge the chicken in cold water, changing the water every 20-30 minutes until the chicken is totally thawed. Depending on the cut, it may take an hour or several hours. Weight the chicken down if the package floats.
Do not ever thaw frozen chicken on the kitchen counter at room temperature. It's not food safe.
Popular choices for wood chips or all wood pellets include apple, cherry, hickory, and mesquite. Apple and cherry provide a milder, sweeter smoke, while hickory and mesquite offer a stronger, more robust flavor. For the best of all, use a blend containing these woods.
More Chicken Recipes
Here are more chicken recipes to keep things interesting for your family! Be sure to check out the chicken recipe index page for more inspiration.
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📖 Recipe
Smoked Chicken Breast
Equipment
- Pellet grill or other grill with smoking capabilities.
Ingredients
- 1 ½-2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast 4 pieces
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise I use Vegenaise
- dry rub (with or without salt) as needed
Optional
- sea salt, if using my dry rub recipe my rub as no salt included
- avocado oil spray
Instructions
- Remove the chicken from the refrigerator 45-60 minutes before smoking to get the chill off. If your dry rub does not have salt (like my recipe). Check your grill for clean grates and pellet level.
- Pre-heat the grill to 225°F. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with salt (if using a no salt rub). Then starting with the underside, sprinkle with dry rub, turn and coat the top (rounded) side with dry rub. Smoke the chicken until the internal temperature reaches just short of 165°F, 60-75 minutes. Cook to temperature, not to time. Use a digital thermometer to measure the internal temperature.
- Remove chicken from the grill and allow it to rest for a few minutes, covered, then serve. Leftovers keep for up to 4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To freeze, cooked chicken will taste best if kept frozen up to 4 months. Be sure to label and date.
Notes
- 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
- 1 ½ tablespoons granulated garlic
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons ancho chili powder
- 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground chipotle powder or cayenne pepper.
Nutrition
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