New to smoking!

[Bethy]

Hubby and I just finished our first try at smoking...did a whole chicken, brined it overnight, butterfly-ed it, smoked at 220 for almost 5 hrs. The smoke flavor was good but the chicken was rather bland. Any hints or tips for us?

 

[bluewhisper]

Welcome to the board! Consider rubbing some seasonings under the skin so they soak into the meat. Pull the skin back on like Nothing Ever Happened. Then if you like you can sprinkle some seasoning on the skin, for show, maybe something like a quick shake of paprika.

 

[noboundaries]

Welcome to SMF, Bethy! Glad you're here and looking for some clucking answers.

Personally, when I brine a chicken, and I always brine whole chickens, I inject the brine into the breast, then brine it. If you like the flavor profile of your brine, it gets that flavor deep into the meat.

BW's advice is also spot on.