Tender and juicy smoked spatchcock chicken recipe
First, prepare the chicken. Remove gizzards from the chicken cavity. Now it's time to spatchcock. To spatchcock a chicken, lay the chicken breast side down and use a pair of kitchen shears or a sharp knife to cut through the chicken with two cuts: from the tail to the neck on both sides of the backbone. Now you can remove the backbone. Turn over the chicken and press down on the breast bone until you crack the cartilage and the chicken lays flat.
Combine the rub ingredients and mix. Generously rub into both sides of the chicken. If you want to optimize the flavor, place the chicken on a cooking sheet and refrigerate uncovered overnight.
Set your smoker's temperature to 275°F.
Place the chicken in the smoker. Go skin-side down if the heat comes from underneath in your smoker. Skin-side up if heat comes from the top.
Smoke the bird until your probe thermometer reads 165°F in the thickest part of the thigh. Start checking around the 1-hour mark. Rotate and/or flip the chicken if necessary to avoid burning one side.
Once it's reached temp, let the chicken rest for 15 minutes, then cut into quarters (or halves if you’re starving!). Let the devouring begin!
(Optional.) If the skin didn't come out as crispy as you hoped, you can throw it under the broiler for a few minutes before serving.