Cook the best chicken breasts in the smoker! See how to make juicy Traeger smoked chicken breasts without brine… This super smoky main dish recipe comes with two seasoning ideas. Let’s smoke juicy and flavorful chicken in the pellet grill…
Scroll for step-by-step photos and a full-length video guide…
How long to smoke chicken breast?
The time that it takes to smoke chicken breasts depends on how thick or thin the chicken breasts are. If you have super thin chicken breasts, the cooking process will take less than an hour.
If your chicken breasts are on the thicker side, like ours in this recipe, you can expect the process to take anywhere from 1.5 – 3-ish hours.
Again, it’s always recommended that you use an internal read thermometer and pull the chicken breasts off of the smoker when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
What temperature to smoke chicken breast?
For tender, juicy results, 225 degrees F is a favorite smoker temperature for chicken breast at my house. Sometimes I’ll smoke chicken breast at 250 degrees F to accommodate other things I’m smoking at the same time.
How do you know that your smoked chicken breasts are done?
Smoked boneless chicken breasts will be done when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F when measured by an instant read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken breast.
What pellets are best for making smoked chicken breasts?
We recommend using Apple pellets or wood chips. For this particular smoking demo, we used Apple Pellets which create a sweet smoky flavor that’s great for smoking chicken.
But we’ve made chicken on the smoker numerous times, with everything from rich-flavored Traeger Hickory Pellets to the regular signature blend, and they’ve all been so delicious! Poultry really picks up a lot of smoke flavor cooked this way.
What seasoning did you use for smoked chicken?
I used two seasonings you’ll see in the Sip Bite Go video. Blackening seasoning (my husband loves it!) Chef Paul Blackened Redfish Magic Seasoning and the other was Traeger Chicken Rub Citrus / Black Pepper flavor.
How do I serve smoked chicken breasts?
Your options are endless here! You can serve your smoked chicken breasts in a variety of ways. Slice it for a sandwich or slider, like we did. Add it to a salad, use it as a topping for a smoked mac and cheese or serve with a side like smoked baked potatoes or smoked mashed potatoes. 
Ingredients
Here’s what you need to cook chicken breast on smoker grills.
- Chicken breasts
- Olive oil
- BBQ dry rub or poultry seasoning of choice
Note: don’t overthink the seasoning… really, you could use any seasonings – even just salt and pepper with a little garlic powder would be amazing. Let the smoke from the pellets do the work!
The bonus here is that a lot of good smoked appetizers and smoked side dishes – like smoked queso and smoked red potatoes – can be cooked at the same temperature, so you can really make a meal with easy to make smoked food for dinner.
Smoked chicken breast recipe step-by-step
Now I’ll walk you through it…
Detailed recipe steps
- Preheat Traeger Grills or Pitt Boss or whatever pellet grill you’re using to 225 degrees F.
- Prep chicken breasts for smoking. First pat dry with a paper towel to remove any excess chicken juice. Coat the chicken breasts in olive oil then add your chicken rub or BBQ seasoning of your choice. Massage in the dry rub so it adheres to the chicken breasts.
- Smoke chicken breasts at 225 degrees F for 2 – 3 hours depending on how thick your chicken breasts are. No flipping necessary.
- Remove when smoker chicken breasts reach 165 degrees F as measured with an internal read thermometer.
- Rest. Allow the smoked chicken breasts to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
- Finish smoked chicken breasts and enjoy.
Best chicken smoker recipes from Sip Bite Go
- Smoked whole chicken
- Traeger smoked chicken thighs
- Smoked wings
- Smoked chicken breast
- Chicken temperature guide
Next up? Learn how to smoke a ham…
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Pro tip: One of my go-to tricks for perfectly cooked food every time is using the right BBQ meat thermometers.
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– Jenna
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BEST Smoked Chicken Breast Recipe | Sip Bite Go
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp seasonings any bbq dry rub or poultry seasoning
Instructions
- Preheat Traeger Grills or Pitt Boss or whatever pellet grill you’re using to 225 degrees F.
- Prep chicken breasts for smoking. First pat dry with a paper towel to remove any excess chicken juice. Coat the chicken breasts in olive oil then add your chicken rub or BBQ seasoning of your choice. Massage in the dry rub so it adheres to the chicken breasts.
- Smoke chicken breasts at 225 degrees F for 2 – 3 hours depending on how thick your chicken breasts are. No flipping necessary.
- Remove smoked chicken breasts. When the chicken breasts reach 165 degrees F as measured with an internal read thermometer.
- Rest. Allow the smoked chicken breasts to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
- Finish smoked chicken breasts by slicing it for a sandwich or salad and enjoy.
Mark says
Yay. Good smoked food.
Camela says
good smoked chicken breasts. Flavor was awesome.
Brandon says
This was an excellent recipe and easy to follow instructions. I added a little bit of apple cider and a cap of Moore’s marinade to the olive oil, and it turned out so well! Thanks!