Todays no peek chicken

Another attempt at a whole chicken. Smoked 5.5 lb chicken for about 2.5 hrs at 270 and finished at a little over 300 for 30 minutes. I never opened the lid, never peeked. I watched the ET732 temp probe. Cooked till the breast was 163. Pulled and rested about 15 minutes. Not bad. The color was a little darker than I expected but still tasted good. Wasn't as crisp as I was looking for but not tough either. I attribute the dark color mostly to cooking on one side the whole time (other side was much lighter) I attribute the decent but not crisp skin to the fact I brined it, rinsed and then dried it with towels and went strait to the grill. I see many say you need to let it sit in the fridge for skin to dry first. Time did not allow that this time. Chicken has been a weak point for me, but I will prevail. I did like the brine recipe I used and the chicken was very good. Overall not a bad cook. Just room for improvement before I am happy with it.

Brine was 2 qts water, 1 cup kosher salt, 1 cup lt brown sugar, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 2 tablespoons grill mates chicken rub. Boiled, cooled and added 1 qt sprite and the chicken. I also used hickory and a little apple wood and hit it pretty good with smoke. I like my smoked chicken smokey! I did not rub after brining overnight.

No, I have not tried spatchcocked yet. I am sure I will soon. I usually do briskets, ribs, and butts. But after a recent cook my sister asked me to smoke a turkey for Thanksgiving. So I am trying to learn a bit on whole chickens first.