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If you’re looking for the best smoked chicken breast on a Traeger, this is it. These smoked chicken breasts are juicy, tender, and packed with flavor and never dry or boring. With a simple dry rub and a few easy tips, you’ll get perfectly smoked chicken every time.
Table of Contents
- The Key to Juicy Smoked Chicken Breasts
- Traeger Smoker
- Smoked Chicken Rub
- How to Make Smoked Chicken Breasts
- How to Keep Chicken Breast from Drying Out
- What to Serve with Smoked Chicken Breasts
- Best Wood Pellets for Smoked Chicken
- Smoked Chicken FAQs
- Storage Tips
- Quick Recipe Summary
- More EASY CHICKEN RECIPES You will Love:
- Easy Smoked Chicken Breasts Recipe
The Key to Juicy Smoked Chicken Breasts
The secret is simple: don’t overcook and don’t skip the rest.
Chicken breasts cook quickly at 350°F, so use a meat thermometer and pull them right at 165°F. Then let them rest for 5 minutes so the juices redistribute.
Skip this step and all that moisture ends up on your cutting board instead of in your chicken.
Traeger Smoker
Have you tried cooking on a Traeger yet? It’s one of our favorite ways to get that wood-fired flavor with minimal effort. If you’ve seen one at Costco demos, this is your sign to jump in.
We’ve shared everything from smoked tri tip to pulled pork, and these smoked chicken breasts are one of our easiest, most reliable recipes yet.
Smoked Chicken Rub
This dry rub is the key to flavorful smoked chicken. It’s a balance of sweet, savory, and just a little heat:
- Brown Sugar: Adds a touch of sweetness and helps create a beautiful caramelized crust on the outside.
- Turbinado Sugar: A coarse raw sugar that adds subtle sweetness and a little texture to the rub. (You can substitute more brown sugar if needed.)
- Celery Seed: Brings a light, savory depth that rounds out the flavors in the rub.
- Paprika: Adds warm, smoky flavor and gives the chicken that rich, golden color.
- Kosher Salt: Enhances all the flavors and helps the chicken stay juicy.
- Black Pepper: Adds a mild heat and balances the sweetness in the rub.
- Cayenne Pepper: Just a pinch adds a little kick without overpowering the chicken.
- Garlic Powder: Brings a savory, slightly sweet garlic flavor that works perfectly in a dry rub.
- Onion Powder: Adds a subtle onion flavor that deepens the overall taste of the chicken.
How to Make Smoked Chicken Breasts
- Preheat: Set your Traeger to Smoke (or Super Smoke) for 5 minutes with the lid open. Then increase to 350°F and preheat with the lid closed.
- Season: Pat the chicken dry, then drizzle with olive oil. Generously coat the chicken with the dry rub. Place chicken on the grill, seasoned side down, then coat the other side with remaining rub.
- Cook: Grill for 12–13 minutes, flip, then cook another 10–12 minutes.
- Check Temp: Remove when internal temperature reaches 165°F in the thickest part.
- Rest: Tent with foil and rest 5 minutes before slicing. For the most tender bites, slice the chicken against the grain.
Read more: Looking for more smoked chicken? Try our recipe for how to smoke a whole chicken in the Traeger, smoked chicken thighs, or our smoked chicken wings.
How to Keep Chicken Breast from Drying Out
- Use a higher temp (350°F) instead of low-and-slow
- Don’t overcook—pull at 165°F
- Let the chicken rest before slicing
- Use a flavorful rub to lock in moisture
What to Serve with Smoked Chicken Breasts
Serve smoked chicken with homemade BBQ sauce and your favorite sides like mac and cheese, roasted sweet potatoes, baked beans, or soft potato rolls.
Best Wood Pellets for Smoked Chicken
We love using:
- Apple (mild, slightly sweet)
- Hickory (strong, classic BBQ flavor)
- Mesquite (bold and smoky)
- Cherry or pecan (great balanced options)
Try different blends to find your favorite as each adds a unique flavor.
Smoked Chicken FAQs
At 350°F, smoked chicken breasts take about 20–25 minutes to cook, depending on thickness. Always cook to an internal temperature of 165°F for the best results.
The most reliable way is using a meat thermometer. Chicken is fully cooked at 165°F in the thickest part.
Smoked chicken may have a slight pink color from the smoke—that’s normal and safe as long as it reaches temperature.
The USDA says that as long as all parts of the chicken have reached a minimum internal temperature of 165° F using a meat thermometer, it is safe to eat. Color doesn’t indicate doneness. Smoked meat often leaves a pink hue but if it has come to temperature it’s fine.
We have been given the opportunity to try out a few Traeger grills and we’ve decided the Texas Elite 34 Wood Pellet Grill & Smoker Traeger grill is our favorite.
Pro tip: A good pair of grilling tongs makes handling the chicken so much easier. We love using sturdy, long-handled tongs for this recipe.
Storage Tips
Leftover smoked chicken should be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator. I highly recommend using leftovers in our Smoked Chicken Kale Salad. Heaven!
To reheat smoked chicken, place in a shallow baking dish, add a little water or chicken broth and cover with foil. Place it in the oven preheated to 350 degrees F and warm up until heated through.
You can also freeze this chicken, and it does extremely well. Let it cool completely and then place the chicken in a freezer safe container. It will keep for about a month.
Quick Recipe Summary
- Temp: 350°F
- Cook Time: 20–25 minutes
- Internal Temp: 165°F
- Rest Time: 5 minutes
Perfectly juicy smoked chicken breasts every time.
There’s just something about a really good smoked chicken breast that hits every time, and this one never lets us down. It’s simple, packed with flavor, and turns out juicy and tender without a lot of fuss (which is exactly how we like it). We make this on repeat all summer long, but honestly, it’s just as good any time of year.
More EASY CHICKEN RECIPES You will Love:
- Smoked Chicken Wings
- Easy Chicken Milanese
- Simple Garlic Butter Parmesan Chicken
- Whole Smoked Chicken
- Citrus Greek Chicken
Easy Smoked Chicken Breasts
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Turbinado Sugar, see note
- 1 teaspoon Celery Seed
- 2 Tablespoons Paprika
- 2 Tablespoons Kosher Salt
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 2 Tablespoons Garlic Powder
- 2 Tablespoons Onion Powder
- 4 Chicken Breasts, large boneless, skinless
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Instructions
- Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a small bowl.2 Tablespoons Brown sugar, 2 Tablespoons Turbinado Sugar, 1 teaspoon Celery Seed, 2 Tablespoons Paprika, 2 Tablespoons Kosher Salt, 1 teaspoon Black Pepper, 1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper, 2 Tablespoons Garlic Powder, 2 Tablespoons Onion Powder
- Pat the chicken breasts dry on both sides and drizzle each side with a little olive oil.4 Chicken Breasts, 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- Sprinkle the rub on top of the chicken breasts liberally. Allow to rest in the fridge for 15 minutes, or up to 30 minutes (place plastic wrap over the top if over 15 minutes of rest time.)
- Heat a smoker on smoke (on traeger use the super smoke) with the lid opened for 5 minutes. Turn the heat to 350 degrees F and close the lid for 15 minutes while it warms up.
- Put the chicken, spiced side down on the grill and liberally season the underside of the chicken. Cook for 12-13 minutes with the lid closed.
- Turn the chicken over and cook another 10-12 minutes or until cooked to 165℉.
- Remove the chicken from the grill and lay foil over the top on a cutting board. Let the chicken rest for 3-5 minutes before slicing.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Why are you preheating the traeger with the lid open??? All that is doing is allowing heat and smoke to escape into the air. And 350 is above the temperature threshold for what I’d consider smoking…. thats grilling. That being said your spice rub sounds appealing and the pictures look good.
Their wording wasn’t the best but they’re saying:
-start traeger with lid open for 5 min until fire is going
-close lid and preheat for 15
Just so you know… This has become a staple on the Traeger week in and week out. The absolute best tasting chicken – quick smoke, but tons of flavor, and the family loves it! Any more Traeger smokes for a weekday meal? I would love it.
Thanks again from NC. – Great job
This makes my day Chuck! We are so obsessed with everything Traeger! Do a search for Traeger on our site and all our recipes will be there.
I made this last night on our Traeger — my first time every cooking on one! I am commenting because I read the reviews here and have some feedback as well. First, the chicken was phenomenal. I cannot say that enough — tangy, sweet, spicy and most importantly, the chicken was incredibly juicy and soft. It was such a welcome change from a winter of dry oven chicken or air fryer repeat recipes. Second, to the other reviewers’ points, I will say that I only used 1 tablespoon of salt in fear of over-salting and that was enough. Next, I used two large chicken breasts and the cook time was definitely longer — I flipped after 13 minutes and after the next 12, I probably had to let them cook for another 15. Just an FYI. Regardless, we will definitely make this again and it was a great recipe to get my feet wet with!
Thank you so much for the feedback and I’m so glad you enjoyed the chicken!
man! this was an absolute winner! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Freddie!!
Took twice as long on the trager as the recipe says and it was way too salty.
Sorry for the disappointment! Were you using the Traeger in cooler weather? Sometimes that can extend the cooking time. The salt can always be adjusted to taste. Regardless, we appreciate the feedback and apologize for the frustration. We haven’t ever had an issue with it taking longer.
Googled “smoked chicken breast recipe” and came to your website. I followed the recipe for the most part. I doubled the brown sugar because I didn’t have turbinado sugar. I also left out the celery seeds because I didn’t have those. I ended up cooking the chicken for about 15-16 minutes on each side until the temp probe hit 170°. I had some big pieces of chicken. It turned out SO good. The chicken was nice and juicy and I loved the taste/aftertaste. I will definitely be using this recipe more often! I also looked you guys up on the gram, so many good looking recipes! Can’t wait to try more! Thank you!
Thank you so much Jared and we appreciate the support! So glad you enjoyed the smoked chicken breasts! Thanks for taking time to leave us a comment!
EXTREMELY SALTY!!! Ruined perfectly good chicken with this recipe!!!
Just 2 tablespoons of salt in the rub. It shouldn’t be too salty.
Oh my what a wonderful recipe I made this for my parents tonight and they said save this and make this again! It was so moist and smoky!! Thank you so much for this idea will be making more of your recipes if they are as good as this one which I bet is the case.😋😋😋😋
Thank you so much for the support Cynthia and so glad this was a hit in your house!
This was wonderful! The rub made a perfect flavor and no bbq sauce needed. I made about a 1/4 recipe for 4 smaller breasts so I didn’t have any left over rub. I was out of celery seed, so I used Beau Monde seasoning (which is mostly celery seed and salt) and just omitted the salt, which worked perfectly. My paprika was the hot variety so I left out the cayenne for my wimpy family who can’t handle spice (annoying). Will save and use this as our new go-to chicken recipe, thank you so much!
Thank you so much Lyrica! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe! We make it all year long!