Mexican Smoked Chicken (with Easy Injectable Marinade)

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This Mexican smoked chicken combines the rich smokiness of the grill with the spicy, vibrant flavors of Mexico! This amazing smoked chicken recipe may be the most flavorful and juicy whole chicken that you’ve ever had!

My wife cannot stop raving about this Mexican chicken that I made on the pellet grill recently. I swear she called four different people immediately after we filmed the YouTube video for this whole smoked chicken to tell them how delicious it was… and I’ve got to agree with her!

This smoked Mexican chicken is probably one of the top 5 chicken recipes that I’ve ever made in my entire culinary journey – and considering that I’ve cooked professionally for about a decade, that’s saying a lot!

With a simple three ingredient injectable marinade and a homemade Mexican seasoning blend, this smoked whole chicken is juicy and tender, with major flavor! Crank up the heat of the pellet grill to finish the chicken off, and you’ll have a bird with spicy, crispy skin and perfectly tender meat with a subtle hint of pickled jalapeno flavor.

I’m telling you, if you love Mexican food as much as I do, then you’ve got to try this Mexican chicken on the grill!

Ingredients for Mexican Smoked Chicken

To make this simple smoked whole chicken recipe you only need these simple ingredients:

• juice from canned pickled jalapeños – The juice in the canned jalapeños is not too spicy when used as a marinade, and it has major flavor!
• Tajin hot sauce (Mild) – This is one of our favorite ingredients for a variety of Mexican recipes. The Tajin has a great lime flavor, and it’s not too spicy for my wife.
• juice of one lime
• spices for homemade Mexican seasoning – These include chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, brown sugar, and ancho chile powder. The ancho chile powder is optional, and it is quite spicy, so use a smaller amount or omit it for a more mild flavor.

How to Make Mexican Smoked Chicken on the Grill

Spatchcock and Dry Brine the Whole Chicken

To start, you need to prep your chicken. I firmly believe in spatchcocking whole chickens and turkeys, because I find that the meat cooks more quickly and evenly.

You can follow this guide for spatchcocking, which basically includes cutting out the backbone of the bird and breaking the breast bone so that the chicken lays flat.

Next, place the spatchcocked chicken on a wire cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. Sprinkle the bird with kosher salt (I prefer Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt), and refrigerate for 8-12 hours.

Make the Injection Liquid and Seasoning

Next it’s time to make the simple jalapeno lime mixture to inject into the bird. Just drain the juice from the can of pickled jalapeños into a large measuring cup. You will need about 1 cup of the pickled jalapeno juice to mix with the juice of one lime and about 2 tablespoons of Tajin hot sauce.

*TIP – I found it easiest to open the canned jalapenos and empty 1 cup of the juice directly into a 2 cup glass Pyrex measuring cup. Then, you can add the Tajin and lime juice to the Pyrex cup with the jalapeno juice and mix everything right in the cup. The tall sides of the Pyrex make it easy to fill the injection needle as well.

Then, combine all of the Mexican spices in a separate bowl and stir well. This will be the seasoning rub to give the skin extra flavor. *Since we dry brined the chicken with salt, we didn’t add any salt to the seasoning mixture. The end result was fantastic!

Inject and Season the Whole Chicken

Next, it’s time to inject the chicken with the liquid. With the whole chicken still on the wire rack on top of a baking sheet, follow these steps to use the injection syringe:

1. Using a meat injector syringe, draw up the jalapeño-lime injection liquid into the syringe barrel.
2. Insert the needle of the injector into various parts of the chicken, such as the breast, thighs, and drumsticks, pushing the plunger slowly to release the injection liquid as you withdraw the needle.
3. Repeat the process in multiple spots across the chicken to ensure the flavor injection is evenly distributed in the meat.

*TIP – Try to limit the number of holes in the chicken skin as you inject – Use the same holes, but adjust the angle of the injector to reach different areas of the meat.

When you’re done injecting the chicken, refrigerate on the wire rack and baking sheet for about 4 to 4.5 hours. This time period is kind of like “marinating” the chicken, except from the inside out.

*TIP – Be sure that the baking sheet is laying flat in the refrigerator, as you will probably have excess moisture in the bottom after the 4 hours.

After the chicken has rested in the refrigerator, spray with duck fat spray or rub a thin layer of oil all over as a binder, and sprinkle liberally with the Mexican seasoning blend. Your chicken should look something like this before it goes on the smoker:

Smoke the Mexican Chicken on the Grill

When the whole chicken is injected and seasoned, it’s time to smoke it on the grill.

I chose to use the extra smoke mode on my Weber Searwood XL 600 for the first hour of cooking time, so I set my grill to 180°F for that extra smoky flavor. However, if your grill doesn’t go that low or the super smoke mode comes on at a different temperature like 225°F, then adjust the temp accordingly.

Just to give you an idea, after one hour at the lower grill temp, the internal temperature of my chicken was about 65-70°F.

Next, raise the temp of the grill to about 325-350°F. Continue to cook the chicken until the thickest part of the breasts reach 165°F (as checked with an instant read meat thermometer). The total cook time at the higher 325-350°F temp could be 2-3 hours depending on the size of your chicken and the temperature of your grill.

When the chicken is cooked through, remove from the pellet grill and allow to rest on the counter until the internal temp of the breast comes down to about 145°F. Then, you can shred the smoked Mexican chicken for tacos or nachos, or slice it and serve!

Though I must say, our chicken was so dang good that we could have easily just stood around the kitchen counter eating it right off the bone.

The jalapeno juice brine is very subtle, and it shouldn’t be too spicy at all. Just be sure to use the recommended can of pickled jalapeños, and it will be perfect!

Ideas for Using the Mexican Smoked Chicken

This chicken is absolutely amazing as is, so you can simply slice it and serve with your favorite Mexican side dishes. Or, shred the chicken and use for one of these simple dinners:

• Smoked Chicken Fajita Nachos – We made these amazing nachos with our Mexican chicken. Just sauté some sliced bell peppers and onions, or your choice of fajita vegetables. Add the warm chicken and vegetables to a pile of tortilla chips with your favorite nacho toppings.

• Smoked Chicken and Cream Cheese Enchiladas – Mix about 4 cups of the shredded smoked chicken with about 1 cup of sautéed fajita vegetables. Add about 5 ounces of cream cheese and 5 ounces of shredded quesadilla cheese and mix well. Roll the chicken cream cheese filling in corn or flour tortillas, place in a casserole dish, pour some of your favorite enchilada sauce on top, and bake for about 30 minutes.

How to Reheat Leftover Smoked Chicken

We smoked our whole Mexican chicken the day before we used it for other recipes, so we stored the shredded meat in a Ziploc bag in the refrigerator overnight.

But, you have to be careful when reheating leftover shredded chicken so that it doesn’t dry out on you. For best results, we recommend you follow these steps for reheating your leftover Mexican smoked chicken:

1. Preheat the oven to 170°F. The lower temperature allows you to reheat the chicken slowly so that it doesn’t dry out.
2. Spread the shredded chicken out in an even layer on top of a sheet of aluminum foil. Add about 2 tablespoons of water to the chicken. Cover the chicken with another sheet of foil.
3. Reheat in the oven until the temperature of the chicken reaches about 160°F. (Remember, it has already been cooked through.)

FAQ’s

Is it necessary to spatchcock the chicken before injecting it?

While spatchcocking the chicken isn’t essential, it allows for more even cooking and quicker smoking times. However, you can still inject a whole chicken without spatchcocking if preferred, although the cooking time may be slightly longer.

What if I don’t have a pellet grill? Can I still make smoked Mexican chicken?

While a pellet grill offers convenience and precise temperature control, you can achieve similar results using a charcoal or gas grill with indirect heat. Simply set up your grill for indirect cooking, add wood chips or chunks for smoke, and monitor the temperature closely throughout the smoking process. You can place a smoke tube with pellets on your grill grates for extra smoky flavor.

How do I know when the chicken is done smoking?

The chicken is ready when the internal temperature reaches 165°F (74°C) in the thickest part of the breast, as measured with a meat thermometer. It’s essential to rely on temperature rather than cooking time to ensure safe and perfectly cooked chicken.

Can I freeze the leftover Mexican smoked chicken?

Yes, you can freeze leftover smoked chicken. Allow the chicken to cool, then transfer to an airtight container or freezer bag, removing as much air as possible. Freeze for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then follow the reheating instructions above.

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