These Wood Chips Are Unbeatable For Grilling Chicken

This summer, grill your chicken like an expert griller by using the right kind of wood chips. In an exclusive with Daily Meal, Brazilian Grill Master Silvio Correa shared his opinions on how to take grilled chicken to the next level with the right smoke flavor. The expert chef and grillmaster began his own California-based catering company in 2003, followed by a brick-and-mortar restaurant called Silvio's Barbecue in 2008 (which comes highly recommended if you ever find yourself in the Hermosa Beach area). Correa is now a personal chef and owner of TROPICALI Brazilian Kitchen catering company. When it comes to picking the right type of wood to smoke your meats, Correa definitely knows what he's talking about.

Before grabbing the first bag of wood chips you see at your local grocery store, consider that chicken is a lighter meat than steak or pork. Chicken won't need a heavy smoke from dense wood in order to take on the flavors. Correa recommends deciding between a bag of ​apple, cherry, or pecan wood chips, as all three can improve the flavor of chicken.

While certain barbecue myths, like soaking your wood chips before grilling, aren't as useful as you might expect, picking the right type of wood chips makes a difference with chicken. Silvio Correa shared with Daily Meal, explaining: "[Apple] and cherry wood give a sweet and light smoke that makes the chicken's flavor stand out without being too strong. Pecan wood adds a nutty and slightly sweet taste that makes the grilled chicken even more delicious."

Chicken is known as one of the easier meats to grill, and can take on a wide array of flavor profiles. If you are slathering a sweet hickory sauce onto your chicken and enjoy your meat a little sweeter, apple or cherry wood chips are a perfect fit. On the contrary, if you plan on pressing a spicy teriyaki or a smoky dry rub onto your chicken, you may want to opt for the more subtly sweet pecan wood chips that provide a nuttier smoke flavor.