Hot Smoked Chicken

To light your Charlie Charcoal Oven, place the equivalent of a football's size of lumpwood charcoal at the back to middle part of the oven, lighting with a natural firelighter, blowtorch, or Looft air lighter.

Light the fuel, open the air vents top and bottom, and wait for the oven to reach 180°C. Depending on the quality of the charcoal, this should take around 15 minutes.  

Now to add the hot smoke using applewood. Once Charlie reaches the desired temperature, add one small chunk of applewood that fits in the palm of your hand to the fire at the back of the grate. Alternatively, sprinkle a small handful of flavoured woodchips at the back of the grate. A little wood goes a long way in the Charlie Oven, which captures the smoke created with its airtight design.  

Bring the malt vinegar, soy sauce, salt, sugar, thyme, lager, and garlic up to the boil, then remove from the heat.

Add the ice and water to cool the liquid down quickly.

Place the chicken in the brine, ensuring full coverage, and leave for 12–24 hours to enhance the richness of flavour.

Remove the bird from the brine and spatchcock by removing the backbone. To spatchcock the bird, use a sharp knife or good kitchen scissors to cut along the sides of the bird's backbone on both sides. Be careful not to cut through the chicken oysters at the back of the bird. That meat is delicious! 

Once the backbone is removed, apply pressure across the breasts to flatten the meat, ready for the oven.  

Place chicken in the Charlie Oven high in the oven away from the direct flame so as to cook it indirectly. Hot-smoke/roast for 45-55 minutes until beautifully cooked (internal temperature of 72 °C or 162 °F) and the skin has taken on a rich dark colour from the smoke. 

Once cooked, remove the chicken from your Charlie Oven and leave it to rest for at least 30 minutes, covered lightly. 

Serve with slow-baked sweet potatoes and tender stem charred broccoli, 

For an extra flavour burst, add some of Matt Burgess's award-winning sauce Blak Fire