Alabama White Sauce BBQ: Smoked Chicken with Big Bob Gibson's Mayo Sauce
"Mayo. Vinegar. Pepper. Smoked chicken. Trust the process."
Whole smoked chicken dipped in a tangy mayonnaise-and-vinegar 'white sauce.' Sounds weird. Isn't.
The Profile
- Meat
- Whole chicken (split), chicken thighs, sometimes pork and turkey
- Wood
- Hickory or pecan
- Method
- Smoke at 275°F for 2.5–3 hours. Dunk in white sauce while still hot.
- Rub
- Salt, pepper, paprika, garlic, brown sugar — light hand.
- Sauce
- Alabama white — mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, black pepper, lemon juice, horseradish, sugar. Cold.
- Sides
- Potato salad, Cole slaw, Baked beans, White bread
Where it comes from
Big Bob Gibson opened in Decatur, AL in 1925. He dunked whole smoked chickens in a vat of his mayo-vinegar sauce and started a regional obsession. Chris Lilly carries the torch today and has won multiple Memphis in May grand championships. Alabama white is unique to North Alabama and has spread nationally as a chicken sauce.
What makes it different
- →Mayonnaise-based sauce — nowhere else in America does this.
- →Sauce is served cold, the chicken hot. The contrast is the magic.
- →Whole chickens are dunked in the sauce, not brushed.
- →Pairs shockingly well with pulled pork too.
How to do it at home
- 1
Split a whole 4-5 lb chicken
Spatchcock or split in half. Dry-brine with salt 4-24 hours.
- 2
Smoke at 275°F over hickory or pecan
Skin-side up. Cook to 165°F in the breast, 175°F in the thigh — about 2.5–3 hours.
- 3
Make Alabama white sauce
1.5 cups mayo, 1/4 cup cider vinegar, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp horseradish, 2 tsp coarse black pepper, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp cayenne. Whisk and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
- 4
Dunk while hot
Submerge the whole chicken in the sauce for 10 seconds. Let drip, then carve.
Pilgrimage-worthy joints
Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q
Decatur, AL
The origin. Chris Lilly's chicken is still dunked. Multiple Memphis in May Grand Champion.
Saw's Soul Kitchen
Birmingham
Modern Alabama BBQ with white sauce on smoked chicken and pork.
Dreamland Bar-B-Que
Tuscaloosa
Famous for ribs (red sauce) but Alabama-spreads white sauce too.
Common mistakes
- Brushing the sauce on instead of dunking. The dunk coats every bite.
- Cooking the chicken too cool — you need 275°F to render the skin.
- Skipping the horseradish. It's the secret note.
Cook it tonight
Related recipes
Sauce
Big Bob Gibson's White Sauce — the original, bottled. See all sauces →