Smoked a couple chucks on Saturday. Forgot to take any pics when I pulled it off after the wrap.
![IMG_3370[1].JPG](https://cdn.imagearchive.com/okshooters/data/attach/188/188440-IMG-3370-1-.JPG "IMG_3370[1].JPG")
That is so redneck but I like it! LOL
Think I've got $10 invested in it (for the thermometer that I really didn't need). Already had the grates and stainless steel colander for the firebox. Found the cabinet by the side of the street on a bulk trash day. Holds at 200* to 215* all day. Works for me!
I love BBQing whole chickens. For some weird reason, I don't have any pictures, but I'll try to add some next time I do one.
How I do it:
I prefer Roaster chickens, or the older, larger birds. I feel they have a better chicken flavor than the younger ones, and slow cooking and brining them keeps them from being tough.
Debone the chicken, leaving the thighs, wings, and drumsticks. Remove excess fat, tendons, etc. make sure you get the shoulder blades and the wishbone as well. Essentially I just remove the rib cage and all that. It takes a few more minutes than spatchcocking a chicken, but makes serving a breeze. Cut the wings, thighs, and drumsticks off, split the breasts, and you're eating. No need to fight the ribs or anything. I feel it produces less waste as well. I also remove the skin and tendons from the bottom of the drumsticks, like youre removing his socks. it looks nice when its cooked, and allows for a nicer "handle" to hold the drumstick.
at this point you should have a floppy chicken with the appendages still attached, make sure you're careful with it so it all stays in one piece. Rinse everything really well. Drop it in a ziplock bag, add enough water to cover the chicken, and brine it with whatever you want. I like to use a cup or so of pickle juice or apple cider vinegar, a quarter cup of salt, some garlic powder, and some chili powder of whatever variety tickles my fancy. At this point if I have extra chickens I will throw them in the freezer. Next time I want a chicken I can pull it out and thaw it, after sitting in the fridge for 24 hours or so its pretty much ready to go. Makes life easy.
I have tried brining my chickens for an hour, I have tried as long as 48 hours. I cant tell that it makes much of a difference, so maybe someone has some input on this. I typically brine them for 2-4 hours. Prep the chicken in the morning, get it out as you're starting the grill.
Once you're done brining, pull them out of the fridge, rinse really well to get all the extra salt and seasonings off of them, and set out on some paper towels, pat dry. Put your dry rub of your choosing on the meat side; I really like Qosmos Hot Dirty Bird, they have a store next to H and H. Flip the bird over so that the breast side/skin side is up, and pat dry with towels, really well. The drier the skin is, the crispier it should be when you're done cooking. let it sit while you get the grill going.
I just use a regular old weber kettle grill, that I modified with a thermostat on the lid. Works great. I fill up my chimney with charcoal, get it going. Once everything is going reasonably well, pile your coals on one side of the grill. I then put the grate on and clean it with an onion. get the heat settled in around 250. I typically can keep the heat between 240-300 pretty well, and it seems to work alright.
Right before you slap the chicken on there, put your dry rub on the skin side. I have found that a lighter touch with the rub works well, I'm just trying to accent the flavor, and with the brine I need to worry about oversalting the bird, as my rub has salt in it as well. Place it on the side of your grill without the direct heat, breasts/skin side up.
add a few pieces of wood, I prefer oak. It has a more mild smoke, the old lady doesnt like a ton of smoke. Oak seems to work just right.
Cook for 1.5-2 hours, checking the temps occasionally. Again, I like to keep the heat between 240-300. I do rotate the chicken 180 degrees for a few minutes before flipping, if needed. Once your temps get to about 150 in the breasts, and 160-170 in the thighs(the extra few degrees in the dark meat prevents having bloody dark meat), mop on your preferred bbq sauce on to the skin. Flip the chicken skin side down onto the hot side of the fire, get your skin a little char and the bbq sauce caramelized. once the breasts hit 160-161 degrees, pull it off, bring it inside. Let it sit for a minute or two for the juices to settle, it will typically even out the heat as well and you'll hit that 165 for it to be perfectly done. Don't flip your chicken back over to the meat side to continue cooking, as the steam from the bird will soften up that skin you worked so hard on. once it has sat for a few minutes, 7 chops, and you have two breasts, two wings, two thighs, and two drumsticks.
Eat! I make this regularly, and love it. I get rave reviews from most people who eat it as well. Its really easy, a little bit of extra steps and technical know how really make a difference. Leftovers are a piece of cake, if there is any. You already have your bird portioned out and ready to drop into tupperware or meal prep stuff if youre into that, no waiting for it to cool and fight the ribcage or anything of that nature.
For a nice treat, try making a honey chili glaze for the bird instead of bbq sauce. I typically use 1/2 cup of honey, a tablespoon of chipotle pepper, a tablespoon of ancho chili pepper, and slap it on the chicken in place of the bbq sauce. save a little bit to drizzle over the top right before serving.
As a disclaimer, any measurements above are guesstimates. I dont measure anything in the kitchen, which is likely why I am horrible at baking.
How I do it:
I prefer Roaster chickens, or the older, larger birds. I feel they have a better chicken flavor than the younger ones, and slow cooking and brining them keeps them from being tough.
Debone the chicken, leaving the thighs, wings, and drumsticks. Remove excess fat, tendons, etc. make sure you get the shoulder blades and the wishbone as well. Essentially I just remove the rib cage and all that. It takes a few more minutes than spatchcocking a chicken, but makes serving a breeze. Cut the wings, thighs, and drumsticks off, split the breasts, and you're eating. No need to fight the ribs or anything. I feel it produces less waste as well. I also remove the skin and tendons from the bottom of the drumsticks, like youre removing his socks. it looks nice when its cooked, and allows for a nicer "handle" to hold the drumstick.
at this point you should have a floppy chicken with the appendages still attached, make sure you're careful with it so it all stays in one piece. Rinse everything really well. Drop it in a ziplock bag, add enough water to cover the chicken, and brine it with whatever you want. I like to use a cup or so of pickle juice or apple cider vinegar, a quarter cup of salt, some garlic powder, and some chili powder of whatever variety tickles my fancy. At this point if I have extra chickens I will throw them in the freezer. Next time I want a chicken I can pull it out and thaw it, after sitting in the fridge for 24 hours or so its pretty much ready to go. Makes life easy.
I have tried brining my chickens for an hour, I have tried as long as 48 hours. I cant tell that it makes much of a difference, so maybe someone has some input on this. I typically brine them for 2-4 hours. Prep the chicken in the morning, get it out as you're starting the grill.
Once you're done brining, pull them out of the fridge, rinse really well to get all the extra salt and seasonings off of them, and set out on some paper towels, pat dry. Put your dry rub of your choosing on the meat side; I really like Qosmos Hot Dirty Bird, they have a store next to H and H. Flip the bird over so that the breast side/skin side is up, and pat dry with towels, really well. The drier the skin is, the crispier it should be when you're done cooking. let it sit while you get the grill going.
I just use a regular old weber kettle grill, that I modified with a thermostat on the lid. Works great. I fill up my chimney with charcoal, get it going. Once everything is going reasonably well, pile your coals on one side of the grill. I then put the grate on and clean it with an onion. get the heat settled in around 250. I typically can keep the heat between 240-300 pretty well, and it seems to work alright.
Right before you slap the chicken on there, put your dry rub on the skin side. I have found that a lighter touch with the rub works well, I'm just trying to accent the flavor, and with the brine I need to worry about oversalting the bird, as my rub has salt in it as well. Place it on the side of your grill without the direct heat, breasts/skin side up.
add a few pieces of wood, I prefer oak. It has a more mild smoke, the old lady doesnt like a ton of smoke. Oak seems to work just right.
Cook for 1.5-2 hours, checking the temps occasionally. Again, I like to keep the heat between 240-300. I do rotate the chicken 180 degrees for a few minutes before flipping, if needed. Once your temps get to about 150 in the breasts, and 160-170 in the thighs(the extra few degrees in the dark meat prevents having bloody dark meat), mop on your preferred bbq sauce on to the skin. Flip the chicken skin side down onto the hot side of the fire, get your skin a little char and the bbq sauce caramelized. once the breasts hit 160-161 degrees, pull it off, bring it inside. Let it sit for a minute or two for the juices to settle, it will typically even out the heat as well and you'll hit that 165 for it to be perfectly done. Don't flip your chicken back over to the meat side to continue cooking, as the steam from the bird will soften up that skin you worked so hard on. once it has sat for a few minutes, 7 chops, and you have two breasts, two wings, two thighs, and two drumsticks.
Eat! I make this regularly, and love it. I get rave reviews from most people who eat it as well. Its really easy, a little bit of extra steps and technical know how really make a difference. Leftovers are a piece of cake, if there is any. You already have your bird portioned out and ready to drop into tupperware or meal prep stuff if youre into that, no waiting for it to cool and fight the ribcage or anything of that nature.
For a nice treat, try making a honey chili glaze for the bird instead of bbq sauce. I typically use 1/2 cup of honey, a tablespoon of chipotle pepper, a tablespoon of ancho chili pepper, and slap it on the chicken in place of the bbq sauce. save a little bit to drizzle over the top right before serving.
As a disclaimer, any measurements above are guesstimates. I dont measure anything in the kitchen, which is likely why I am horrible at baking.
I've changed my ways concerning baking. Instead of guesstimating or using a measuring cup, I now use the metric way and weigh all the ingredients in grams. My bread was good before, now it's great!
I've been wanting to get a scale, would really come in handy at times. esp when trying out weird foreign recipes.I've changed my ways concerning baking. Instead of guesstimating or using a measuring cup, I now use the metric way and weigh all the ingredients in grams. My bread was good before, now it's great!
Yep. I've upgraded to a Japanese Zojirushi bread machine. Won't ever go back to the cheap brands!
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I have one of their nicer rice cookers. I like it as much as my fancy kitchen knives, lol. Best thing ever. I got tired of buying a new rice cooker every two years because it would break or burn the rice. My buddies wife (who is chinese, from china, just got her citizenship) said to look at Zojirushi. Read some reviews, found that a lot of people are replacing their Zojirushi Rice cookers, after 20+ years of faithful service. I was sold.
Cool idea!! We used to eat at a BBQ (now closed) at Eufaula. The restaurant used a converted old metal fridge as their smoker.
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