Whole VS Half Chicken little Qview

smallbuck · Sep 6, 2012

So I'm thinking about smoking a Whole chicken this weekend. I have done leg and thighs and some wings. They both turned out great. I assuming I'll go with the same temp something close to 210 F 220F.

What Do I do with the Chicken?

Lay it down Breast up?

I don't have anything to stand it up on. Is that important?

Should I Half it?

Does it affect the flavor or juice?

I have read alot about whole birds. So I assume that is the way to go. Just wanted to check.

thanks for all the help.

s2k9k · Sep 6, 2012

I don't do a lot of chicken (except wings) but did 2 whole chix last weekend and I spatchcocked them (a first for me) and they came out Great!! They were very evenly cooked.

So I'm going to have to spit your poll and say "spatchcock"!

rustyreel · Sep 6, 2012

Haven't tried this yet but check this link out :http://www.smoking-meat.com/august-23-2012-spatchcock-chicken.html

chef jimmyj · Sep 6, 2012

They both work well but I always Brine poultry. With smaller birds Beer or Soda cans with some flavorful liquid works well to stand the birds on. You can all so use a Bunt or Tube Pan, like for baking Angel Food Cake, and stand the bird up on that. Halves smoke nicely as well you can start skin down then turn up after 30-60 minutes. Mixing your Rub with Butter then smearing it under and on the skin adds lots of flavor. But if you brine you should leave the salt out of the rub. Smoking should be done at a Minimum of 225*F for safety sake, but low temp leaves the skin rubbery so you will have to finish on the Grill or in a 425*F oven to crisp th skin. Smoking at temps around 300*F makes good meat and crisp skin. You are looking for 165* in the Breast and 175*F in the Thigh. Pull the bird 10* under if finishing in the oven. If you don't have a favorite, hear is my go-to Brine and Rub. Good luck...JJ

Families Favorite Brine

1/2C Kosher Salt

2T Paprika

2T Gran. Garlic

2T Gran. Onion

2T Dry Thyme

2T Black Pepper

1C Vinegar (Any)

1-11/2Gal Cold Water to cover Chix

1/2C Brown Sugar, Optional

1T Red Pepper Flake Optional

Mix well and Soak the Bird over night or up to 24 Hours.

Remove the Chix, rinse if desired and pat dry with paper towels.

Place in an open container in the refrigerator overnight or up to 24 hours for the Skin to dry.

This will give a crispier skin when Smokng or Roasting...

Bubba Chix Rub

1/2C Raw Sugar

2T Paprika (I use Smoked if I'm just Grilling)

1T Cayenne

1T Gran. Garlic

1T Gran. Onion

1tsp Black Pepper

1tsp Wht Pepper

1tsp Allspice

1tsp Bell's Poultry Seasoning (optional)

Mix well and rub on Oil or Butter coated Chicken.

Reduce Cayenne to 1teaspoon if less heat is desired.

diggingdogfarm · Sep 6, 2012

Spatchcocking and halves both work well because the bird cooks rapidly and more evenly without drying out, especially when in direct contact with the grate and with the stubborn joints exposed.....halves have a bit of an advantage when the goal is crispy skin because the excess fat is easily removed and spatchcocked birds have a tendency to have folds in the skin which can cause problems.

I don't do whole birds anymore unless they're on a rotisserie.

~Martin

jarjarchef · Sep 7, 2012

I split mine.
Season with either a comercial blend someone buys me to try or just a simple mix of sea salt, pepper, garlic, onion, celery salt and oregano.
Cook at 250-275. Gets a crispier skin. Just tried some at a lower temp and got that rubbery skin, did not like that texture.

Chef jimmy has a great tip with the bunt pan. You can put a bit of liquid in it to steep the bird, but you really want the liquid to get to the inside. But even if you don't put a liquid in the pan you can save the natural juices that will collect in tha pan for a nice addition/base for a sauce.

I agree with DiggingDog. Don't really cook whole birds anymore for the same reasons.

Jeramy

ptcruiserguy · Sep 7, 2012

I have done whole chicks just laying them on the rack with breast up, breast down.

Standing on a beer can, on a poultry stand, and spatchcocked.

All of them have turned out great smokes..... never a problem.

But I have "Always" brined them.

@ JJ,

Stole those recipes from ya.

Always looking for more. Thanx.

Mike

smallbuck · Sep 7, 2012

Thanks for the link. I had no idea what that was.

mdboatbum · Sep 7, 2012

Since just about everything from a cooking standpoint seems to have been covered, I'll only add one thing. When I have the time to really go all out and plan in advance, I'll brine for 4-6 hours. Then I'll thoroughly dry the bird, salt the skin and leave it uncovered in the refrigerator overnight. Salting the skin draws proteins out to the surface, which will dry in a uniform coating during the 12-16 hour period in the refrigerator. When it's time to cook, a little butter or olive oil, some rub (easy on the salt, as it's already been brined and the skin salted) and smoke at 300˚ to 325˚. You'll have a light, crispy almost papery skin which is beautifully browned.

smallbuck · Sep 7, 2012

Oh I like the idea of that Mdboatbum . The temp seems really high. Do you smoke it at that temp the whole time?

mdboatbum · Sep 7, 2012

smallbuck said:
The temp seems really high. Do you smoke it at that temp the whole time?

I do. I don't like low and slow for poultry, as I feel it leads to a weird consistency. For me, the faster I can get it to 165˚ the better. I like chicken barely (but safely) done. I feel like the long ride at 225˚ to get to a safe IT leads to the juices sort of mixing with the meat fibers and creating a slightly pasty quality to the meat. (I think this is why deep fried chicken or turkey is so popular, it goes from raw to done in minutes as opposed to hours)

To make up for the shorter time in the smoke I use hickory or mesquite, as it imparts a lot more smoke flavor much more quickly. I also spatch chickens to facilitate faster and more even cooking.

**This all works for me, your mileage will vary. Try different methods and see which you like better.

jirodriguez · Sep 7, 2012

LOL... I'm just the opposit. I like to brine a bird, spatchcock it, dust it with rub, and let it go low and slow. Using low and slow makes for a super moist and tender chicken, then at the very end I toss it on a hot grill to crisp up the skin. I usually run my smoker at 225-250 for chicken.

smallbuck · Sep 7, 2012

Ok. This has all been great advice.

I have brinned the bird with ChefJimmyJ's brine. ( shocked I found it all in the Kitchen) Thanks

IMAG0347.jpg

smallbuck
Sep 7, 2012

Spatched it. Afterwords.

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smallbuck
Sep 7, 2012

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smallbuck
Sep 7, 2012

Nasty. Now I know what those Scissors are for. I have never had to use them for what they are intended for.

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smallbuck
Sep 7, 2012

It didn't lay as flat as I thought it would I tried to break the breast bone by hand. Still a little iffy on this step.

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smallbuck
Sep 7, 2012

Then I salted it. ( thanks Mdboatbum)

Pretty sure I over did it. I don't know if it can be over done. I started with Sea Salt. Wasn't covering so I went to Table Salt. I guess I'll find out tomorrow.

I found some random rub in the cabinet. I don't know where it came from it similar ingredients to ChefJimmyJ's rub so hopefully it will be fine.

IMAG0346.jpg

smallbuck
Sep 7, 2012

I picked up some Applewood and Hickory.

Any Ideas. Advice. Thanks again for all the help. I'll put some pics up tomorrow and let you know how it goes. I'm planning to go 275F if I can get it that high then flip the last 30 and crank it up with no water pan. What do think?

jarjarchef · Sep 8, 2012

Looks good.

As you said there may be a bit too much salt. Between the brine, sea salt, table salt and the seasoning. If you are serving with anything like a sauce keep that in mind. For sauce I would go a bit on the sweet side to help counter balance the salt. Any of your sides keep the salt to a minimum. But as you said you will not know till it is cooked. You have a great start.

Even though I cook almost everyday. I still don't like touching raw poultry bare handed. I keep boxes of latex gloves to wear while handling it. To be honest I use gloves whenever I can with meat prep. Quicker to clean up as I am changing tasks.

mdboatbum · Sep 8, 2012

Yeah, the salt on the skin just needs to be a sprinkling, not a complete covering. Also, iodized table salt can lead to a metallic twang in the finished product. It's all part of the learning process, so it's a positive no matter what!! I've had some pretty stellar disasters which, while disappointing in the short term, have taught me some pretty valuable lessons.

smallbuck · Sep 9, 2012

Ok So I'm a little late with the update. We ate the chicken Yesterday. The skin was a little to salty in some areas but over all the skin turned out great as far as taste and texture.Turning up the heat at the end got rid of the rubbery skin.

Two lessons learned. Dial the salt back and

One Chicken isn't enough. That thing didn't stand a chance.

Thanks for the all the advice, tips and recipes.

One thing I am still a bit confused about. If you have any tips. When I cut the breast open it was like it separated. There was a good bit close to the bone that was very tender. I would say mushy. It was done. Taste was good. Texture was a bit off.

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smallbuck
Sep 9, 2012

Whole VS Half Chicken little Qview

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