FIRST RUN WITH THE LANG, SPATCHCOCKED CHICKENS

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SmokinAl

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Jun 22, 2009
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Central Florida (Sebring)
Well after seasoning the Lang, now it's time top actually cook something. I always tell people for a first time smoke do something easy & cheap.

So taking my own advise I picked up a couple of 6# chickens.

I spatchcocked them, put butter, garlic & lemon juice under the skin & dusted the outside with Montreal chicken seasoning.

Here's what I started with.


Stuffing them with butter, garlic, & lemon juice. I almost always brine poultry, but since this was a spur of the moment thing, I just went with what I had.



We are going to make chicken, bacon & tomato sammies. So Judy is making some Amish white bread.


Took out a 1/2 lb of bacon I just made a couple of weeks ago.


Dusted the birds with MCS.


Throw some oak & hickory in the Lang. I made a huge fire in it yesterday to season it. The temp got up to 450.

So today I'm just starting out with 3 splits.


These weed burners are a trip. Never used one before. Man they get a fire going quick.


Put one more split in and the temp is starting to come up.


Only took about 20 minutes & it's above 300. 


Time to put the birds in.


The factory gauge is very accurate. I have a Mav probe at grate level & it's reading very close to the factory gauge.

But it is a tel-tru and I have them on my other smokers & they are very accurate.


The Mav says 288.


Nice TBS.


The temp is starting to come down. I was shooting for 275-300.


Been on a while & stabilizing around 280.


Temp is dropping a little so I put another split on. Dampers are still open all the way.


It only took a couple of hours & the first chicken is done. The other one is about 10 degrees behind.


And of course it starts to rain. I let it sit in the rain for 10 minutes or so & the temp started to drop.


So I rolled it in under the canopy. The temp came right back up.


The second bird is done now.


Judy's bread just came out of the oven.


We pulled both chickens & it's time to make a sammie.


Gotta be nice & thick.


Served with a few homemade dills.


Took the carcasses & boiled them down with some veggies for smoked chicken broth.


My first run with the Lang went pretty good. I think next time I do chicken I will keep the pit temp higher, possibly 350.

So far it has been pretty easy to control the temps, & it uses very little wood. I only added 2 splits after the initial fire was started.

I have to say that I now know why the stickburners say that a wood fire gives the best flavor.

I could definitely taste the difference & probably will do most, if not all of my future smokes on the Lang.

Thanks for looking, Guys!

Al
 
That sammie looks great! But the smoker is ruined after the rain I'll stop by and take it off your hands.:biggrin:
 
OMG What a Break-in Smoke!!
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Nothing like a Stick Burner Wood Smoke!!
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And You can make my Sammy Any Time!!!!
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Nice Job Al !!
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Bear
 
Dang you know how to live it up huh! Tell her the bread looks fantastic. The stick burners defitently give the best flavor. And they are really versatile too. If used correctly. Looks like you are extremely happy with your purchase!
 
Al
I think you can be happy with that first smoke on your Lang. Fire management is pretty easy on them. In a few weeks you will know exactly what size split to add to maintain your temp and coal bed...It will just become second nature.
I agree with you that offsets have excellent flavor. Did your chicken come out pretty moist and juicy?
Points your way for an awesome cook and a very nice writeup on your first experience.

Also forgot to mention on my offset depending on the time of the year..wet rain or snow I can loose 20-30 degrees in a heavy downpour.

Nice smoke Thumbs Up
 
Good looking birds!

Points!

Happy Smoking,
phatbac (Aaron)
Thanks Aaron!

Appreciate the point too!

Al
That sammie looks great! But the smoker is ruined after the rain I'll stop by and take it off your hands.
biggrin.gif
Thanks for the compliment!

The Lang just got a Florida car wash!

Al
 
OMG What a Break-in Smoke!!
icon14.gif
-----------
points.gif


Nothing like a Stick Burner Wood Smoke!!
drool.gif


And You can make my Sammy Any Time!!!!
drool.gif
drool.gif


Nice Job Al !!
icon14.gif


Bear
Thanks a lot Bear!

It seems like no matter what I smoke I find a way to make a sammie with it!

Thanks for the point too!

Al
Dang you know how to live it up huh! Tell her the bread looks fantastic. The stick burners defitently give the best flavor. And they are really versatile too. If used correctly. Looks like you are extremely happy with your purchase!
Thanks James!

I'll be sure to tell Judy you like her bread!

Al
Al
I think you can be happy with that first smoke on your Lang. Fire management is pretty easy on them. In a few weeks you will know exactly what size split to add to maintain your temp and coal bed...It will just become second nature.
I agree with you that offsets have excellent flavor. Did your chicken come out pretty moist and juicy?
Points your way for an awesome cook and a very nice writeup on your first experience.

Also forgot to mention on my offset depending on the time of the year..wet rain or snow I can loose 20-30 degrees in a heavy downpour.

Nice smoke
icon14.gif
Thank you so much!

Yes the chicken was moist & juicy.

It was a typical Florida downpour & your right, the temp dropped about 30 degrees, but only took a few minutes to come back up.

Thanks for the point too!

Al
 
Al that looks fantastic,how was the skin at that temp?Points 

Richie
Thanks Richie!

The skin was still a little tough, but generally we don't eat the skin anyway. 

I just keep it on to keep the meat moist.

However next time I'm going to try 350 & see if I can get crispy skin.

Thanks for the point too, my friend!

Al
 
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Well, I've been waiting for the first smoke on your new Lang--Don't see any possible reason for you to be anything but thrilled with the new smoker!!

Unfortunate about the rain, but with the set of wheels on that puppy, moving it around must be a piece of cake.

The birds look great--nice color.  And those sammies with Miss Judy's bread.......................
drool.gif
 

Congrats Al.

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Gary
 
Great cook with your new smoker.

The birds look fansastic.
 
Awesome looking birds on the new smoker Al!  I'm with you, stick burning does impart such a unique flavor that you can't get from any other fuel source.  Looking forward to your future cooks on the Lang!  Points!!!
 
AL,
This is also my first stick burner and wow what a difference in taste. Good Luck with it. Enjoy
 
 
Well, I've been waiting for the first smoke on your new Lang--Don't see any possible reason for you to be anything but thrilled with the new smoker!!

Unfortunate about the rain, but with the set of wheels on that puppy, moving it around must be a piece of cake.

The birds look great--nice color.  And those sammies with Miss Judy's bread.......................
drool.gif
 

Congrats Al.

points.gif


Gary
Thanks Gary!

I'll be sure to tell Judy you like her bread!

Yea the thing rolls around real easy, they even have grease fittings on the wheels.

Thank you for the point too!

Al
 
Great cook with your new smoker.

The birds look fansastic.
Thanks Adam!

And thank you for the point too!

Al
 
WOW! That really looks amazing I am salivating!
Thank you my friend!

Al
 
Awesome looking birds on the new smoker Al!  I'm with you, stick burning does impart such a unique flavor that you can't get from any other fuel source.  Looking forward to your future cooks on the Lang!  Points!!!
Thanks a lot Chris!

Appreciate the point too, Buddy!

Al
Looking good Al, can't wait to see your first butt and brisket that come off of it!

Chris
Thank you Chris!

I'm gonna do a butt for the 4th on it, so we will see how that goes.

Al
Hey al what size splits worked for you?
I used a couple of different sized ones.

The first one I added was real small & the one I put in after the rain was a little bigger.

I think it's going to take a few smokes to really figure out what size to use when needed.

Al
AL,
This is also my first stick burner and wow what a difference in taste. Good Luck with it. Enjoy
Thanks a lot Vinny!
 
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Great cook, Al. Those birds really are awesome. Love the color. I'm glad the stick burner worked for you. I don't think there's any better flavor. Thanks for all the great pics.

Joe. :points:
 
Al, congratulations on your new smoker!     Those chickens look delicious and topped with bacon just puts it way over the top.    Be sure to tell Judy that her bread looks wonderful and home made bread is the icing on the cake.
 
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