Beer butt chicken and rack of lamb w/ Qview

[mole177]

Alright. First time smoking a whole chicken with a beer butt and rack of lamb in the ECB. approx time 4 hrs 22 mins. 

notes, if you get this far... chicken was moist, except the drumstick was slightly dry. maybe next time foil it? Took it out at 167f, rested, but did not rise any higher than 167f.

Lamb cooked to how my grandma prefers, a pinch right after medium/med well. Very tender. However I do not have a tongue for lamb. Still did a test taste and ate 1 rib. I might want to use lemon juice. Would that take too much of the lamb away? It was sitting on foil the whole time as I did not want to get any dripping into the pan. Should I have foiled and done a 2-2-1 ? I took it out at 4hrs unfoiled.  

Smoked using grape wood and kingsford brisquettes. 

At one point, the temp rose to 280f. Odd, but I immediatley opened the door and added more water, the pan was not dried out or anything. Weird temp spike. Otherwise it ranged from 220-245f the whole time.

critiques? Thanks for looking!

 

[scarbelly]

Both of them look good. One suggestion I have is to take the chicken off around 160 and throw it on the grill for a few minutes to crisp up the skin. No help on the lamb - I don't care for it either. I keep trying it every year but it aint happening for me 

 

[rbranstner]

Looks like a wonderful meal.

 

[realtorterry]

Looks good from here

 

[mole177]

I have a propane grill. If i were to finish it off there, do i let it "rest" a little or just pull off the chicken from the holder and plop it on the propane grill ?

How hot do i get the propane grill up to ?

 

[raptor700]

I have a propane grill. If i were to finish it off there, do i let it "rest" a little or just pull off the chicken from the holder and plop it on the propane grill ?

How hot do i get the propane grill up to ?

I usually don't let it rest, I get my grill temp up around 325º and when the bird hits160º-165º toss it on the grill 15-20 mns. or until the skin crisps up. after a few times you'll find what works best for you. As for the Lamb, I found that the more fat you trim the less gamie the taste. But they both look EXCELLENT! 

 

 

[smokermark]

Looking good to me that looks tasty! I want to reach out there snatch that leg quarter. The chicken has a nice color to it. And the lamb to for that matter.

I'm not an expert smoking lamb from what I understand the younger the lamb and the whiter the skin will usually have a more mellow flavor. You could add a bit of fresh rosemary perhaps a touch of juniper. As for the lemon I just don't know. A couple of weeks ago I used a Greek seasoning with some olive oil and a little rice vinegar.

If you haven't tried olive wood with chicken or lamb I highly recommend it. The first time I used olive & grapefruit for lamb that I had chicken going with it and it all tasted very good. The second go I used guava for the lamb alone I liked the olive flavor much better for it.   

One way to rest chicken that way is to foil it and/or slip it in a fresh paper bag sealed. You can also set it off to the side indirect heat finishing it off too this way. From here the chicken skin looks fairly crispy. If that's at all an issue my experience is that the temp. has to get up to at least 325 deg. for a period of time sometime during your cook for awhile or grill/sear it. Every cooker and method as well as the particular cook is a little bit different of coarse.

I'm sure that your Grandmother enjoyed your doing this a lot. Cheers! 

 

[rdknb]

That all looks good to me from here.  

 

[mole177]

Thanks folks!

I'll take a note of trimming the fat off the lamb before it goes in the ECB.

olive oil/rosemary. sounds good. Garlic? what about garlic?