I need some quick help

[rhooster]

Hello,
My past smoking experience is thrown some chicken on a smoker and add some hickory chunks and wait 4 hours.
I have an important party to host and I need to do better.
I have some brine recipes and need to know if I need to wash the chicken real good or just rinse. I see conflicting statements.
Also, I see different salts to use-kosher, canning and pickling. Is there a difference?
Does rubbing with olive oil help crisp up the skin?
Lastly, can I use apple wood and hickory or should I stick with one?
Any input would be greatly appreciated!


Anyone got a great kinda spicy brine recipe?

 

[joed617]

Maybe I can help some ... for one .. Olive oil browns the skin but doesn't make it crispy unless your frying in it, salt will make the skin crispy. If you do brine you can put in some hot sauce to make it spicey. As far as woods go.. you can mix and match .. it's all about the flavor YOU like. Now .. I hope someone else replies to this post.. I like to have more input myself .. just incase I am missing something .. Oh .. what temp are you cooking at? what type of smoker ..

Joe

 

[monty]

Hiya, Rhooster!

Perhaps the best advice I can lay on ya is to get over the the various threads in the poultry section. One of my most favorite things to do is beer can chicken. And not necessarily with beer! Try ginger ale for a change. It adds a great deal of flavor to your chicken. I use Canada Dry exclusively!

As for crisping skin bring up the temp during the last thirty minutes or so of your smoke. Joe hit it right that salt will crisp skin, but hit your yard birds with a bit of extra temp toward the end and you will see crispy skin.

Wood selection is also whatever you prefer. I generally use cherry andmaple either alone or in combination because they are right in my back yard. But a touch of mesquite adds a bit of zing, too!

Hope this helps!
Cheers!

 

[up in smoke]

Below shows equivalent amounts of table salt and the two most popular brands of kosher salt.

Table Salt1 cup
Morton Kosher Salt1-1/2 cups
Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt2 cups

Morton Kosher Salt weighs about 7.7 ounces per cup, making it three-fourths as strong as table salt. Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt weighs about 5 ounces per cup, making it half as strong as table salt.

What if you're using something other than Morton Kosher or Diamond Crystal Kosher salt? Regardless of the type of salt—sea salt, pickling salt, and any other brand of kosher salt—just measure 10 ounces of it on a kitchen scale, and you will have the equivalent of 1 cup of table salt.

Hope this will help!

 

[icemn62]

I agree, with the others. Increase the pit temp towards the end of the cook to crisp the skin. I also like the Beer Can Chicken, and actually take the skin off after the cook. I love the taste of the meat, and the skin just get in my way. And I don't know why I don't de-skin the bird before cooking either.

 

[denez]

as i understand it iodized salt should not be used for brining, but don't remember the reason behind it.
also the brine should be refrigerated first and the actual
brining done under refrigeration.
just a rinse after brining to rid of excess salt
i also toss the skin

 

[cajunsmoker]

The only reason I ever heard to not use iodized salt is that it can turn your brine cloudy. I don't see where that is a problem brining chickens. I think it mostly applies to brines for pickles and such that will be canned. You want clear brine in your canned pickles so they look appealing. :D

 

[smokyokie]

:oops: Why brine chickens?

 

[bob-bqn]

Brining transfers moisture into the meat. During the osmosis process it transports whatever flavors you have added to the brine into the meat. So it adds flavor and makes the meat real juicy. This is a good way to keep the white meat moist. Another side effect from brining is the meat usually cooks a little quicker.

 

[q3131a]

Here is my how to:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=5&t=502629

 

[buzzard]

how in the world did you get that information is what i want to know!!!!!!! you are becoming mini Dutch!!!!!

 

[smokyokie]

W/ your apparent photographic skills, computer knowledge, culinary abilities, and ability to simplify things, you should start an on line cooking school.

Those look like gourmet birds. I like the fresh herbs. do you grow them, or buy them? Have you ever tried slipping the herbs between the skin and the breast meat?

I guess We're not as scientific as you. We usually do split fryers, or BCC using fryers While we have a digital thermo, we usually use the "leg wiggle" method to check for doneness. I'm sure your way is more accurate and leads to better consistancy from bird to bird.

Using fryers, cooking time is usually about 2-2.5 hrs, so we don't much worry about drying out.

We need to try it your way. I think roasters have a better flavor. It seems like the only flavor fryers have is that which you give them.

 

[q3131a]

Thank you my friend. :oops:

I grow a few of my favorite on my deck in pots. I have rosemary, thyme and basil. I am going to add sage and oregano.

Yes, but I am all thumbs and usually tear the skin of the bird. I like to keep the skin in tact as much as possible.

All of my smoking skills were learned over the net. Most of them (including the thermometer) were learned on this board.

I work from home full time, so it is easy for me to do a 6 hour smoke.

Go for it. It is really not that much work. I spent more time on the how to with pics than I did cooking the birds. Also, the amount of work is about the same whether you do one or 4 birds.

Good luck and have fun!

BTW: The digital thermo is the one that Jeff recommends on his main smoking-meat page.

 

[buzzard]

q

that was the most insane posting i have ever seen. how long did it take you to do that? days? weeks? how drunk were you? 6 pack? 12 pack? no wait there is no way you could of done that drunk.

 

[q3131a]

Nah, wasn't too hard. I did it almost real time. I work from home full time, so it was just a couple minutes every hour.

Thanks for the feedback. I'll have to do another one soon.

Did you check out the Ribs link at the top? That was the previous week.

 

[smokyokie]

Mine is just like yours, but it doesn't bend in the middle. Mine's probably the older version. The remote is the best thing about it. You don't have to stay in the same place and constantly moniter.