Poultry Smoke Time

[smokefrog]

Just wanted to know how you guys do it.

I've been smoking a whole chicken (Ave 4-5 lbs) for about 3 hours at 240F on my Masterbuilt Electric Smoker. Seems like it always needs more time as the bones are still a bit red.

Should I extend the time another, say, 2 hours making it a total of 5 hours?

 

[tropics]

No get a good probe and check the CC with it.

 

[hardcookin]

What Richie said...Chicken gets cook by Temp not time.

 

[disco]

Also, do you spatchcock the chicken? It cooks more quickly and evenly if you do.

 

[mng024]

Just wanted to know how you guys do it.

I've been smoking a whole chicken (Ave 4-5 lbs) for about 3 hours at 240F on my Masterbuilt Electric Smoker. Seems like it always needs more time as the bones are still a bit red.

Should I extend the time another, say, 2 hours making it a total of 5 hours?

How are you determining when it's finished?

Like the guys above said, go by the internal temp with a nice instant-read thermometer. If you are even halfway serious about cooking, invest in a nice Thermoworks. They run sales quite a bit or open-box on the Super-Fast and MK4. I would highly recommend it.

 

[smokefrog]

Yes, I butterfly or spatchcock the chicken. And Yes, I just use an instant read thermometer.

 

[djsmokesupreme]

I do spatchcocked chickens in about 1 1/2 hours at 250. People do it differently, but I cut out the backbone, then score the breastbone from inside and bend the bird flat. You want the meatiest part of the thigh to reach 150, then rest the bird in a cooler in a foil pan covered in foil for 30 minutes. There is a method for my madness.

Safe IT for whole birds is 165. But if you cook the chicken until the thigh reaches 165, the breast will likely be over 180 and dried out. If you take it off the heat and rest it in a cooler, the thigh temp will come up to 165 without drying out the white meat.

You can also do a whole 5-6 pound roasting chicken or turkey breast the same way without spatchcocking in about 21/2 hours.

Good luck

 

[bregent]

And Yes, I just use an instant read thermometer.

If the thermometer says it's done, then it's done. Don't worry about the color of the bones, this is not an indication of whether the bird is cooked enough.

 

[banderson7474]

Just wanted to know how you guys do it.

I've been smoking a whole chicken (Ave 4-5 lbs) for about 3 hours at 240F on my Masterbuilt Electric Smoker. Seems like it always needs more time as the bones are still a bit red.

Should I extend the time another, say, 2 hours making it a total of 5 hours?

For poultry, I like to be at 270 range for smoking. I find that mine gets rubbery if I cook at a lower temp.

 

[browneyesvictim]

You are in good hands already with all recommendations above. One thing not already mentioned is verifying you built-in MES temperatures. They are notoriously off, and you may not be cooking at the temp you think you are. Get a good dual probe (minimum) thermometer- 1 clipped to the grate at meat level and the second in the thickest part. Don't have to keep opening the door that way. FORSAKE the MES reported temps!