Day 2 Still Tough Chicken Skin!!


 
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Well i have had my WSM for 2 days now and i /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif cooked a whole chicken monday night and the skin was like leather. so i adjusted the amount of smoke i used on the bird i cooked last night and the skin was not as tough but still not so edible. i cooked it for 3.5 hours at around 195-275 degrees ( i am still getting used to controling the temp). i only added a hand full of woodchips in the begining so it was not over smoked like the first bird i cooked. after about 2 hours the skin looked so dry i mopped it with some apple & grape juice to moisten it (was that to little to late) do i need to cook the bird at a higher temp 350 to start (to sear the skin???) the meat was tender and great but i do like to eat the skin, and this skin was not edible.
thanks
brad
 
Brad,

I am still a beginner, but with chicken I have had success in crisping the skin of a butterflied chicken over medium coals (15-20 min) on my Weber kettle once I am finished cooking in the WSM. The temps in the WSM are not high enough to render the fat in the skin. I also love crispy skin. Give that a try - or maybe a more experienced member could help.
 
I'm with you on the skin -- like it, want it crispy and tasty. For that reason, I do chicken on the Weber kettle instead the WSM. I throw a handful of wood chips on the coals and great results.

Kelly
 
Temperature is the key. Chris shows how to use the WSM's charcoal bowl as a grill to crisp up the skin here. I have never achieved crisy skin at low and slow temps. Some say coating the skin with olive oil helps, but I have tried it and still ended up with rubbery, nearly inedible skin.

Steve
 
I am a beginner on my WSM and have not tried chicken on it (yet). But...I have had EXCELLENT results with whole chickens on my Weber kettle. I use the 'indirect' method and use 4 cups of hickory chips (soaked for 4 hours) and sprinkle them on the hot coals just before the chicken goes on. All vents are wide open - you should see the amount of smoke that chugs out of the top vent! The chicken comes out almost black, but it is not burned - it is wonderfully smoked. The skin is crispy and delicious. My friends are always pleading with me to make this.
 
BG What was the internal temp of the meat when you pulled it? If you don't have a digital meat Thermometer Dick's Restuarant Supply on 1st Ave. just down the road from Saefco Field has them for $20.

If you want crispy the Kettle or using the WSM as a grill is the way to go. There is another way to get passed the rubbery stage. That is cook long and low and cook the skin tender.

With whole chickens you have the challenge of the breats being cooked at 165 and the dark meat at 185. Solution include beer butt chicken, butterfly or Spatchock the chicken or cook chicken halves or even pieces adding the breasts latter. Personally I do not worry about the skin looking dry, the meat I worry about.

If you just want a good eating chicken I would butterfly the bird by cutting down both sides of the spine with Kitchen shears, this is the extend neck and not the breast that is left intact. Then cook with the WSM setup as a grill 30 minutes each side for a Costco sized bird. That is essentially what I do but on a Weber Kettle using side rails with a dome temp of 350 and I have great success doing it.

In fact I may do this for Diner and take some pics /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif
 
I have started doing like Konrad Chicken halves on the kettle cooked indirect. I cook mine for about 1 1/2 hrs after seasoning liberally with some rub. (I change fairly often) Smear some sauce on for the last 10-15 minutes. Today I used a little Kraft Honey Mustard.
The three of us made 2 chickens practically disappear this noon.
Oh yeah I also threw on a couple of small hickory chunks.
We much prefer kettle chiken over WSM chicken.

Billy Gardner
 
There a quite a few different ways to cook chicken on the WSM. If you like some what crispy chicken skin, and you want a bit of smoke flavor, run chicken halves on the top grate, and remove the water pan.
I brine my chicken halves, rinse after about 8 hours, apply my rub on top of the skin and underneath the skin. Let it sit uncovered in the refrigerator for about 2 hours or more, and then put it on the cooker.
Some people start it skin side down and then flip after 30 minutes.
Me, I keep it skin up the entire time, run the cooker at about 325?. Glaze or baste with your favorite concoction 15 minutes before removing.
The entire cook should be right around the one hour mark. The skin will not be as crispy as rotisserie chicken, but it's very tasty and edible.

Jim
 
bg
Chrisp poultry skin is a function of grilling, adding more smoke or running the pit temps to 350? on a smoker will not chrisp the skin with out drying out the meat.

Smoke the chicken to within 15 to 20? of what your finish internal temp and put a flame to skin.

A med to high hot grill is best because the skin will chrisp up quicker and the meat doesn't have to have the heat applied too long as to dry it out.

You can achieve tender skin on smoker cooking indirect, using pit temps in the 250's. Dark meat 4 hours aprox and white 3, will be very moist and the skin will be tender.
Jim
 
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