crispy skin

A bbq joint I used to frequent served poultry that was moist yet had skin that was fairly crispy and seemed "shrink-wrapped" to the flesh, as though the fat under the skin had rendered leaving only the outside layer. It was not anything close to rubbery and was a real taste treat. Any idea how to duplicate that using the WSM?

I have had my share of difficulty with poultry in the past. And I'm sure there are others here who could give you better advice than I. But, I did a whole chicken yesterday that turned out fabulous. I'll share the entire experience: First off, I dry brined this chicken with Kosher salt for about 20 hours wrapped in plastic wrap. Then I unwrapped it and let it sit in the fridge for about 5 hours to allow the surface to dry a bit. Then I let it sit on the counter for 45 minutes or so to come up in temp before going on the grill. I grilled it at 420 degrees. When I pulled it off, it was perfect. The meat was moist, tender, and flavorful. The skin was crispy, "shrink-wrapped" as you describe. I think the key things for the crispy skin were: surface drying in the fridge, coming up in temp before going on the grill, and probably most importantly, cooking at a high temp. Again, just my two cents from one cook that I was thrilled with after my previous struggles with poultry.

Dave,

I agree with what Steven writes. To that, you can also try separating the skin from the breast. Either gently using your fingers or sliding a spoon between skin and breast will work. Creating this air pocket helps crisp the skin. If you're going to try this, then I'd also recommend creating a compound butter (herbs mixed into butter) and rubbing it under the skin. The butter will help 'fry' the skin as it cooks.

Paul

Thanks. I'll try the recommendations. Wonder if the procedure -- including the 420-degree cooking temp -- would produce the desired result with turkey?

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Wonder if the procedure -- including the 420-degree cooking temp -- would produce the desired result with turkey? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I can't attest to the procedure that Steven describes. I normally wet brine my birds, rinse, then air dry in the fridge. I don't see a benefit to bringing them up to room temp; on the contrary; it may invite other hazards. The key to crisp skin is high heat and limited moisture in/on the skin. The high heat by itself usually does a fairly good job. Air drying, lifting the skin, adding butter or oil only assists in the effort.

Paul

Thanks, again. One more thing: at 425 degrees, how long will it take to cook, say, a 12-15 pound turkey.

I'm guessing around 2 to 2.5 hours. Use a themo though to make sure.

Paul

Dave, I based my chicken on this post, though somewhat loosely.