1st Chicken Cook


 
C

Chad Dickinson

TVWBB Member
Did my first chicken tonight....

Brined 4.5 hours in 1c salt 1/2c sugar 1G water brine.

Only had time to let it air dry in the fridge for an hour before rubbing and letting sit at room temp for 1.5 hours.

This was the JUICIEST chicken I have ever had. Hands down.

I only have one question...

I cooked until I got a 161 reading from one of the breasts. I know my therm is about 4 deg low, so I assumed 165.

I had butterflied the bird, and split it into 2 pieces. I followed the chicken skin recipe from the cooking section. So, I smoked at 310 lid temp for 45 mins, applied a tomato based BBQ sauce, and assumed I'd need to smoke 15 more mins finish the cook. Well, 15 mins turned into 35 mins, and I ended up with the temps listed above.

I think it was done, there was just a tiny bit of blood colored juice near the inner part of the breast, near the ribs. The flesh was white, and tasted cooked. Hope we don't get salmonella!

What part of the chicken do most of you take temps from? And to what temp?

Thanks!
Chad
 
Chad--

Congrats on your first chicken cook.

Usually I check the thickest part of the thigh. I look for 165-170 (lower temp for higher heat (400+) cooks, higher temp for lower heat (300+) cooks). For breast-only cooks I look for 160.
 
Chad,

You had your chicks out at room temp for 1.5 hours? Doesn't that seem a bit risky with non-water fowl?

Unfortunately, my wife can see specs of blood that a shark would miss, so my poultry must go to the *absolutely* clear juices state. For the breasts, I actually measure them from the bottom (bone-side) because I've found that the bone doesn't conduct heat (as some have stated) but absorbs heat; my least cooked meat is next to the bone.

Anyone else seen this?
 
Chad, most of the time you see pink or a reddish hue on the flesh near the bones of chicken, it's the marrow leaching through the bone (particularly if your trying to keep the chicken as moist as possible at 165 degrees). Most chickens are processed at such a young age, their bones don't harden enough to prevent the marrow from leaching. There is no health issue with this. Even though the juice looked pink or red, dab it with a white napkin or paper towel. If the towel doesn't turn pink, it's fine. If it's pink, it's still a little undercooked.
 
Chad--

I don't wrap chicken in foil, I just tent foil over it. I look to maintain the skin texture so I only rest 5-10 min for chicken pieces, longer for whole, large chickens.
 
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