Internal temps of chicken

[Rita Y]

I always brine my chicken.

You’d think that by now I’d have settled on the perfect internal temperature for chicken. Lately I’ve been finding that bone-in pieces (breast halves with wing attached and whole legs, joint snipped) or quarters are getting a little overcooked at 160°F (breasts) and 180°F (in the thigh) and don’t seem to reheat as well as I’d like. I’m thinking of taking them off at 155 and 175°F.

I’ve seen recommendations of anywhere from 150 to 185°F. Is anyone taking their chicken off the WSM at temperatures lower than 160 and 180°F? Any problems with redness?

Rita

 

[K Kruger]

I pull free-range chickens at 155/175 with no problem. They are leaner and less thick in the breast and thigh so I find that those temps work better. As long as I break the leg/thigh joint I've not had a problem with redness. With standard chickens, I have pulled a couple degrees higher with no problems. I have had some underdone issues at lower temps, especially if thick-thighed but this has not been the rule, just occasional (not quite sure why). However, if I'm planning on re-heating it's a non-issue as the meat will finish correctly during the re-heat.

Did you do your big chicken cook?

 

[Rita Y]

Thanks, Kevin. That's helpful information.

The Big Cook (for me) went well. I wound up cooking at 275*F to a hair under 160 and 180*F internal because of the reheating issue. Everyone thought the chicken was great, the skin was quite edible but of course not crisp, and there was none left, but being something of a perfectionist, I'd like to fine-tune it a bit, maybe take the chicken off 5 degrees lower and cook at 300*F - I'm creeping up on that cooking temperature. Gonna give it another try (just 2 chix) later this week.

Thanks to all who helped me sort out a few techniques where I couldn't make up my mind.

Sure wish I could fit in a second refrigerator! I'd have liked to dry off the chicken skin better.

Rita

 

[K Kruger]

Rita--

Definitely give it a try. An advantage to cooking at a higher temp is that you'll usually get a higher bump during the rest allowing you to pull them off a few degrees lower.