Perfect chicken skin

[Peter Szuhai]

Hi Everyone, I just found this on youtube and immediately thought this method can solve the problem of leather skin when cooking chicken low and slow:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...ture=player_embedded

The guy cooks it in an oven for 5 hours at 140F and claims that the chicken skin comes out as crispy as it gets... He is using a special chicken but I don't see why it could not work with a regular bird we have access to...

If anybody cared to try this let us know how it worked.

 

[j biesinger]

I could only see parts 1 and 2 so I only saw how he started the process.

I'm pretty sure he said he was roasting at 60*C (140*F), which explains the need for blanching.

I'm guessing from the intro to the show that the recipe concludes with some kind of flash fry.

 

[Paul K]

I can't see spending 5 hours on chicken. High heat does a pretty good job on the skin and my chicken can be done in 1 hour or less.

I caught the episode on TV where Blumenthal cooked the Bresse chicken and it looked quite good. I'm not sure you can get that particular chicken here in the US. He brines his bird and then blanches it twice for a very short period of time alternating between boiling water and an ice bath. What he states this process is for, is to kill the bacteria on the exterior of the bird. If handled properly, I'm not sure there is really a concern for bacteria at this point, but I do believe he's par cooking the skin (which he doesn't talk about)which will help crisp it up later on. He then air dries the chicken in the fridge overnight. So, brined, air dried chicken makes for a very good bird. Not so different from what many of us do now.

Paul

 

[K Kruger]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">but I do believe he's par cooking the skin (which he doesn't talk about) </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Precisely. Same as cooking it in the oven for 5 hours at 140. Par-cooking will prep it for crispness later. Not really necessary to spend all that time though.

 

[Jamie Berry]

I'll try it and report back next week. I have a couple days next week that i plan on doing a lot of culinary experimenting.

Paul K, Do you remember any add'l steps after the bird comes out of the oven? Thx.

 

[Paul K]

Jamie,

No, once out of the oven, the bird is ready to eat. You might let it rest for about 5 mins, as cooking at the lower temp probably doesn't require a longer rest period. I look forward to your post.

Paul