Smoked Chicken concern

[Dale Perry]

I got a thermapen mainly because of chicken and the speed it has for competition. My chicken gets us calls often and none of my bbq is sweet. Kevin, lets be fair not all of us cook sweet bbq.

 

[K Kruger]

Certainly, not all of you do. But let's look at reality: sweet consistently wins. 'Sweet beats heat', as they say...

 

[Shawn W]

Originally posted by K Kruger:
And why would you test the juices for palatability? The presence of pink juices, e.g., does not denote unsafe chicken, nor does the lack necessarily mean the chicken is safe. So it doesn't work for safety. Once the chicken is (properly) determined to be safe then palatibility is in the mouth of the beholder. Using a napkin to test palatability is illogical.

this isn't really hard ... because pink or red juice is not palatable where poultry is concerned, to most people .. irrespective of safety (yes, I've red the bloody chicken article and I understand it can be safe)

also I said 'IF' .. I realize they are using it for a quick safety check (which is useless) but they are doing what they can with what they have ... mostly average joes trying to have a good time, not professional food critics, no need to be so critical

you're venomous about comp ... did you enter one and come in last or something??

 

[K Kruger]

this isn't really hard ... because pink or red juice is not palatable where poultry is concerned,

Yes, gotcha. Av semantic difference. In my view a visual cue has nothing to do with palatability. It may lead you to taste the food in question --which would then let you know its palatability-- but were you do choose, based on this cue, not to taste the item, then palatability would be left undetermined. In other words, it's a tactile thing, not a mental thing. Regardless, I do take issue with KCBS teaching this sort of thing --if in fact it is standard-- as meaningful, unless it is being taught as merely a visual requirement with nothing to do with safety. But (as I have written numerous times elsewhere) I take issue with much of what KCBS does and doesn't do. Developing and teaching relevent judging criteria has never been their strong suit.

'Venomous'? Hmm. Seems a wee bit strong.

 

[Dale Perry]

Kevin, it is obvious that you think that KCBS comps are silly but to me it is a great and fun hobby. Expensive but really fun.

I have read where folks like to use the poke test. I think that is great but to me the napkin test is about as good as you can get without a thermo. Juices clear = done.
Not clear = yuck. All the pokeing in the world wont tell you if a thigh is done by the bone after sitting in the box for 20 minutes.

 

[K Kruger]

it is obvious that you think that KCBS comps are silly but to me it is a great and fun hobby.

No, no, no. If I thought the comps were silly I would never have taken the time to help those I have helped work on their comp skills and techniques. Though I think KCBS is pretty clueless when it comes to rules and, especially, judging criteria, and though I think it would benefit them (and the competitors) immensely were the focus on meaningful results (a pink napkin might = yuck but a white one ? 'done' necessarily), I do not think comps are silly at all. Quite the opposite. Were KCBS to adopt meaningful safety criteria and, especially, meaningful judging criteria they could in fact elevate their comps to the level of seriousness most competitors already view them. The time, effort and money that competitors put into comps absolutely screams seriousness. KCBS does their competitors a disservice, imo, by sticking with their laissez-faire approach and, in the world of food and cooking comps, relegates their comps to a much lower status than they should be.

 

[r benash]

To the chase. Since I've started pulling chicken and turkey at 160 to 165 deg in the breast it's never been better. This goes for Q, smoking, and in the oven (in a DO or just sitting on a rack to roast). Yes, even cooks on the rotisserie.

Never going back. Redness near the bone does not necessarily mean a thing and in all cases (pulling at above temps) hasn't had any reliability whatsover as an indication of done-ness.

What I have done is learned to communicate to folks eating it, saying it tastes great, but then looking at the redness near the bone when that happens and asking questions. Look at the flesh that will tell you if it's cooked.

I also am committed to pulling pork at 140-145 for the same reasons. I.E. - cooking past that point means it's destroyed. At least in my view.

Interestingly enough in both cases (chicken/pork) when pulling at those temps for the last 2 years, the juices also ran clear.