Chicken ?

robnybbq · July 2013

Got a chicken question.

Last night we made a spatchcock chicken (made many before) and meat always comes out very juicy. - Especially the breasts.

Now is there a way to cook just skinless breasts to get that same texture/moistness? Or is it impossible?

I made some grilled chicken breasts last week and they came out OK but nothing like when cooked with the whole bird.

TexanOfTheNorth · July 2013

Try brining or injecting.

dlk7 · July 2013

Sous Vide and sear on the egg.

The Cen-Tex Smoker · July 2013

brine makes a huge difference. Juice will be running out on the plate.

1 gallon water, 1 cup kosher salt, 1/2 cup of sugar (I know you are low carb, this will only add trace sugar to the chicken. It's more about the chemical process. You can skip the sugar if you want but it won't hurt you in this instance). bring to a quick boil to dissolve all the solids, cool and add the chicken breasts for 2-4 hours.

Rinse well before grilling or they can be salty on the outside.

After that, you can do one of several things:

1-grill them up

2- allow them to air dry in the fridge for 2-4 hours then grill (this is great if you are smoking, takes on more smoke flavor)

3- freeze them to use later

You can do 8-10 breasts in that one gallon so grill some and freeze the rest. You can season them however you want when you are ready to grill them.

fishlessman · July 2013

find a butcher that doesnt cut the breast in half like the supermarket does, makes a huge difference, cooks exactly like the breasts on a spatchcocked bird. theres no carbs in chicken skin

fishlessman · July 2013

the whole breast looks like this, see some of the juice running on the plate, juicy just like spathcock chicken. cut it up after cooking at the table

robnybbq · July 2013

So cook full breasts not skinless breasts?

Thanks

fishlessman · July 2013

i dont know what happens when they cut the breasts in half, they never cook right for me, i only cook them whole now. i mostly cook chicken skin on. as for cooking it people say to start skin up and crisp it last but that tends to overcook it as you chase the crispy skin. instead cook skin down til crispy brown, then flip it and cook to temp. what happens is that skin down first causes the juices and fat to build up between the chicken and meat, once it crisps while cooking in its own fat you flip it and the crispy skin lays above the meat and is not stuck to the wet chicken meat that will soften it back down to rubber, it sits higher and stays crispy which alot of egg owners say cant happen in an egg with out all the weird drying overnight in the fridge, corn starch dusting, etc.

The Cen-Tex Smoker · July 2013

robnybbq said:

So cook full breasts not skinless breasts?

Thanks

If you can- that is best. If you want boneless skinless, you have to play with them a little to get them to behave (but they will).

shtgunal3 · July 2013

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

brine makes a huge difference. Juice will be running out on the plate.

1 gallon water, 1 cup kosher salt, 1/2 cup of sugar (I know you are low carb, this will only add trace sugar to the chicken. It's more about the chemical process. You can skip the sugar if you want but it won't hurt you in this instance). bring to a quick boil to dissolve all the solids, cool and add the chicken breasts for 2-4 hours.

Rinse well before grilling or they can be salty on the outside.

After that, you can do one of several things:

1-grill them up
2- allow them to air dry in the fridge for 2-4 hours then grill (this is great if you are smoking, takes on more smoke flavor)
3- freeze them to use later

You can do 8-10 breasts in that one gallon so grill some and freeze the rest. You can season them however you want when you are ready to grill them.

I bought three family packs of boneless skinless breast on a manager special sale. I was thinking about smoking one pack of them and then shredding and making quesadilla's and/or tacos. Would you still brine? Also, what internal temp should I go to for shredded or pulled chicken? 275 or so indirect?

henapple · July 2013

you have to play with them a little to get them to behave

I agree with Centex.. Playing with the breast is better. Look for firm ones. Bigger is not always better but don't shy away from those monsters.

The Cen-Tex Smoker · July 2013

shtgunal3 said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

brine makes a huge difference. Juice will be running out on the plate.

1 gallon water, 1 cup kosher salt, 1/2 cup of sugar (I know you are low carb, this will only add trace sugar to the chicken. It's more about the chemical process. You can skip the sugar if you want but it won't hurt you in this instance). bring to a quick boil to dissolve all the solids, cool and add the chicken breasts for 2-4 hours.

Rinse well before grilling or they can be salty on the outside.

After that, you can do one of several things:

1-grill them up
2- allow them to air dry in the fridge for 2-4 hours then grill (this is great if you are smoking, takes on more smoke flavor)
3- freeze them to use later

You can do 8-10 breasts in that one gallon so grill some and freeze the rest. You can season them however you want when you are ready to grill them.

I bought three family packs of boneless skinless breast on a manager special sale. I was thinking about smoking one pack of them and then shredding and making quesadilla's and/or tacos. Would you still brine? Also, what internal temp should I go to for shredded or pulled chicken? 275 or so indirect?

breast meat is not good for shredding. It has virtually no connective tissue- just solid muscle. I use it for tacos and quesadillas all the time but I cube it up either after the smoke/grill. I actually do them inside quite a bit but if you want to egg them- I say grill them whole and slice or cube them when they are done. You are going to have some dry stringy meat if you try to pull chicken breast.

I would still brine or at least marinate them. I love brined chicken so I do it almost all the time.

KennyLee · July 2013

I would have to disagree with the above.....we do boneless/skinless all the time (in fact took about 8 breasts off a few minutes ago) and it shreds with a fork when you take it off and turns out great when properly marinated. Great for fajitas or salads. We usually do a batch once a week to eat on throughout the week.

Don't have pics of tonight's cook, but here is a thread I posted a few weeks ago of a boneless/skinless cook.

http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1153014/boneless-skinless-chicken-breasts-pics#latest

KennyLee · July 2013

Here is one of the breasts getting ready for a fajita. These were seasoned with shallot pepper, Italian dressing and a little evoo for about 3 hours.

Mattman3969 · July 2013

I agree with @KennyLee about chicken breast shredding. I do it all the time for tacos. I just doesn't shred quite like pork or beef

shtgunal3 · July 2013

At what internal temp are you folks cooking the breasts to.

robnybbq · July 2013

Yesterday we brined 3 thicker chicken breasts (skinless) for 4 hours. Rinsed them adn left in the fridge for an hour. Cooked them raised direct at 400 to 155-160 internal temp.

They came out OK. Not juicy like the breasts on a spatchcock chicken. Only could detect a salt flavor but nothing really else. No real chicken flavor. I did not use anything on them so I can see how they came out. Pretty bland though.

I am still missing something when cooking just the breasts.

fishlessman · July 2013

this was turkey but im pretty sure you can get chicken to shred

theres actually a few places here that sell it, its called chicken barbs and its shredded, dipped in broth, and severed with mayo on a cheap roll. heres shredded turkey breast

gdenby · July 2013

Look up something called FAB C. I've read the FAB line of enhancers is often used by competition cooks. The "C" variety is for chicken breasts. It is used as an injection solution to increase "meat" flavor and water retention.

Also consider finding "boutique" chicken. Old fashioned peck and scratch chickens that are fresh when you get then. Probably be really expensive. Or at least some no hormone, no antibiotic chicken that is fresh. I find those at a farmer's market. Not quite 2 times more expensive than mass produced, but easily twice as good.

Chicken ?

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