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First dissapointing cook

70chevelle
70chevelle Posts: 280
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Had an impromtu dinner last nite with my B-I-L & his family. I made beer can chicken, Katie Hoggs' baked beans? (excellent!), hot dogs and kielbasi, and some potato wedges with evoo, salt, pepper & rosemary. I don't believe it was the egg's fault :whistle: , I feel it was my Oregon Scientific wireless thermometer. I recognized all the signs of something going wrong, but didn't act on any of them. :blush: Anyway, I had the probe sitting on the table outside. I walked the bird out and looked at the monitor and it was reading over 100* in the sun. I put the probe in and lowered down to 92*, which I knew was wrong. The bird seemed to cook pretty quick to 170*. (a little over an hour @ 375*) Anyway, when the bird hit 170*, I opened the egg, and the skin on the breast & top was nicely browned. I noticed that the inside of the legs looked white. I asked my wife, and she thought it was done. I let it rest while I cooked the dogs & keilbasi which was about 20 minutes. When I started carving the bird, it was pink & bloody. I had to carve it up and put it in the oven to finish. How embarassing! Anyway, it was still very tasty & smokey. Everyone loved the beans, even though they came out a little spicey for the others. I will say that the hot dogs & keilbasi took a little longer to cook with the platesetter in place, but they were the best I've cooked. Very juicy, without the normal grill burns on the skin. Anyway, I think I'm going to check the wireless thermo in some boiling water to see if it lost it's calibration.

Comments

  • Weekend Warrior
    Weekend Warrior Posts: 1,702
    Should've seen my face the first time I had both my parents and my wife's parents over for huge ribeyes. I served them practically raw. The steaks covered the entire surface of the cooking grate and cut the airfflow off. Could'nt figure out why the temerature kept dropping! :blink: Spatchcocking will solve alot of your undercooked chicken problems. There are some videos floating around of how to do it if you don't already. Best, Mark ;)
  • Grandpas Grub
    Grandpas Grub Posts: 14,226
    The cooking on the bird sounds about right. 170° on the breast is a little over done and the rest time would probably go a bit higher.

    170° on the legs is a bit underdone should be 180°. Legs being pulled at 170° would probably get pretty close to 180° during the rest period.

    If the fluids by the legs were clear then it was done.

    There is some real discussion about bloody chicken in the food industry. Folks might be interested.

    http://www.hi-tm.com/Documents/Bloody-chik.html

    GG
  • Fidel
    Fidel Posts: 10,172
    Get yourself a thermapen or other brand high quality instant meat thermometer. Check your food in several locations before pulling it from the grid. If you salvage a couple of cooks the device pays for itself.

    I've been cooking for a long time and there are only a few things I know are done by sight. I almost always use my thermapen on every piece of meat.
  • Bobby-Q
    Bobby-Q Posts: 1,994
    I'd like to see the pathogen report on the blood itself. Without that their findings are invalid at best and dangerous at worst.
  • Rascal
    Rascal Posts: 3,923
    Thanks for the link! I myself would have a problem with eating bloody-red chicken, regardless of what the food people say (call it conditioning I guess). I've cooked many a chicken to the proper breast/thigh temp over the years and never cut into one and found it to be bloody. Are they all of a sudden growing them that much faster? And if so, is this the result of using higher amounts of growth stimulants & hormones? An interesting topic for discussion or research...
  • Grandpas Grub
    Grandpas Grub Posts: 14,226
    When I first began eggin, I thought all the recomendations of the thermopen were mostly hype for and expensive thermometer.

    After a long time I bought mine and I think it has imporved my cooking greatly and was a great investment.

    I agree, and use my thermapen on most every cook. It is just nice knowing things are at the right temp.

    GG
  • Grandpas Grub
    Grandpas Grub Posts: 14,226
    I also cook to temp, especially fowl.

    I would't eat bloody looking chicken. I have eaten a pinkish color which I would guess is the same thing possibly cooked more.

    With beef there is that great and treasured 'juice' which we all love. That most likely is the same thing, different animal.

    GG
  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    I've had 2 chickens that were quite bloody inside, when the thermometer said they should be done. I came across the same article Grandpas Grub linked to, and so am a little less worried when I see pink, as it seems to indicate the "blood" is marrow and fluids (?semi-blood?). Still, I much prefer getting chicken from a local farm. Always clean, fresh, and really tasty.
  • Grandpas Grub
    Grandpas Grub Posts: 14,226
    All I know is that I don't know.

    I thought the article was interesting. The 'bloody' chicken isn't something, mentally, I want to eat.

    Pinkish chicken at proper temp has been good and I have eaten that but I probably pick & sort at the meat more.

    The author, O. Peter Snyder, Jr., Ph.D. would seem to have some credibility. However, what type of doctor and in what field is an interesting question.

    Who knows the Ph. D. could also stand for 'post hole digger'. There is a lot of that in academia.

    GG
  • Rascal
    Rascal Posts: 3,923
    Funny, I had similar thoughts! When we were growing up, my Mom would always give us a bite of raw meat (with a dash of salt) while she prepared a meat loaf! Today, that would probably be considered child endangerment! And at other times, after the serving dish was empty, we'd fight over the remaining, bloody juices from steaks, hamburger, etc.! E-coli was unheard of and somehow we all managed to survive!~~ 8 - )
  • follow fidel and G.G.'s advice. i find the maverick/polder etc all give me different readings. fist thing i do after firing up the egg is put the thermopen in my pocket. i check everything with it even baked potatos.
    bill
  • 70chevelle
    70chevelle Posts: 280
    Thanks for all the feedback! I could have, should have and actually thought about getting my other probe thermometer out and checking the bird before I pulled it. As I said, I had all the warnings, but the egg has been spot on, along with my thermometers, I was trusting in the egg! :unsure: (I'm a bird hunter, with an awesome german shorthair. I learned a long time ago that I need to trust my dog regardless of what I thought. I guess that doesn't apply here?) I may get a thermapen, but I'll definitely be checking the accuracy of my Oregon Scientific.
  • Soonerfan
    Soonerfan Posts: 71
    make the thermopen your next investment. You will wonder what took you so long! And join the club on disappointing cooks :blush: Hang in there! :woohoo:
  • Essex County
    Essex County Posts: 991
    Here's the guy's resume:

    O. Peter Snyder's resume

    He has a PhD from UMass in Food Science and Technology.

    The picture of chicken at 155 does look unappetizing. Don't know about the pathogens in the blood that Bobby-Q mentions but how different would they be than those found in a rare steak? The main reason chicken gets cooked to at least 165 is to kill salmonella(at least this is what I thought before our buddy Dr Snyder says the 155 bird is tasty). I've had chicken thighs that were cooked to a safe temp but still bloody. My problem is that they are usually tough if they don't make it to 185.
    Paul
  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    what kills food pathogens and what has good mouth feel is two different things. over the years, though, it all gets conflated. people assume the recommendation for 180 in the thigh is for food safety. nuh uh.

    the recommendations for higher temps in the thighs have nothing to do with food safety (i.e., the thigh meat does not have pathogens which die only at higher temps), but rather most folks find it unpalatable at lower, though safe, temps. our own fishless i think takes thighs to 200. firms them up.

    as you said, the picture is unappetizing, but if the pathogens are killed, it is safe to eat, even at 155.

    much of the reason for "solution added" brining of commercial poultry is to enable the public to way overcook it (i mean, folks who cook turkeys and chicken without thermometers and take it to 170+) while still preserving as much moisture as possible.

    same reason they brine pork. so little fat in commercial pork (relative to what it used to be) that they literally need to engineer a method for ensuting as much moisture in the meat after the typical american demands low fat, high-moisture, 180 degree pork.
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • amini1
    amini1 Posts: 105
    You need to take chicken, whether thighs or breasts to 165 degrees as per the USDA. Here a link to the latest recommendations. It used to be 170 and 180, breasts and thighs, but that has changed.

    http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Is_It_Done_Yet/Thermometer_Placement_and_Temps/index.asp

    Just the title "Bloody Chicken" makes me never want to eat chicken again. I always brine mine which helps with the blood problem. You can also buy kosher chicken which is brined to draw out the blood and impurities which is against kosher law to consume.
  • TXTriker
    TXTriker Posts: 1,177
    70 chevelle, use your remotes to get you in the ball park and then your instant read (thermapen) for the final test.

    Good luck with the next cook. It just gets better.
  • Nature Boy
    Nature Boy Posts: 8,687
    Dude. That was a good post. Interesting, too, that many folks pull the meat off the grill at the recommended internal temp, but they don't factor in the rise in temp you get while the meat rests.

    Always enjoy your posts. You're on fire, mang.
    Chris
    DizzyPigBBQ.com
    Twitter: @dizzypigbbq
    Facebook: Dizzy Pig Seasonings
    Instagram: @DizzyPigBBQ
  • Big'un
    Big'un Posts: 5,909
    I,personally, have never had any good experiences with oregon scientifics. It may have been bad batteries. But,I have returned every component I've ever received. I hate to say it, but it might behoove you to invest in another temp gauge, different brand. One bad meal can cost more than 1 replacement. I'm glad to hear you pulled it out in the end, despite the troubles that occurred. B)
  • 70chevelle
    70chevelle Posts: 280
    Big'un - I'm just glad I only have $20 wrapped up in it. The convenience is nice, but not necessary. I have another probe therm, that works better, but isn't wireless. I'll be using it for time being.