Not amgood night for cooking...

Eggvis · December 2004

So I spatch a chickie and stuff butter and tsunami under skin and chill over night. Yesterday, I come home and fire up egg..No wind, calm environment..57 degrees. I start out by elevating ABT's on raised grid as normal....let em cook for 10-15 mins...I then put the chickie under the grid as to start his tanning time....I have been battling the temp most of the entire session. The temp would go way up 375, then I make a small adjustment, then it would plummet to under 340....After another 10 minutes, I pull off abts and go full throttle on chickie. Have to keep adjusting the vents most of the whole cook time. The size of the lump might have contributed in some way...have to use med and small pieces since that is all I have left between three bags! The chickie has been on at just under an hour. I tried to use the probe, but need to practice setting it up....as soon as I put it in thigh (At beginning of cook) the temp started a steady, but fast climb...remember, the chicken was just under room temp (I took him out of fridge 1 hr before he was put on grill). After 5 mins, the temp read 125....I figured that I had poked it through or nearly through...wasn't touching a thigh bone.So I readjusted the probe and had the same problem, but the temp held around 125 or so, so I left it alone. Once the temp climbed over 145 (after approx 20 min cook time) I figured my first experiment with probe was a wash, so I pulled the probe out (so it wouldn't get burnt up needlessly) and watched a flood of juice flow out. That sucked to see. By now I was starting to be concerned about the whole cook....ugly temp control the whole night....probe wasn't working as
easy as I had hoped...had inlaws ovber for first egg meal....
After 55 mins, I took temp at thigh and it read 160-165, so I pulled it thinking it was close and would finish on counter. I noticed that the skin had shrunk up around breasts and booty, (maybe I cut too much off in prep) and that the color of breast skin was almost gray! It definitely didn't look as good as any other chickens I've cooked. Once I started to chop him up, I noticed that the skin was extremely rubbery (not good). It was difficult just trying to cut thighs and legs away from carcass. Breast meat was a touch rubbery as well...I knew at that moment that I had a crappy bird in my hands and that the eggsperience for the inlaws would be sub par. When I've cooked this dish before, there was nothing left after the meal, this time though 1/2 chicken was left...gonna bury him in back yard for proper burial.
Maybe you've had this happen? Let me know what, if anything, I couldv'e done better. It truly sucked. I ppreciate all comments and suggestions...[p]Paul

stike · December 2004

Eggvis,
what's your experience with temp control prior to this? have you always had a good ability and just lately it's getting more difficult?[p]only asking because the hardest thing for me to learn as a newbie was to leave things alone. not to try to jam the temp up or down quikly, but slowly.[p]if you have been egging for a while, and the temp issue is a new one, maybe it is the lump. is there enough? is it a new brand? my local source for royal oak switched to some lesser brand, and it was the first time ever i had an overnight plummet (almost out) and choke itself on ash.[p]the Naked whiz has a great comic (yet apt) piece on the Tao of charcoal (on his site). the most pertinent thing in it (I think) is that the easiest way to control temps is to not try to control temps.[p]light the fire, dial up yer temps, make sure it's stable, put on the food. there's often a dip in dome temp (from opening, and from the addition of relatively cold meat), but it'll swing right back to the set temp.[p]then, 5 degrees either way is fine.
if you want to go up or down 25-50 degrees or so, don't make big adjustements. if you do big adjustements, you'll see the temp quickly climb or drop (to the temp you want), but it will sail over that desired temp (or under). rather, try nudging the vents by maybe an 1/8th of an inch max. give the dome temp a few minutes to rise (or fall) as needed. [p]of course, this may be old news to you. sorry if i'm explaining basics to an old pro. if you ARE an old-timer with the egg, i'd suspect bad lump. or beer. maybe beer was involved? hahaha[p]and of course, now you know why yer sposeda leave the thermometer in the bird! a shame losing all that juice...[p]try again
anyway
bad chicken on the egg is better than good chicken from a microwave!

Eggvis · December 2004

stike,
I am not an old pro, nor claim to be. I've just stared cooking on the egg 2-3 mos ago. I do love it and can't imagine ever cooking without it again!
I've had the greatest success using the thermometer that comes with the egg. Last night was the first time I have ever tried a remote thermometer and found myself glued to it. The temp was so accurate that everytime it would increase 10 degrees or so, id freak out and make a miniscule adjustment. Then it would swing the other way and I'd adjust again. I never made adjustments like I did last night, when using the original therm the egg came with. Perhaps its easier because the temp takes longer to change on the egg therm vs. the digital temp gauge.
The gray skin really has me baffled though. I can understand if the meat was dry because of high heat it spiked to, as well as the shrunken skin for the same reason. What makes chicken turn into a rubbery tire and gray? Anyone, please don't let me do this again.
Also, if you or anyone else can give me pointers on using a redi-chek remote thermometer I can sure use it.[p]Thanks Again Brothers and Sisters![p]Paul

JSlot · December 2004

Not sure of your exact problem, but temp swings from 340° to 375°, while somewhat unusual, aren't anything to go making big adjustments over, IMHO. If it is rising steadily to 375° and looks like it will keep going, I'd just close the upper and lower vents slightly. On all of my large Eggs, a wide open bottom vent and wide open daisy wheel (the holes) will nail ~350° 95% of the time. If you tried to chase the temp up and down with major air adjustments instead of making small tweaks, that would explain your temp variance. Oh, and make sure your thermo is calibrated in the first place. Rubbery skin is usually the result of cooking at too low a temp.[p]Frosty Ones,
Jim

Sigmore · December 2004

Eggvis, It's eggers and egglets.

stike · December 2004

Eggvis,
when you are dealing with fire, i think any sort of 'instant-read' thermometer is going to be a problem.[p]i think you answered the question of temp control.[p]the reason you had such a hard time controlling the temo is that you were trying to control the temp![p]a tach and speedometer will tell you precisely how much gas to give a car's engine so that it can be run at 55 mph (well, ok, maybe 75).[p]but a guy in a sailboat just looks at the telltales, checks how full the sail is, and goes with the flow. he might know how many knots he's making, too, based on intuition, but if he had a digital readout, and saw that it was 3.3 knots, then a second later 4, then 3, then dropping to 2.8, he'd go mental trying to get that thing to keep a constant....[p]knowwhuuta mean?

Eggvis · December 2004

stike,
I know that I let the temp thing consume me. I obviously made larger than intended adjustments. I wasn't concerned when the temp fluctuated 3-5 degrees either way, but when it would climb to 365, then 372....i'd go adjust. I just will keep trying. It truly was the only meal that turned out below par so far, so I'll just chaulk it up to inexperience. Try again maybe Sat.[p]Paul

stike · December 2004

Eggvis,
put the dome thermometer back in and use the probe for the chicken![p]i think the dual probe would be great for monitoring dome temp on an all-nighter, though.

Eggsellent · December 2004

Eggvis,
1. Like JSlot said - rubbery skin is usually due to a low temp.[p]2. We've had the same thing happen to us. It's usually when you are trying to impress a guest or during special occasions, etc. We adjust the temp way too much and end up kicking ourselves in the end.[p]3. The only other thing I can think of that may have contributed to your fluctuating temp is something we experience from time to time (especially when you are using smaller chunks of coal). Forgive my non technical egg terms here... Make sure the holes at the bottom of the grill are not clogged with ashes. We (and by we I mean Mark Backer) read on this board how to fashion a hanger into some sort of poking device. We open the bottom vent and poke one end of the hanger up through the holes in order to help airflow. Hopefully that makes sense. If I'm way off I hope a fellow egger will correct me. [p]Maybe Backer or the inventor of the infamous "hanger poker" can give instructions on how to make one yourself. It's very handy.

Mark Backer · December 2004

Eggsellent,[p]Thanks babe. That poking device is a beauty too. Maybe you could take a picture of it and post it here, so people could get a better idea of what you're talking about.[p]

Eggvis · December 2004

Eggsellent,[p] You're correct...only when i rave about how great the food on my egg is, do i run into a problem...
I had medium pieces on bottom and startegically place smaller scraps on top, trying to be aware of grate hole pluggage (Technical term). Seemed like air flow was ok, but probablly could have been better.
JSLOT posted that he keeps the bottom vent fully open and just the slots on daisy wheel open to nail 350 95% of time. I have always cracked the bottom vent 1/2 inch or so, and the daisy wheel's holes wide open, to achieve 350. Was always afraid to let too much air in bottom. Am I doing this wrong?
Paul
PS Gonna make your patented hanger/poker after work today

Eggsellent · December 2004

Mark Backer,
Oh, she's a beauty alright. Wish we could remember who came up with this idea in the first place. Still trying to talk Lawn Ranger into making an official one of these things.[p][p]Here it us up close (not sure why - just because)

Unknown · December 2004

Eggsellent,[p]Think that would be Old Dave ???

Eggsellent · December 2004

Eggvis,
Well, JSLOT's been at this longer than either of us - so I'd take his advice any day. It sure sounds like a much easier method, easier control, easier to duplicate, etc. We've alwasys adjusted the bottom vent, the daisy wheel and the vents on the daisy wheel. Again, his way seems easier - and we will be trying that next time. From what I hear everyone finds their own way to 350 degrees and adjusts from there. I guess it's what works best for you and your egg. That's the "art of egging" I think. By the way, I posted pictures of the hanger poker. I wish we could take credit for it because it gets used all the time, but someone else came up with this beauty!

Mark Backer · December 2004

Eggsellent,[p]Thanks honey. [p]See how fancy that one is, folks? I even used some tie wraps to really gussy it up a bit. [p]You can order one of these for, I don't know, three easy payments of $1.67 plus s/h as soon as i put a link on my site. [p]Maybe THIS is my way to get rich off of egging. I'll keep you all posted.

Eggsellent · December 2004

Mark Backer,
Lawn Ranger - Please make one of these soon before Backer starts stopping at all the dry cleaners on the way home for hangers! UGH!

fishlessman · December 2004

Eggvis,
if the bird was grey and the thigh was 165, i would have flipped the bird over and cooked for atleast 15 min more. i usually pull when the breast is 160-165 and the thigh is a good 175-180(chicken doesnt dry out as much as turkey, so dont panic). as for the vent settings, im happy with a plus or minus 15 degree swing, no need to play with the openings. each egg is different for the settings and you will find what works best for you with practice, take notes each time you cook at 350 for a few times and you will learn exactly where to set the vents. i recently replaced the bottom of my egg and the lower vent isnt mounted where the old vent was. its about a half inch to the left making the opening smaller,and it will take a few cooks for me to make the adjustment of where to set the lower vent. for 350,it was about 2 inches open with the daisy slid open on the top about a 1/4 inch with the holes open. i find that fine tuning the temp is easier with the daisy

fishlessman · December 2004

stike,
"maybe beer was involved", i hope so,a one hour cook is 3 beers. how else could you keep the time. place 3 beers on the shelf and when there gone, check the bird

Mark Backer · December 2004

fishlessman,[p]That's funny, because at my house, the T-rexing dwell is two beers (20 minutes). [p]Maybe I need to calibrate my coozie.

stike · December 2004

fishlessman,
i seem to have shifted to a lower-volume alcohol component while cooking.[p]only just realized after reading your post. since it occured to me that i more often have a drink in my hand than a beer, when cooking.[p]summers, usually tequila, winter/fall it's scotch.
a short glass 1/2 to 3/4 full, versus 3 bottles of beer.[p]saves on whizz-breaks, too.[p]i guess it's a desire to maximise guy capacity for the food!
but watching the game, tailgating, etc. it's beer. and someone else is cookin

Sigmore · December 2004

Mark Backer, I bought me one of those pig tail meat flippers for the grill, not the good $25 one but a cheapo at Wally world. I just bent the pig tail straight and had a wooden handled wiggle rod for a buck. It's not stainless, so it bends pretty easy.

JSlot · December 2004

RE: adjusting temps. You guys may not have been at this as long as I have, but it sounds like you are doing great for the most part!! I have settled on the method of ving the bottom vent wide open for almost any cook in the 300°-400° range. If closing or opening the daisy doesn't get me far enough up or down, I'll make a ¼" increment adjustment on the bottom door to lower temp (giving at least 10 min. to stabilize) or open up the slide top (w/daisy open) about the same amount. This is, as NB says, easy peasy to watch and control. Just don't get too excited if the temp fluctuates 10-20°.[p]Happy Holidays!![p]Jim

JSlot · December 2004

nmsg

fishlessman · December 2004

Mark Backer,
my coozie is a little fast during start up, but after it stabilizes, it keeps perfect time.

Mark Backer · December 2004

fishlessman,[p]See, that's MY problem. When I first fill the coozie, if I don't keep an eye on it, it goes empty over and over again. But once I catch it, on the way up to my mouth, mind you, it's much easier to control from there. [p]Man, this board makes me laugh...

fishlessman · December 2004

JSlot,
do you get more smoke flavor when choking the fire at the daisy. i remember discusions on this long ago, but i never experimented with the idea.

JSlot · December 2004

If you have a lot of smoke, it does keep it in longer. I get plenty of smoke flavor, especially in turkey, with no chips/chunks.[p]Jim

Not amgood night for cooking...

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