Newbie + 2 chicken thighs for dinner. How?

acegg77

Brand new with BGE. Bought a couple of thighs today that I want to cook in a few hours for dinner (West coast.) Should I use the platesetter? Or should I go direct (I don't have a raised grid thing.) How long and at what temp? 

Budgeezer

I like to do chicken indirect @ 375 for about 40 minutes, a whole chicken takes about an hour..  Direct is an option as well but you may have to deal with flare ups if you don't have a raised grid.  Indirect is nearly fool proof, put in some sort of drip pan to keep your place setter clean.  I use foil and make my own pan so you can just throw it away when done.  Enjoy and have a beer for me.

ddegger

+1.  Good luck

Chubbs

Yep. If no raised grid solution then do indirect. Cheap raised grid solution is to put bricks on the fire ring. Very cheap and great for little cooks like this.

acegg77

Well, I was not impressed. I used the plate setter. I first brushed on some apple vinegar.  I next coated the thighs with olive oil. I then added some Mansmiths Poultry spice. Cooked at around 370 for 50 mins, took then off and let them sit for 10 mins. Very moist. Not dry. 

It wasn't bad but had no smoke flavor... you would not know the difference than had I made it in the wife's gas stove at 350. My guess is that the plate setter retards the smoke or something. 

I'm not saying it was a bad because it wasn't , but I was hoping for more of a smokey, BGE flavor like I get when I cook steak direct on the BGE brand charcoal. 

How do you put bricks on the fire-ring? You need to have two grates, right and has to be the diamater of the dome so it will close. Where do I buy another grid? The dealer? Would cooking direct at a lower temp given me more flavor? 

Like I say, this was not terrible, but by BGE standards (and the huge amt. of money it cost) I'd call this a failure. I guess it is easy to blame the BGE and not myself... but I sure as hell was expecting better than something out of my wife's gas stove's oven! 

Fred19Flintstone

Welcome!  Let me ask you if you put any wood chips or chunks in with the lump?  Apple and cherry are my favorites with poultry.  Some brands of lump give a little smokey flavor, some don't.  I like Wicked Good because it burns well and doesn't give a smokey flavor.  That way I control the smokiness with the wood I add.

I've never made a raised grid from fire bricks or empty beer cans, but lots of guys do.  I do know you need three of them.  Put the bricks or beer cans on the fire ring and put your grid on them.  I don't believe another grid is needed.  From pictures I've seen, some guys wrap the bricks in foil and some don't.  I would use the beer cans because if you drop one, it won't break anything and as a bonus you get to drink three beers!

acegg77

No, did not put any wood chips on. I don't know the technique for doing that yet.

About raising the grid, I don't understand.  I have one grid. It sits on the fire ring. How do you put a brick on it? I've seen pix where people put a bricks on the grid and then buy a second grid. And I"ve seen bolts used:

http://www.nakedwhiz.com/ceramicfaq.htm#raisedgrid

I could try the bolt concept. What kind of bothers me is that if the BGE people know that there are times you should raise the grid, they could have engineered it to be adjustable. It's not like the BGE is cheap or anything! For the money we pay... well you see where I'm coming from. 

Fred19Flintstone

I get raised direct using an Adjustable Rig from www.ceramicgrillstore.com .  I get an indirect cook by adding a pizza stone to the mix.