Smoked Whole Chicken - Help

rickybobby12

I have attempted to smoke a whole chicken and does not appear to be completely cooked.    My process is to put a dry rub under the skin while soaking apple chunks for :30 mins.  I get the egg to 200' and place a metal disposable pan with water in it on top of the primary grate.   I place the upside down rib rack in the pan with the chicken about 2" above the water.   I have been letting the chicken smoke for about 3 hours @ 200' while adding new chunks periodically.   While the chicken is incredible moist, it still has a slight shade of pink it and the more I cut into it, the less done it appears.   Any feedback on any step of the process would  be greatly appreciated.  Thank you - Ricky Bobby

Legume

What temp is the chicken when you pull it off?

GATraveller

Get a meat thermometer and stick it in the thickest part of the breast and thigh - it's ready when the temp reads 165.

Mattman3969

I do a lot of low n slow spatched chickens but I cook them at 250° or so raise about 4" above the felt and it takes anywhere from 4-5hrs depending on the bird.  The water in the pan is not necessary in an Egg and only retards cooking(more like steaming).  I'm doubting you chicken are done but could be wrong.   What was the temp of the bird when you pulled from the egg?  

rickybobby12

Thank you both   I am at altitude now, 6k ft, and I am not getting an accurate read on my manual thermometer so I have been just going by time and touch.  Great points and I will get a digital thermometer ASAP!

lousubcap

Cook time at temperature is just a guide for when to start checking for the finish-line temp or feel depending on the protein of choice.  For a low&slow cook, you can even get by with an elcheapo analog (leave in the protein/oven) thermo you can find in any grocery store.  Just as long as you can check and adjust the calibration.  
Nailing a hot and fast cook with a narrow margin for error (steaks and chops) does lend itself to a quick read thermo.  Different situation-different tools.  FWIW-
Edit:  BTW- @Mattman3969 is the resident pulled chix eggspert around here.  
And welcome aboard and enjoy the journey.  Above all, have fun.

rickybobby12

Thanks guys  This is great feedback  I am going to buy a dig themo today.  I really appreciate the time to give me this advice     Very valuable!

Rte1985

Mattman3969 said:

I do a lot of low n slow spatched chickens but I cook them at 250° or so raise about 4" above the felt and it takes anywhere from 4-5hrs depending on the bird.  The water in the pan is not necessary in an Egg and only retards cooking(more like steaming).  I'm doubting you chicken are done but could be wrong.   What was the temp of the bird when you pulled from the egg?  

I agree.  I'm usually 250-275 for a bird for a longer cook.  325-350 for a quicker whole bird cook.  But I usually spatch them anymore with an occasional beer butt here and there

Billy Grill Eggster

The temp of the meat is important, smoking chicken cause the meat under the skin to turn pink. Also the younger chickens have a thinner bone structure and the blood in the bones will come out and  color the meat.
So pink in chicken does mean the chicken is uncooked nor does it mean it is cooked.

rickybobby12

I really appreciate all of the feedback    This is very helpful and I will implement this ASAP    Starting with a thermometer!

fishlessman

200 dome temp is way too low and get rid of the water all together, its just slowing the cook way down. with your setup, temp, and altitude it might not be done in ten hours

SemolinaPilchard

Go by the internal temp of the chicken to know when it is done. 165 for white meat, 175 for dark. 200 dome temp is very low, try at least 300, 350 is better.

rickybobby12

Thank you for that.  I'll remove the water as well as these temps are very helpful    I did not know about these as well as the dome temp   Super Helpful   Also, just as a side note, I did have to calibrate the dome thermometer for altitude    Prior to calibrating, it was 20% off.   You can do it by putting the tip in boiling water and then making the adjustment    

fishlessman

your water boils 10 or more degrees less than mine from the getgo so your handy capped right there.  the water will keep the bird at a lower temp than the dome reading which is slowing your cook down. indirect setups have a hotter dome than where the food cooks, another handycap in the egg. 

buzd504

You don't need to soak your wood either.  Then you are just steaming off the water before they start smoking.

rickybobby12

Both are super valuable man!  Great intel.

calracefan

Get yourself a Thermo pen instant read thermometer, expensive but well worth the cost.

PoppasGrill

I have noticed when I was putting the chicken rack on the drip pan it wasn't cooking as evenly, so I started putting the drip pan on top of the conveggtor and then the rack on the grate above. Haven't had any issues since then with tender breasts and undercooked thighs.

1voyager

rickybobby12 said:

Thank you both   I am at altitude now, 6k ft, and I am not getting an accurate read on my manual thermometer so I have been just going by time and touch.  Great points and I will get a digital thermometer ASAP!

I am at 6.7k feet. I do 325 degrees, direct using vertical roaster. No water. 4-5 pound bird takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes to 170 degrees.

rickybobby12

Does anyone brine a chicken prior to grilling it?  If so, do you potentially have a recipe for the brining process. Thank you 

RedSkip

1/4 C Salt
1/4 C Brown Sugar
4 C Water

Brine for at least 4 hours ... hope this helps.  @rickybobby12

lousubcap

@rickybobby12 - just make sure you do not have an already juiced bird.

Hans61

Use a meat thermometer. Also, I like to "smoke roast" birds to get a crispy skin.

rickybobby12

Thank you both very much.   This really helps.  I'll keep you posted on the outcome. 

Mattman3969

rickybobby12 said:

Does anyone brine a chicken prior to grilling it?  If so, do you potentially have a recipe for the brining process. Thank you 

Whole bird, no. Just chickens tweets than yes.  

Killit_and_Grillit

1) KEEP THAT LID CLOSED!!!

I was in Colorado Springs for a few years so it was over 6k and struggled with that a little. But I found opening the lid on my smokers (didn't have an Egg yet) took much longer to get my done temp back than in Tennessee.

2) No need to add extra wood. Chicken absorbs smoke easily. Just cause you can't see it doesn't mean it's not there.  

3) Thermapen. It will change your life. 

Killit_and_Grillit

buzd504 said:

You don't need to soak your wood either.  Then you are just steaming off the water before they start smoking.

I was going to say this as well...but fear of an OT detour on this thread stopped me. But I don't soak mine. 

Wolfpack

Beautiful defender- 

Principalchef

200 degrees is a low temp cook, especially at high altitude.  Up it to 250 at least (or even 300 - that's my standard BGE temp now.)  And get yourself a high quality instant read thermometer.  The Thermapen is expensive (it's on sale right now though - great deal at $59), but it's essential in my kitchen.

rickybobby12

Thank you all for the feedback   I increased the temp to 250, soaked in brown sugar, spices, and salt for 4 hours.  I turned out amazing.  If I dont soak the chips/chucks, they seem to flame up and burn off rather fast.  Is there a fix to this?  Should I buy larger chunks?  Also, Are you adding wood throuout the entire process or is it more effective at certain stages of the grilling like say in the beginning or the end?  Thank you

bikesAndBBQ

I am not familiar with all setups as mine is just the stock egg set up, but I am not sure how you would easily add more wood chips/chunks at any stage other than around the time of lighting the fire.  I've never had a problem with my chunks burning too quickly and I do not soak.  Maybe try spreading through different layers of the charcoal and not having the chips/chunks by whatever you use to light the fire?