Chicken skin

[bterrell128]

Well I have some people coming over this weekend, and one of the things I have to do is cook chicken because they have the side effect from the tick bite where they can not eat any hoofed animals. No big deal just want to make it as enjoyable as possible for them.

So I have been practicing on chicken. I did this last week:

The chicken itself was fantastic however the skin was almost completely inedible. It was as tough as leather. I had dried it off very good before putting any rub on it. I cooked this on Lo for one hour, and then 225 until 165 in the breast and it was like 177 in the thigh, which took another

So I decided to try some chicken legs today to redeem myself. Well they were better.

This time I patted them dry, and coated them in olive oil before putting the rub on. I cooked them on 275 for about 1 hour 45 minutes (chicken got up to 172 before resting). The skin was much butter, but still just a bit tough. I was wondering if there is anything else I should try.

I will actually be cooking both legs and whole chickens this weekend along with some Boston butts, but would really like to get a bit of a better handle on how to make the skin better.

Thanks for any help you guys can provide.

 

[Plumberguy]

Well I have some people coming over this weekend, and one of the things I have to do is cook chicken because they have the side effect from the tick bite where they can not eat any hoofed animals. No big deal just want to make it as enjoyable as possible for them.

So I have been practicing on chicken. I did this last week:
View attachment 10516View attachment 10517View attachment 10518

The chicken itself was fantastic however the skin was almost completely inedible. It was as tough as leather. I had dried it off very good before putting any rub on it. I cooked this on Lo for one hour, and then 225 until 165 in the breast and it was like 177 in the thigh, which took another

So I decided to try some chicken legs today to redeem myself. Well they were better.
View attachment 10519View attachment 10520

This time I patted them dry, and coated them in olive oil before putting the rub on. I cooked them on 275 for about 1 hour 45 minutes (chicken got up to 172 before resting). The skin was much butter, but still just a bit tough. I was wondering if there is anything else I should try.

I will actually be cooking both legs and whole chickens this weekend along with some Boston butts, but would really like to get a bit of a better handle on how to make the skin better.

Thanks for any help you guys can provide.

I have had the same issue, check out my thread here called “bite through chicken skin”, I am not sure how to link it, I’ll try. The single best tip is the chicken has to be cooked at a higher temperature, 300 to 350https://www.recteqforum.com/threads/bite-through-chicken-skin.3771/

 

[Greg Jones]

IMO, any part of the chicken cooking process that has a temp less than 325* will likely result in what you have here. Forget the “I want a lot of smoke flavor in my poultry” concept. Lean cuts of meat (chicken, pork loin, steaks, etc.) need to be cooked hot and fast. Fatty cooks of meat (pork butts, pork ribs, beef roasts, briskets, etc.) need low and slow to render the fat. I cook whole spatchcock chickens for 425* for the first 15 minutes, then lower the temp to 375* for the rest of the cook. The skin is as close as you can get to deep fried chicken skin.

 

[bterrell128]

Sounds like I just need to turn the heat up a little bit! I am planning on getting the pork butts done for a good 4 hour rest so should have plenty of time to do the couple of chickens on a little higher temp.

 

[MikeyB]

Where did you get that drumstick holder from?
And do you like it?

 

[bterrell128]

Where did you get that drumstick holder from?
And do you like it?

I bought it on amazon. Today was the first day that I have used it, and I really liked the way that it worked.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CJ6EU36/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is the one I bought.

 

[MikeyB]

I bought it on amazon. Today was the first day that I have used it, and I really liked the way that it worked.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CJ6EU36/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is the one I bought.

That is pretty slick and cheap as well.

thanks

 

[Lager1829]

I do my chicken at 400. Nice crispy skin. Poultry IMO is not a low and slow if you want tasty skin. And use Colden's Freaking Greek rub if you have it.

 

[jfrosty27]

Let the chicken air dry in the fridge for a minimum of 4-5 hours before applying rub and cooking at 325-350. This dries out the skin and underlying fat.

 

[BretM]

I used to do the "low and slow" to give it smoke flavor and then turn up the heat, but like everyone else, it left the skin leathery.

The last few cooks I've experimented. Last weekend I did some chicken thighs and they turned out much better with still just enough smoke flavor. Cut off any excess skin or fat from the thighs, season liberally on both sides with kosher salt and 16 mesh pepper. Put on a sheet pan and back in the fridge for an hour. Using pecan pellets, heat the smoker to 325. Arrange the thighs, skin side up and cook for 30 minutes, flip to skin side down and cook another 30 minutes, flip again, raise temp to 375 and cook 20-30 minutes until internal temp reads 185.

I think the second step...having the skin in contact with the grates, made a difference in rendering out the fat so on the final flip the skin had a chance to crisp more.

When I reheated the leftovers, I microwaved two thighs for about 50 seconds and then I crisped the skin in a nonstick frying pan.

 

[eldoradocaddy]

IMO, any part of the chicken cooking process that has a temp less than 325* will likely result in what you have here. Forget the “I want a lot of smoke flavor in my poultry” concept. Lean cuts of meat (chicken, pork loin, steaks, etc.) need to be cooked hot and fast. Fatty cooks of meat (pork butts, pork ribs, beef roasts, briskets, etc.) need low and slow to render the fat. I cook whole spatchcock chickens for 425* for the first 15 minutes, then lower the temp to 375* for the rest of the cook. The skin is as close as you can get to deep fried chicken skin.

I'm so trying this. Thanks for the info.

 

[bterrell128]

IMO, any part of the chicken cooking process that has a temp less than 325* will likely result in what you have here. Forget the “I want a lot of smoke flavor in my poultry” concept. Lean cuts of meat (chicken, pork loin, steaks, etc.) need to be cooked hot and fast. Fatty cooks of meat (pork butts, pork ribs, beef roasts, briskets, etc.) need low and slow to render the fat. I cook whole spatchcock chickens for 425* for the first 15 minutes, then lower the temp to 375* for the rest of the cook. The skin is as close as you can get to deep fried chicken skin.

I have decided this is exactly how I am going to do mine tomorrow. I went ahead and got the chickens dried off and in the fridge to put on sometime tomorrow morning we are having lunch. I just put the 10 pound pork butts on a bit ago, and have the coolers waiting for when they are done.