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Pit Barrel Junior - two whole chickens

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    Pit Barrel Junior - two whole chickens

    Meathead + Pit Barrel Junior has "totally redeemed" chicken in the mouths of my recent guests!

    A smokey pair of yard birds stand tall atop the podium of "best smoked meats," de-throning pulled pork as the reigning heavyweight champion... their savory skins and juicy meat were too much for the porker to handle!

    A brief 2-hr dry salt brine on top of the skin (uncovered in the fridge), then applied binders and rubs, smoke gave it depth and proper slow-roasting to 160-165° meant it was extra-juicy. Pre-trimmed weight 8.89lbs, cook time 1:45. Lit 20 coals in chimney for 12-mins put 17 new coals on top of a layer of used charcoal and it nearly filled up junior’s coal basket. Began cooking nearly immediately. After ~15 mins cooker was still under 200° so I cracked the lid with foil and we were off to the races 275-325° for the remainder.

    Left to Right birds 1, 2, 3, 4
    - 1 was covered in Franks and then peri-peri spice
    - 2 was mustard-covered then Meathead’s Memphis Dust
    - 3-4 were mustard covered and then Pit Barrel’s All Purpise Rub

    Peri-peri and Memphis Dust were the favorites!

    Special thanks to fzxdoc for her excellent guides and posts, and @Meathead for continually upping my BBQ game!
    Attached Files

    #2
    Great looking chicken! Bet it tasted as good as it looks!

    Comment


      #3
      Those aren't whole chickens!

      Comment


      • Duanessmokedmeats
        Duanessmokedmeats commented
        Editing a comment
        They were at one time....🤣🤣🤣

      #4
      Nice lookin' yard birds.

      Comment


        #5
        Gorgeous yardbirds, lefty_burns . Yup, that PBC is a chicken machine. My family asks for it all the time, and I'm happy to oblige. Plus I get some pretty tasty homemade chicken stock with the bones and scraps.

        I'm happy to have provided even a bit of info that helped you on your way to Chicken Nirvana.

        Kathryn

        Comment


        #6
        Great looking chicken! I'm doing a couple birds later today.

        +1 on the tasty stock. Smoked chicken stock is my new secret weapon to go into most of my other dishes. I used it with just a box mix of zatarain's dirty rice, and it was definitely a couple steps up from normal.

        Comment


        • Alabama Smoke
          Alabama Smoke commented
          Editing a comment
          Gotta try that BFlynn. Thanks for posting that. Smoked dirty rice.........

        #7
        CHICKEN! PBC jr!

        Comment


          #8
          That chicken looks delicious! I’m fairly new to the PBC, but love chicken cooked in it. fzxdoc Ive been throwing the bones out, what a waste, gotta start saving for stock!

          Comment


          • fzxdoc
            fzxdoc commented
            Editing a comment
            You won't regret it. Smoked chicken stock even kicks up basic chicken noodle soup up a notch. I use it in everything calling for chicken stock/broth.

            Kathryn

          #9
          Ya gotta love how juicy the yard birds are when done in the Pit barrel! Nice work!

          Comment


            #10
            Originally posted by Duanessmokedmeats View Post
            fzxdoc How do you make your stock?​
            Duanessmokedmeats , sometimes I make chicken stock in my very large (10qt) Instant Pot using a version of Dewesq55 's excellent recipe:
            When I roast a chicken them bones (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTuD8k3JvxQ) go into the instant pot overnight. Click image for larger version Name: D5ajdsacozbHpWKFpbIjGevwDFiumyaw7YV9rj9Hly5p4j1r1-7ikMAmwXnnaldzJ_sFM8CV1X9WotmFNVnpXMpDb9eO-qLKlSepWAEhi4Im_hgueAgc9hxUqykCkIpiNyawiL_GkfH1PSvrwSOoQsklzv84kaZBELilZHqUmVJmxeUs


            For quick and easy, when I only have the bones 'n bits of a couple of PBC roasted chickens and don't want to mess with adding chicken meat, I​ use a variation on Lynn Rossetto Kasper's Cheater's Chicken Broth recipe in a stock pot. I usually double the recipe, since I almost always smoke 2 chickens at the same time. Other times I just use this single recipe and add both carcasses, if I don't have room in the freezer for a double batch of stock. Either way, the carcass lends a nice but subtle smokey component to the storebought broth and the other ingredients amp up the flavor.

            I use the kitchen gauze trick to help with the straining and cleanup.

            It's easy to do the day after a chicken cook before tossing the PBC chicken's bones 'n bits.

            Kathryn's Nearly Homemade Bones 'n Bits Chicken Stock
            1 (or 2) chicken carcass(es) and other bits, tied up in food -grade kitchen gauze
            1/2 cup dry white wine
            2 garlic cloves, crushed (leave unpeeled if organic)
            2 whole cloves
            1 Tbl tomato paste
            1 Tbl Worchestershire sauce
            1 bay leaf, broken
            1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crumbled
            Two (to three) quarts storebought chicken or vegetable broth
            1 medium to large onion, coarse chopped
            1/2 large celery stalk with leaves, coarse chopped
            1/2 medium carrot, coarse chopped​

            1. In a 4-quart pot, combine all the ingredients. Bring to a simmer, partially cover, and cook gently for 3 hours.

            2. Pull the gauze bag of bones 'n bits out of the broth, let drip in a sieve placed over the pan for a bit, then discard.

            3. Strain the broth into storage containers. I freeze the broth in 2 cup portions in quart freezer Ziploc bags, squeezing out the excess air. Then I lay them flat on a cookie sheet in the freezer until frozen solid. Finally I stack them vertically in a freezer drawer.

            4. Either use the stock right away, refrigerate it for up to 3 days, or freeze it.​

            Kathryn

            Comment


            • TripleB
              TripleB commented
              Editing a comment
              For my quick and easy chicken stock, I use the roasted chicken from the grocery store. Generally, the store roasted chicken is cheaper or about the same price as the raw whole chicken, like Zach Farms. I take the meat off for whatever I'm making (enchiladas, chicken & dumplings, etc.). Everything else goes back into the stock pot with cheap chicken broth, veggies, etc.

            • tenphases
              tenphases commented
              Editing a comment
              Sounds amazing!!!

            • Duanessmokedmeats
              Duanessmokedmeats commented
              Editing a comment
              Thank you

            #11
            My PBC chicken stock recipe: Chicken scraps from pbc chicken. Plus I buy chicken backs from the butcher shop and throw them in the pbc instead of shutting the fire down.

            Then I grab of vegetable scraps (onions, garlic, carrots, etc) and throw it in

            then I peruse my fridge for all the stuff I got from the farmers market the previous week and throw anything that looks like it's past it's prime.

            Then I do one of two things 1. Turn on the instant pot for an hour 2. Blindly grab random stuff from the spice cabinet and start shaking.

            Then I run the IP for an hour. Keep in mind if anyone walks in the kitchen while I'm concoting this mess I act like I'm a gourmet chef taking precise measurements. I'm going to try the above (fxz) recipe next time it looks just a little better lol
            ​​​​

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