My Chicken aka from #1 to #48 without even trying!

[Tally]

Look up Meatheads post on bad rookie certified judges. If those drums taste half as good as they look...

[FLBuckeye]

Awesome! I will try that soon. I see you use drumsticks; I really like that idea presentation wise. You reference a hot cambro. Could the one that will be resting the brisket and butts be used for this? Guessing so

[CandySueQ]

Brine chicken for 2 to 4 hours -- I like 1 cup water, 1 cup buttermilk, 2 tablespoons salt, 4 tablespoons sugar. Remove from brine, place neatly on a rack to drip. Sprinkle rub (Tsunami Spin from Dizzy Pig) on pieces all around (medium rub not really heavy), place back on rack. Cook on smoker at about 275 for 1 to 1-1/2 hours turning the rack occasionally so the pieces brown consistently. Temp check each piece of chicken. When 185 or higher, dip each piece in hot BBQ sauce (I use a sweet sauce like Baby Ray's), then pan in a full size pan and seal up tightly. Let rest in a hot cambro for 30 minutes. This step is important because it gives you tender, bite-through skin. Put it in the turn in box and let the judges at it!

[FLBuckeye]

Looks great! Care to share the recipe?

[CandySueQ]

There's no doubt my chicken went to the table of death! Next contest, the judges will get more of the same. That's the thing about competition barbeque, subjective taste buds of 6 individuals. Sometimes you're the bug, other times the windshield!

[Chillin' n Negrillin']

That looks great. Sorry to hear that you didn't do so well. Personally, I could never figure the consistency thing out. We always moaned about that and even talked about 2 teams turning in the same thing (no we never did it) and see if the scores were consistent. Bottom line, sometimes you get a bad table or simply get your butt kicked.

[CandySueQ]

Drove a long, long way last weekend to cook in one of my favorite contests, the Dillard Bluegrass-BBQ Festival in Dillard, GA. A decade ago, I got my first call in the top 5 of a category!

The two contests prior, I'd been on a chicken run with a 2nd then a 1st place finish. This weekend, my chicken was 48 out of 56.

Looks pretty -- not changing a thing at my next event! This photo is sideways, presentation would be with the legs horizontal not vertical.