I really want to love smoked poultry. I really, really do. I don't.
What I like about it: typically (a relative term) I smoke chickens or whopping big turkey breasts (ideally with skin on- but more on that later). Because there's not much connective tissue to speak of, I tend to smoke at higher temps, with the aim of cooking the bird without drying it out too much, say 325-350, over something fruity, like apple or cherry. Pecan is lovely, too. A simple rub like ground Montreal chicken spice goes on top of the skin, in the cavity (though I usually spatchcock the chook) and between the flesh and skin, as much as I can. The skin on the bird turns a lovely mahogany colour, especially chicken. I take it off the smoker (BGE, for the record) at about 155F, and let it rest a bit. The carryover cooking kills off any residual nasties while keeping the bird nice and juicy.
My issue is the skin. Smoking turns the skin a flaccid, insipid, rubbery, horrible caricature of everything that's good about roasting a bird- acres and acres of perfectly rendered, crisp, gorgeously brittle skin. It kills me. It's even worse smoking the turkey breast, because if you don't keep the skin on as a sacrifice to the cruel gods of poultry, a tough layer of smoke-infused crustiness can often form and make the outside parts of the breast tough. It kills me every time.
Has anyone found a plausible solution on how to smoke a bird so that the flesh stays moist, but smoky, and the skin gets thoroughly rendered and turns into the beautiful thing that it ought to be? Happy to nominate the solver of this problem for a Nobel prize.
What I like about it: typically (a relative term) I smoke chickens or whopping big turkey breasts (ideally with skin on- but more on that later). Because there's not much connective tissue to speak of, I tend to smoke at higher temps, with the aim of cooking the bird without drying it out too much, say 325-350, over something fruity, like apple or cherry. Pecan is lovely, too. A simple rub like ground Montreal chicken spice goes on top of the skin, in the cavity (though I usually spatchcock the chook) and between the flesh and skin, as much as I can. The skin on the bird turns a lovely mahogany colour, especially chicken. I take it off the smoker (BGE, for the record) at about 155F, and let it rest a bit. The carryover cooking kills off any residual nasties while keeping the bird nice and juicy.
My issue is the skin. Smoking turns the skin a flaccid, insipid, rubbery, horrible caricature of everything that's good about roasting a bird- acres and acres of perfectly rendered, crisp, gorgeously brittle skin. It kills me. It's even worse smoking the turkey breast, because if you don't keep the skin on as a sacrifice to the cruel gods of poultry, a tough layer of smoke-infused crustiness can often form and make the outside parts of the breast tough. It kills me every time.
Has anyone found a plausible solution on how to smoke a bird so that the flesh stays moist, but smoky, and the skin gets thoroughly rendered and turns into the beautiful thing that it ought to be? Happy to nominate the solver of this problem for a Nobel prize.
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