Moist and Tender Chicken With a Crispy Skinned Exterior

[BriggsBBQ]

What kind of grill/smoker do you use? Weber Kettle
What do you do for humidity? Water Pan? No
Do you dry brine, wet brine, or marinade? No, I decide on chicken too quick or more my wife does
What temps do you cook at? Not really sure...hot side is between 450-600
What heat do you use (Conductive, Radiative, or Convective)? Convective and Radiative
What's your total cook time typically? 40 min thighs and drums 15 min for wings
Do you use two zones, cook low and slow, cook hot and fast, start at one temp and finish at another? two zone
Do you use any accessories? (e.g. Candy's onion holder) SNS
Do you have a secret weapon? (e.g. Dr. Blonder's Baking Powder What kind of skin do you - pretty crisp skin.

Seasoning - wings (salt and pepper), thighs and drums (salt, chicken seasoning Stubs)

What I did last night is drums, thighs and wings. Grocery store did not have wings only. So I set up the SNS with a small load. Then added a couple Mesquite wood chunks. I put the lid a not all the way on so that the wood will catch fire and the grill will get really hot. Everything is on the indirect side for about 10 min. Then I move the wings to the direct side and move them around constantly with tongs until the outside is crisp. I then measure the temp to make sure they hit at least 160. Then I hand them to my wife and she dunked them in some hot Kroger wing sauce. The thighs and drums did mostly the same thing. Had to monitor them more because on the direct side it starts a oil fire from the fat drippings. I did notice something new on this cook is that you can put the drum heavy side down (bone) on the direct side and it helps cook without causing major fare ups. Same with the thighs. Also for the thighs I wrapped the fat around the thigh and used a tooth pick to secure it. Gave me more crispy skin and kept it from shrinking back. Once crisp I would measure the temp if 160ish on the far side indirect. If close but crisp closer to the direct side on the indirect side of the 2 zones.

[fkrall]

I grilled my first spatchcocked chicken last night following the ABCBarbecue recipe, monitoring temps with the Smoke. Weber 22 with SnS, full chimney Rockwood lump, vents fully open, 6 hr dry brine. Ambient temp 33 degrees; grill temp peaked @ 477º and slowly dropped to 428 when I pulled the bird at 45 minutes/160 in the breast--couldn't get a reliable temp in the thigh. No pics because after all the 325-350 recommendations I thought I blew it and was about to treat my wife to McDonalds, humble pie for desert. Not so: The breast meat was juicy and the legs and thighs were perfectly done, although the skin wasn't nearly crispy enough. For me at least, hot and fast with a longer dry brine and some baking powder on the skin may be the way to go. And that will let me save the McDonalds card for the next time I screw up a hamburger.

[RonB]

I have gotten to the point where I don't apply the dry rub until after I sear the skin a bit. I like it to brown it some, then I put it on the indirect side and apply the rub. By browning some first, I get the skin off to a head start on getting crispy.

[EdF]

Almost complete success! I find combining a dry brine with overnight uncovered in the fridge (to help dry it), and oil under the skin (nothing containing water) gets the job done for the skin. Baking powder would not hurt!

[Mudkat]

I think I'll try the rub later in my sear too RonB I like that suggestion.

[Mudkat]

Sounds successful to me! I stopped using baking powder 'cause these taste bud can taste it. Dry brining overnight and uncovered, works for me. I still have to try oil under the skin EdF .

[Dan Deter]

I need a fridge that my wife can't see if I'm gonna dry brine poultry uncovered....

[EdF]

Put a piece of waxed paper over it (tented) - it will be officially covered!

[lostclusters]

Let's blow the dust off of this one. Has anyone updated thier technique from this? And what if anything changes when doing turkey? I know spatchcocking is most likely preferred. As is a hot and fast temperature, probably 325 - 375 degrees F.

[Potkettleblack]

I'm going to try this soon:

https://www.tastingtable.com/1296742/boiling-water-shower-crispy-chicken-skin

All you need to do is either pour boiling water on your raw chicken or submerge it in bubbling water for a few seconds. The hot water helps tighten and shrink the skin, effectively reducing excess fat and moisture.

But Ernest's method is roughly like my go to for turkey. Chicken, rarely putting a day+ into prep.

[RonB]

I'm wondering how this would affect the dry brine.

[Potkettleblack]

Sounds like a second experiment.