Slow Cook Chicken

Blootnik cooks a whole Amish chicken on his back yard smoker. He gives a blow by blow description of just how to cook your own.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• Back
• barbecue
• chicken
• cooking
• fire
• smoked
• with
• wood
• yard

[jonnyblooz]

Get yourself one of those $40 firebowls at Walmart. Light a fire in that before you start anything. Throw on Oak and Hickory logs. (I also throw on baseball size hickory chunks to give you some usable coals quickly.

Fire the smoker with natural lump charcoal. Add smoking chips and replenish your fire with red glowing coals from the burn down pit.

One more thing: Chicken skin will be rubbery at low temps. I smoke/grill at 350 for crispy golden skin. Try it!

[blootnik]

Thanks! That sounds like a good technique in fire management. Unfortunately this bird got it's dark skin by allowing the temp to soar above 300, so I'll need to experiment with that one. I agree that rubbery skin is not very appetizing, but it wasn't intended to char this one either. And by the way, although the bird's outside was not pretty, the meat was very good -- moist and good smoke flavor -- not just my own opinion, but also everyone who helped devour it.

[jonnyblooz]

I'll tell you what I see that you're doing wrong:

You're putting A LOT of raw wood into the fire chamber, and cooking with flame, which is bad. This is going to produce creosote and give an acrid smoke that is giving your food a burnt outside, and I'll bet, a bitter flavor.

The first rule of slow smoking is that you must have a "burn down" pit, which is a seperate fire pit to burn your wood down to glowing coals.

I use 2 starter cans of lump charcoal, and add oak coals and hickory chips.

[blootnik]

Sounds like good advice. I'll give it a try. Thanks!

[Bubbasanjohn]

that color skin if from improper cooking/smoking. hard to tell what you did form the limited explanation, but this indicates improper procedure.

[blootnik]

I must admit it doesn't look very appetizing. With some practice I hope to manage my fire better and keep the skin from looking so charred. It's a great hobby and I must admit, I am a beginner.

[ghostphacekillah09]

That a fine bark on that chicken!

[jdyess28]

Smoking my first chicken today, Thanks for the advice!

[blesstolive]

You have a good enough pit . Just get it going with good hot coals, put chicken in smoke chamber, regulate the heat tempertaure for smoking , add wood when necessary, (keep on top of the heat in the smoke chamber-keep regulated for smoking) then you can smoke cook the chicken till done. Practice smoking cuts of meat on your smoker , and with time and pactice you can make the best smoked foods.It is that simple!

[jahlionpr]

I'm sure by now you've perfected your technique...but anyhow...after the first two hours, spray some apple juice on the chicken and wrap it in aluminium foil and continue to smoke it for another hour or so...then take it out...if the chicken has not reached the ideal internal temperature, return it unwrapped and smoke it until it is properly cooked (it depends on the size/weight/temperature and other factors).

[bbbtttoooppp]

Amish girls rock.

[doctorphreak]

@jonnyblooz

actually you get cresote from not enough draft and the smoke sits in the smoke box and becomes stale and falls on the meat ...you will not have this problem as long as you have a good draft and a thin blue smoke if the smoke is white and bellowing its not good....and his wood wasnt really raw but it wasnt fully seasoned either

[StevenandSylvia]

whats the damn difference in a amish hen and a dam hen there the same thing

amish people have so many people fooled

[cabritorsss]

I agree with jonnyblooz. The wood chunks are too big, he didn't let them burn to coals before adding the bird and he didn't baste the bird just before it was done. What he managed to do was cook a chicken that should have been done in an hourt and a half but instead burned the outside and probably undercooked the inside. Maybe he should stick to hot dogs instead...