If you're looking for something different, give this a try. It's a little labor intensive, but I guarantee it's worth it!
I started by making two batches of my Herbal Chicken Paste. Click Here for the recipe.
The pan on the left is after it has reduced to a nice pasty consistency and I used this to rub the bird. In the other pan I followed the recipe and added an additional 1/3 cup of olive oil. I brought this to a boil then set off the heat with a tight fitting lid until it cooled. I strained it and split it into to containers. I used about 1/3 to inject the bird and 2/3 for saucing during the last 45 minutes.
The hardest part was getting the skin off! YUCK I'm sure I"ll get better at this with practice.
Then I rubbed it down real good with the paste.
I added 1 onion, quartered, 1 bulb of garlic, smashed, one caret, chunked, 2 stalks celery, chunked, into the drippings pan. Note that I took 4 potatoes and cut the bottoms off so they sit flat and hold the grate up off the rest of the veggies. I put the cut`off ends in the pan, and fished all the potato pieces out after cooking and served them as part of the meal. I think next time I'll make them taller -- maybe even with the top of the pan `` for better smoke flow around the bird.
All ready to go into the smoker.
I smoked at 250* for almost 3 hours.using maple pellets. When I pulled everything the IT of the Thigh was 177* and the Breast was 163*
Boy was it good!
Sorry, I was too anxious to cut into it (after a 30 min rest) that I forgot to take a picture of it whole, but you can tell from the leg how it all looked. It was such a deep mahogany color that I was afraid the outer layer would be dry and crusty, but it wasn't. It was just good! I figured my Au Jus would get poured over the sliced meat, but it was so juicy I didn't use a drop. We ate that night (Saturday) and had it again cold for a light meal Sunday evening. I think I'll use the Au Jus to make some gravy to go on mashed potatoes when we have it for a third meal :-)
A lot of enjoyment for $1/pound!
I started by making two batches of my Herbal Chicken Paste. Click Here for the recipe.
The pan on the left is after it has reduced to a nice pasty consistency and I used this to rub the bird. In the other pan I followed the recipe and added an additional 1/3 cup of olive oil. I brought this to a boil then set off the heat with a tight fitting lid until it cooled. I strained it and split it into to containers. I used about 1/3 to inject the bird and 2/3 for saucing during the last 45 minutes.
The hardest part was getting the skin off! YUCK I'm sure I"ll get better at this with practice.
Then I rubbed it down real good with the paste.
I added 1 onion, quartered, 1 bulb of garlic, smashed, one caret, chunked, 2 stalks celery, chunked, into the drippings pan. Note that I took 4 potatoes and cut the bottoms off so they sit flat and hold the grate up off the rest of the veggies. I put the cut`off ends in the pan, and fished all the potato pieces out after cooking and served them as part of the meal. I think next time I'll make them taller -- maybe even with the top of the pan `` for better smoke flow around the bird.
All ready to go into the smoker.
I smoked at 250* for almost 3 hours.using maple pellets. When I pulled everything the IT of the Thigh was 177* and the Breast was 163*
Boy was it good!
Sorry, I was too anxious to cut into it (after a 30 min rest) that I forgot to take a picture of it whole, but you can tell from the leg how it all looked. It was such a deep mahogany color that I was afraid the outer layer would be dry and crusty, but it wasn't. It was just good! I figured my Au Jus would get poured over the sliced meat, but it was so juicy I didn't use a drop. We ate that night (Saturday) and had it again cold for a light meal Sunday evening. I think I'll use the Au Jus to make some gravy to go on mashed potatoes when we have it for a third meal :-)
A lot of enjoyment for $1/pound!
