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Firemonkey

Beer brined chicken

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I have used this brine recipe several times, and it is always quite good. Usually I use it on thighs, but this time I was cooking 2 whole chickens.

The brine is:

3/4 cup kosher salt

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 tablespoon freshly ground coarse black pepper

8-10 bay leaves, crumbled

2 12-ounce bottles of Bud Light (DJs Favorite 8) )

I mix up the dry ingredients, then add 2 cups of water that I have microwaved until boiling. Stir to dissolve the salt and sugar. Then add 2 more cups of cold water, and the beer. Stir until the foam is gone, and add 4 more cups of ice. I do all this in a deep dutch oven, and about 3/4 of the ice melts. Perfect for adding the chicken. Refrigerate for a few hours (about 4-5) until ready to cook. Remove chicken, and pat dry. I dont bother rinsing.

I use a fairly mild spice rub to go with it:

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon packed dark brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground coarse black pepper

2 teaspoons smoked sweet Spanish paprika

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon celery salt

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon dried crushed oregano (I use ground)

pinch or two of cayenne

I rub some olive oil on the skins before liberally applying the rub.

I made 2 whole chickens this time. After spatchcocking, and removing the keel bone, I just went ahead and cut them in half to make space management easier. I wanted room on the upper grill to cook some rice, too.

Hitting the grill, at 425 dome, indirect. I have the KK defelctor on the basket handles, and the upper grill in place. I tried a new twist this time, and put a few pieces of broken pizza stone around the outside perimiter on the main grill. Call it double indirect, I'm trying to keep the direct heat from rolling up the sides and burning the meat since I was placing it around the outside of the upper grill (saving room for a crock in the middle).

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About half way in (this was a 75-90 minute cook), I added a crock of saffron yellow rice. Just followed the stovetop directions; added boiling water to rice, covered and put on grill instead of simmering. My lid handle was hitting the top of the dome, so i put it on upside down.

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Teasing the neighbors again...

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Resting...

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Rice worked out well...

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Ready to devour - and it was good!

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Wow! That looks delicious! No worries with the pot cracking?

DMAX

Nope...It was an indirect cook, so as long as your vessel is oven safe, you should be good. I use stoneware/corningware/pyrex in the KK all the time. The little crocks are great for heating some sauce to serve with your ribs (picks up some smoke while its heating, too).

I bought some glazed stoneware from Old Time Pottery or someplace similar. I use those when I am doing a long, smokey cook - like beans along with ribs. That way I dont have to worry if about getting all the smoke residue out of the crevices, since its a dedicated grill implement. The one in the picture above is actual corningware. I think the glaze on the corningware pieces seems to come clean much easier (came perfectly clean in the dishwasher), and is less prone to crazing (spidery cracks in the glaze).

Im not sure I would put the glassware down in the fire, but for indirect its fine.

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Chix tits

Well, whilst at the local meat joint today, I was looking to get 50/50 ground beef/pork to make curry & rice for a family deal. I asked the meat kid if he could do that and he said yes. I was pleased and told him I would like 3lb.

He takes 3lb of ground beef and hands it to me? I asked what about the pork? He asks someone else and comes back and says the ground pork is pre-packaged out front? I am starting to wonder if we are speaking the same language here. I said I wanted it ground together. He points to the ground beef in the meat case AND ASKS ME IF THAT IS GROUND BEEF !

This is how my day started LOL.... I bought a small butt and a chuck roast and figured to grind it my ownself...... Sheesh...

So then on to chicken. I prefer to smoke split breasts bone/skin ON. Of course none to be had. They instead had the politically correct boneless skinless chickencrats style.

I have always avoided this, fearing it would change my sexual orientation and give me an avid fondness for Julie Andrews movies :)

I decided what the heck, and bought some, and then came home and looked up FM"s brine here. I copied it for the chix tits, and brined four hours, lowered the temp to 350 (indirect) via the guru at grill level and cooked to 168.59 internal. (42 minutes)

Have to say they were darn tasty and prolly easier for lunches the the boned style.

So BRAVO FM, good brine!

Have to go and find my Sound Of Music DVD now..

Later!

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