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Chicken Issues

Zach_Cristol_277044

I just got into sous vide cooking, and tried the "Can't-F***-It-Up Fried Chicken", and we F***ed it up. Here are some of the issues we found.

1. The dark meat chicken was too moist to the point it was un appetizing.

2. All the chicken I have been cooking has a weird "chickeny" flavor that is unappealing and not restaurant quality taste.

3. The consistency of the white meat was better, but still was not as supple as it looked in the video.

4. For the batter, I used bread flour, and it didn't have a super crunchy exterior.

These problems with the chicken itself could be due to the fact that we are buying Safeway chicken as opposed to like whole foods or central market chicken. If there is a big difference with pastry flour, then that might solve our crunch problem. Any chicken specific feedback, or feedback in general will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

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tshewman

1. The dark chicken vs white chicken is often a preference of flavor (I prefer dark meat) and I can't say I've ever found it too moist.

2. Weird flavor? No safeway here and I buy local organic/pasture raised whenever possible. No doubt, quality could be an issue.

3. My sons prefers white meat. But I always brine my chicken (I haven't gone without a brine in ~3 years).

4. which dipping procedure? We actually prefer the double dip. :-). Would recommend comparing them

fisher23

As @Todd_Shewman_38102 said, I always brine chicken. It really helps to pull the myoglobin out of the meat and bone for better appearance and flavor, especially from standard grocery store chicken. You can always increase the cooking temperature a few degrees and or cook the dark meat longer. As for the frying, pastry flour will be crisper, AP flour would be better than bread flour. You said batter, do you mean breading? The high oil temperature is also important.

Zach_Cristol_277044

Thanks man! Yea, it's weird, usually this normal store bought chicken doesn't usually have this taste if I do traditional cooking techniques (like grilling or baking). I would say the flavor is similar to how it smelt before hand. Hopefully brining will help some of that. I will also try AP flour or pastry flour next time. Also I used vegetable oil on 400 F, do you think the vegetable oil did anything bad, maybe peanut next time?

Zach_Cristol_277044

Also the white meat was a little dry, do you think this was due to the lack of brining or general quality of the chicken? I would think with sous vide I can get superior consistency and taste regardless of the quality of meat.

tshewman

what vegetable oil? I'm personally not a fan of Canola, though many use it and like it and good peanut oil is expensive but worth it for the limited amount we deep fry.

fisher23

Brining will definitely help. I haven't ever had SV chicken that was dry unless it was cooked at a higher temp, so I am a bit confused there. Maybe over fried?

fisher23

Was it fresh oil? Rancid oil would give a off flavor. Because you're frying at 400° F you need an oil that can take the high temperature...peanut would be a better choice.

tangma27

Hey Todd-Do you know why the chicken breasts are cooked at 68? I like my chicken breasts 60, and I think the team does as well. Is it just because the dark meat does better at 68C and for convenience sake the breast is cooked at the same temp? I'm planning on frying chicken this weekend too but I was wondering why 68C. Especially because I'm only doing breasts because my friend likes white meat better. (I like dark meat better but oh well)

tshewman

I thought it was 65C? For me, I prefer my breasts done at 60-62C and dark at 65C. When combining, I start at 65 and drop to 62 when I put the breasts in. It's not like dropping to 62 after an hour will uncook the dark meat. :-)

fisher23

I think they have this at the higher temperature because you are cooking both white and dark in the same bath just for different times. @Todd_Shewman_38102's technique solves that issue. If you're only cooking breast I would cook at your preferred temperature. When you get your Joule you can cook them in separate baths at different temps. 😊

tangma27

Ah right that...is very true. Derp HAHA. Yeah but they recommend 68C in the recipe but it's all preference anyways.