Go to the Recipe: Smokerless Smoked Chicken
I usually make roasted chicken by blasting it in a 450 degree oven for an hour. It turns out perfect almost every time. Could I follow the directions for this recipe except use a hot oven for an hour instead of slowly cooking it?
These two guys have been a lot of fun to watch. Still love you though Grant!
What kind of injector do you guys use? Can you recommend a good brand?
What's the chesteps considered opinion about using phosphates (like STPP) for the brine. Will phosphates markedly make the chicken juicer?
I'd like to see more of Chris, he is our food science hero!
Shouldn't we blanch the bird before the brine/refrigerated aging process for safety reasons? That is the recommended step in MCFH, am I incorrect?
It will certainly not come out as good if you blast the oven at 450, you will miss the juicy experience. Trust me, low and slow is the best way - and it will result in a bird like you have never experienced before. It will change your perception of chicken by cooking it low and slow!
Are all the videos going to be narrated going forward? I really dislike them compared to the good music and total silence. Just my 2 cents.
I've always been told to cook chicken to an internal temperature of 74 degrees C. I trust that you guys know what you're talking about, but why is it safe at 63 degrees C?
That is the MCFH step in their roast chicken. They are mimicking a Beijing duck recipe. I found that the blanching step didn't really help that much. However, the cooks illustrated crispy chicken calls for baking powder to be added to the seasoning blend. I thought that helped a little bit.
I just finished the initial steps of this recipe. Can't wait to see how it turns out!
One of these days, I want to fly up and hang out with all of you! What a great team you have!!!
Shit Man ~ I got a bitchen new smoker for Father's day and you keep coming out with these great recipes that don't require a smoker...Should I just sell it now? Cheers!
Great tips, and thanks for all your work!
What kind of salt did you guys use?
Hi! Firstly, chicken is no different than any other meat in that you only really have to worry about bacterial contamination on the surface, unless the meat has been punctured in some way. Granted, this recipe employs injection brining, so the carrying of bacteria from the surface to the core may indeed be a concern. Fortunately, food can be pasteurised at temperatures as low as 55C; it's the combination of temperature and time that results in pasteurisation, not the temperature alone.
could you use this same recipe/technique with turkey? Like for Thanksgiving?
If you click on Syringe in the recipe under Equipment it will take you to the Amazon page for the syringes.
is it safe to use liquid smoke? )
I'd like to recreate this recipe on a larger scale and it would be easier to submerge brine the birds, even if it takes longer passive time. How long do you recommend submerge brining the chicken pieces?
Hahahha same here , I want chefsteps perfect smoker recipes !
Submerging the chickens in brine can mess with the skin. Do you the ability to hang the birds with injected brine?
Are you guys enrolled in our Barbecue class? Lots of smoker stuff there. (We're still big smoker fans.)
Please add content on how to smoke a bird and how to smoke brisket to balance the no-smoker recipes recently released. Not enough smoker content in that class, it has the potential to be the gold standard if just a few more recipes were added!
Actually it would be much easier to not submerge, plus you would have the added benefit of assuring that the skin is perfect. The downside of this method is refrigeration space, not the injection brine technique used.
It was my assumption that the blanching step was necessary to avoid bacteria from the surface into the meat when we inject the brine. The final cooking temperature is lower than food safety standards recommend, hence I always assumed this was a safety measure to help reduce contamination risks. In turn, I also assume the longer cooking process would reduce the risk of pathogens even though the final cooked temperature is lower.
Hey guys! I was wondering what the reason was for using Liquid Aminos instead of a high quality soy sauce - like a Usukuchi of some kind. I know you said 'or soy sauce', but are the Aminos preferred? Thanks!
If I was unable to find liquid aminos, what kind of soy sauce could I use? I generally use the China Lily brand, seems to have a really nice salt balance, kikkoman is pretty salty, at least for my palate. Is it just preference at that point?
try brining your chicken before tossing it on the smoker, it will stay moist and juice. If your chicken is dry and chewy you cooked it too long. If they skin is bitter and tough you over smoked it. try different fruit woods like cherry, peach, or plum to add a different flavor to the smoke. Use this recipe for those days the weather decides to not co-operate for your planned bbq.
Your kidding right? liquid smoke is exactly that. it is made by allowing smoke to filter thru water. Nothing but water and smoke flavors that have settled into the water. You can even make it at home if you have a ton of free time.
Remembering an experiment from a biology class a long time ago, the salt in the brine solution is also going to help kill any bacteria that gets pulled in by the needle.
does it smoke up your kitchen? I followed a recipe that suggested cooking it hot and fast. the chicken was good but the chicken fat burned on the bottom of the pan and smoked up the whole house including the fire alarm which took a blast of air from one of the cans of air used to clear computer keyboards. When I put chicken on the pit I try to maintain between 200 and 225 until internal temperatures are around 165 or so in the thighs or the juices run clear when I pull the thigh away from the bird.
Yeah just a preference. It is really just adding seasoning to the mix. Cheers
No reason. The aminos are gluten free and some of the people around the office are gluten free so we went with aminos. They are purely for flavor so use whatever you choose.
Yes that sounds awesome actually. Smoked breast with leg roulade. Nom!
The smoked salt is from Saltworks. Check out www.seasalt.com
You must have an amazing son Richard! Does your son like corndogs?
We go low and slow for juiciness and less smoke in the kitchen. The whole point of the technique is not set off any fire alarms(which we have done plenty here in the market )
For how long time did you app. cook the chicken at 91 degrees, before it got to 63 degrees internal?
I have a smoker and have tried smoking a chick. As you mentioned at the start of the video the meat comes out dry, and the skin isn't too appetizing either. So I'll definitely try this method, in hopes to find a smoked chicken that I like. One thing that I learned from smoking a chicken in my smoker is that it doesn't take a lot of smoke to flavor the chicken. In fact it seems pretty easy to kill it with smoke. How's the flavor in the final result of the smokerless chicken?
Hi this is a pretty cool looking table. Hope this helps. It only applies to salmonella though.
https://ourdailybrine.com/wp-content/uploads/our-daily-brine_salmonella-6.5D-reduction-table.pdf
It took about 1.5-2 hours to reach 63 °C.
The smoke flavor is nice, but not overwhelming. Also, since it is in the meat rather than on the meat it is much more balanced.
This is such a great recipe and concept. Wonderfully flavored meat that stayed tender and juicy.
I don't think you could do this at such high heat. I am afraid the molasses in the glaze would burn up and give you charcoal color chicken skin before your bird was cooked all the way through...
Looks amazing!
I suggest making extra glaze and adding xanthan gum and use it as a sauce on the chicken or on the side.
What kind of smoked salt is used in the brine? seasalt.com has a bunch offered on their site.
First I would like to congratulate you guys on the terrific job you do with the recipes and all.
If I could ask a question, is that I wonder if there is substitute for the molasses. I have been transferred overseas for work and it seems to be pretty hard to find molasses here.
Thank you very much.
I tried this recipe several times. Chicken was always juicy and tasted great. The only problem was with the skin, which always was oily with glaze flowing down and make many small "dots"... Any idea how to solve this?
Can we...reuse needles? Serious question though. If we use soapy water etc
It's not safe at all.
Is that 1.5-2hours including the 30min of glazing?
The type of syringe used in this video is for use in the kitchen, it is designed to inject marinades and brines. It is not a medical grade needle, it is not disposable, instead it is designed to be reused again and again. You can get a cheap one on amazon, search for BBQ Syringe.
http://amazingribs.com/recipes/rubs_pastes_marinades_and_brines/zen_of_injecting_meat_and_meat_injections.html
In your recipe are you suggesting that you leave the chicken in the fridge uncovered? If so, I was just wondering if this was safe to do? Thanks!
Eye see...
Same problem here.
wow,that is great, thanks for sharing. Chicken are full of nutrition and delicious. But I have a cold now and I cannot eat chicken. Because there is a rumor that chicken will stock producing antibody and make cold last longer. Is that true?
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/common-cold/in-depth/health-tip/art-20048631
not sure where you heard that chicken will stop your body from producing antibodies, but that's nonsense. feel better.
as long as your chicken isn't touching anything, why not? any bacteria that could be on the surface of the chicken is going to remain there. it's not just going to leave the surface unless there is such force of wind in your refrigerator that causes water drops to start flying around, and if that's the case, you have bigger problems than worrying about a raw chicken.
Agreed, f*ck talking. Silent vids rule.
Well, there is an additional step where you crank the oven up to 400f and continue baking for ten mins or until the skin is crisp. During that step, it goes without saying that the internal temp of the chicken is going to rise up a few more points (and will probably reach the 74 C mark). If you wait for the thing to reach 74 C then crisp up the skin, you'll end up with something that is too dry.
Alright, this recipe was a tedious disappointment, here's why: 1. Obviously, fridge space. 2. Liquid smoke gets into everything for 1-2 days. The smell is really strong & penetrating and I wouldn't be surprised if the insides of neighboring eggs are also smoky after this. 3. The main reason I was excited to make this was for the crispy skin. As any experienced home cook knows, crispy skin perfection is difficult to attain. Well, with this recipe, the skin becomes leathery... like a football. I hate football.
Exactly
Is it safe to assume you would stick the thermometer in the thigh of the chicken? Please advise.
Usually when you here things like this it is best to do research or find where your source got that information. Chicken soup has been a comfort food for eons and I cannot think of any casual relationship between chicken and ineffectiveness of antibodies.
Solved buy bio chicken ...
Can I do the same with a duck (without the brining)?
I used Pearl River Bridge Superior Light Soy Sauce. Next time I might use Dark Soy Sauce for color, and I think that Indonesian Kecap Manis -- which has palm sugar molasses in it -- would probably also work really well.
Hi there, you could use the same process, but without the brine, you'd lose quite a bit of the smoky flavor.
Chicken stock is good for colds since its an easily digestible source of protein and veggies. If chicken meat is not agreeable with you go with soup!
Match whatever kind you're using in the brine!
Email hola estoy en bogota Para Que La piel tenga un tostadito se le echa limón, a la piel, el problema de los puntos es por la salsa de soya muy claro, hay mejores marcas de salsa de soya que pintan mejor son mas oscuras
In other words it's not safe. But lots of things are not safe and we still eat them. :-)
Here's a very lucid video that concludes liquid smoke is safer than traditionally smoked foods:
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/is-liquid-smoke-flavoring-carcinogenic/
Apparently, I love correcting factually incorrect posts from 5 years ago lol. [But if people in the future go back and read these comments, it might help someone.]
It is incorrect that chicken is no different than any other meat and so we only have to worry about surface bacterial contamination. It is well established that bacteria can penetrate the interior of chicken meat, so if you want to be safe you should always cook chicken to a temp that will pasteurize it.
The same is true of fish. However, many fishes are not appealing when cooked to a pasteurizing temperature, and we eat them anyway.
As you note, it can generally be assume that the interiors of beef and pork muscles are sterile. In most cases. For example, Costco, a popular source of good beef in the US, blade tenderizes most of their beef. This results in surface bacteria being pushed into the interior of the meat, so this no longer applies.
You can also assume that the interior of your 145°F chicken breast will reach 150°F due to carry-over cooking. At that temp, it will be pasteurized in about 1 min.
I prefer talkies. Grant is such a gas!
