Question on freezing chicken
 

Hi there,

I've been signed up to smoke some chicken for a local church meal this Thursday. I was initially going to take off work on Thursday to do so and cook it all in the afternoon, but I find myself with some extra free time this weekend, so I thought about cooking today and freezing until Thursday.

Anyone with experience in how it turns out?

You can safely do that. I would cook and shred. Re-season to your liking and put in vacuum bags. Add some leftover juice, or some broth. Not a lot! Vacuum seal and freeze. To reheat, thaw about 8-10 hours before in the fridge. I use an Anova set at 150 degrees for about 30-45 minutes. Otherwise, you can simmer (not boil) and probably get the same result. I’m convinced that it tastes better this way, too.

^ +1 I agree.....

Don't boil the bags, it will further cook the chicken making it dry. Just heat to a safe serving temperature.

Awesome! Thanks guys. What temp should I take it to in order to pull easy/shred?

I do dark meat 185*ish or maybe slightly higher and it’s easy to pull.

Totally agree with above comments. And 185-190° is the magic number for me as well when it comes to dark meat.

I agree. Also, if you're going to mix in breast meat, you can add it later in the cook and pull it at 165.