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Competition BBQ *On Topic Only* Discussion regarding all aspects of Competition BBQ. Experiences competing or visiting, questions, getting started, Equipment, announcements of events, Results, Reviews, Planning, etc. Questions here will be responded to with competition BBQ in mind. |
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01-27-2020, 08:10 PM | #1 |
is one Smokin' Farker
Join Date: 09-21-09
Location: San Jose, Ca
Name/Nickname : JT
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Knife for Chicken Skins
Hey all, I've been using those cheap Kiwi knives from the restaurant supply for many years to scrape my comp chicken skins. They work great, like little razor blades, but I'm tired of always replacing them after I use them to death. I'm looking to upgrade to a nice quality knife that would perform just as good. Something sharp, light, thin, holds an edge all day. Does anybody have any upgrade suggestions? What do you alls use to remove fat from your skins?
BTW I did my first comp of the year this past weekend and got my arse clobbered. I violated every rule I ever learned about comp BBQ; I cooked on an untested pit (fail), I relied on tech to wake me up (it didn't), I changed my chicken game plan last minute which lead me to completely FORGET to season my chicken! I seriously turned in unseasoned chicken, only sauce. I didn't realize it until after I turned in my ribs, DOH! 5 teams scored lower in chicken so they must have really screwed up! lol. Cheers to the next comp!
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01-27-2020, 09:08 PM | #2 |
Full Fledged Farker
Join Date: 07-03-13
Location: St Paul, MN
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Simply dont scrape.
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01-28-2020, 07:08 AM | #3 |
Quintessential Chatty Farker
Join Date: 04-21-06
Location: Lake Ponderosa-Montezuma, IA
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6" Filet knife?
Ed
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Designer of a custom drum smoker Customized Aussie gas passer Turkey fryer Extremely seasoned hand hammered Wok Pit Boss-HART BURN Competition BBQ Team KCBS certified judge And Your not the boss of me either!! |
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01-28-2020, 07:30 AM | #4 |
Take a breath!
Join Date: 06-24-09
Location: Bedford, NH
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Any knife will dull, so just sharpen it.
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Bone Daddy's; 4 Gateway Drums; XL Big Green Egg; Napoleon Pro 665 |
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01-28-2020, 08:38 AM | #5 |
On the road to being a farker
Join Date: 02-22-10
Location: CO
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Work on a process that does not require completely scraping the skin - lot flavor there.
I use a couple of these and keep them sharp (key part)..... Wusthof Pro Semi-Stiff Curved Boning Knife, 6-Inch Also use this knife to trim all the other meats. I think a couple of these and a good slicing knife are about all you need for BBQ. |
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01-28-2020, 09:25 AM | #6 |
Full Fledged Farker
Join Date: 09-03-10
Location: Monroe, Ga
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Back when I did thighs and scrapped the skins I used a paint scraper from Home Depot like this one: https://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-2-5-...-HDX/206458389
It took a moment to get use to being able to scrape the skins without ripping them but once I got the hang of it I was able to process 20 thighs in about 15-30 minutes. The time really depended on how picky I was being when I processed them.
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Wanna B A Pitmaster Competition Team |
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01-28-2020, 10:32 AM | #7 |
Full Fledged Farker
Join Date: 01-31-11
Location: Ottumwa, Iowa
Name/Nickname : Erik
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Are we trying to turn Q into a science?
RELAX & buy a whetstone.
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Erik - 22" & 18" Weber, 22" Blackstone and a nice COS (cheap cuz I made it) |
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01-28-2020, 04:18 PM | #8 |
Take a breath!
Join Date: 11-09-11
Location: Everett, WA
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I've used a Havalon Baracuta knife for many years. It has replacement blades you can buy, so when it gets dull, you just replace the blade. The same handle accommodates a couple of different blade profiles, but I like the 127XT blades for chicken. It also is really good at taking the silver skin off brisket, pork and ribs. Amazon or Cabelas has them. When you first put a new blade on, you have to be careful because its so sharp that you can rip your chicken skin more easily than when it gets a little duller.
https://www.amazon.com/Havalon-HV127...s%2C207&sr=8-5 |
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01-28-2020, 05:09 PM | #9 |
is one Smokin' Farker
Join Date: 09-21-09
Location: San Jose, Ca
Name/Nickname : JT
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To those who are helpful, thanks for the tips.
Good idea on the Havalon and the paint scraper. With the kiwi I'm able to cut between the fat layer and skin because the knife is so thin, I never really needed to scratch at it. I might try that. Also I've tried various boning knives over the years and they just dont seem to work for me. I do all of my trimming with a Victorinox boning knife but for skins no bueno. The bretheren mentioned Kiwi's many years ago and they have been great. I figured I would see if anybody had any other idears out there, as always the Bretheren do not disappoint! Thanks again, JT
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01-28-2020, 05:37 PM | #10 |
somebody shut me the fark up.
Join Date: 01-14-06
Location: At home on the range in Wyoming
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9 or 10 years ago I took a competition cooking class and although I didn't enter a sanctioned KCBS comp for 10 years, scraping skin became part of my weekly backyard prep for thighs. Bite through is one thing, but the calorie reduction is very important. Removing skin fat can cut out 250 or so calories.
I started with a fillet knife, went to a bull nose chef's knife, moved to a triangle paint scraper (which I re-profiled on all three sides), to a taxidermists fleshing spoon and have now gone full circle returning to the fillet knife. I put a 15° angle on the fillet blade and get it scary sharp. It takes me maybe 90 seconds for fat removal. Here is a VIDEO one of the team took. It was nighttime so the white balance is off, but it shows the general ideal.
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~thirdeye~ Barbecuist ~ Charcuterist ~ KCBS Master Judge & CTC Big Green Eggs, Big Drum Smokers, Big Chiefs, Weber Smokey Joe "Custom Tall Boy" Oil Patch Horizontal, SnS Deluxe Kettle Visit my Cookin' Site by clicking HERE Barbecue is not rocket surgery “The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it's hard to verify their authenticity” ~ Abraham Lincoln
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01-28-2020, 06:06 PM | #11 |
is one Smokin' Farker
Join Date: 09-21-09
Location: San Jose, Ca
Name/Nickname : JT
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You made quick work of that fat in your video! Good job Thirdeye, thanks for the pics as well. I'm doing a test tonight with my uncooked chicken from this past weekends comp. I'm going to make sure to season it this time!
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Rec Tec RT700 Klose 20x30 Weber Performer |
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01-28-2020, 07:16 PM | #12 | |
somebody shut me the fark up.
Join Date: 01-14-06
Location: At home on the range in Wyoming
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Quote:
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~thirdeye~ Barbecuist ~ Charcuterist ~ KCBS Master Judge & CTC Big Green Eggs, Big Drum Smokers, Big Chiefs, Weber Smokey Joe "Custom Tall Boy" Oil Patch Horizontal, SnS Deluxe Kettle Visit my Cookin' Site by clicking HERE Barbecue is not rocket surgery “The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it's hard to verify their authenticity” ~ Abraham Lincoln
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01-28-2020, 07:28 PM | #13 |
is one Smokin' Farker
Join Date: 09-21-09
Location: San Jose, Ca
Name/Nickname : JT
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Uniform size is always a struggle. I buy two packs of thighs and weigh each piece. Anything under 7oz or over 8oz gets put aside for home testing. I usually have 10-12 pieces after that to work with. I use 9x13 pans which fit 6 just perfect and keeps shape. Chicken is such a PIA! lol Killer box, thanks for the idea.
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Rec Tec RT700 Klose 20x30 Weber Performer |
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01-28-2020, 07:43 PM | #14 |
somebody shut me the fark up.
Join Date: 01-14-06
Location: At home on the range in Wyoming
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My after-trim weight was 4 to 4.2 ounces.
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~thirdeye~ Barbecuist ~ Charcuterist ~ KCBS Master Judge & CTC Big Green Eggs, Big Drum Smokers, Big Chiefs, Weber Smokey Joe "Custom Tall Boy" Oil Patch Horizontal, SnS Deluxe Kettle Visit my Cookin' Site by clicking HERE Barbecue is not rocket surgery “The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it's hard to verify their authenticity” ~ Abraham Lincoln
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01-28-2020, 09:07 PM | #15 |
is One Chatty Farker
Join Date: 07-05-11
Location: Pierre, SD
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Leave the fat on the skin, It's flavor.
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Last Call Heroes BBQ - Outlaw Smokers - Gateway Drums |
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