For those who cook legs in comp turn ins

GreenDrake · 08-10-2011, 08:49 AM

I have been messing with the idea and trying out some batches...but aside from doing a couple dozen legs to get a good six that don't "lollipop" on you, what's the trick to keeping the meat from pulling up the bone on half the dang things? I am all for getting outside the box, thighs are the great satan, but seem to be working okay for now. What's the leg secret?

swamprb · 08-10-2011, 12:31 PM

Sounds like you are overcooking the legs if the meat is pulling away from the bone.

A lot of teams around here turn in legs, not lollipops-save those for an appetizer.

At home I play around with the Rib-O-Lator and the Bayou Classic Wing and Leg Racks.

Matt_A · 08-10-2011, 01:51 PM

What internal temperature do you cook your legs to? Connective tissue collagen begins to dissolve to gelatin. Melting of collagen starts to accelerate at 160F and continues rapidly up to 180F. If you hold it between 160F and 180F for too long the tenons deteriorate as the collagen breaks down. Since the muscle tissue shrinks during the cooking process this causes a lot of tension on the tendons. Once the collagen starts to render into gelatin, the tendons can break loose and cause your chicken leg lollipop.

early mornin' smokin' · 08-11-2011, 10:13 AM

I cook mine to about 170 in a kettle indirect. I keep the meatiest part of the leg towards the fire most of the time.

Diva Q · 08-11-2011, 10:29 AM

those are some excellent looking legs!

Sledneck · 08-11-2011, 10:33 AM

Do you get bite thru skin with that bayou hanger? Im gonna do legs in new holland in 2 weeks. Never done them before t a contest. They most likely will tank but dont care

early mornin' smokin' · 08-11-2011, 10:36 AM

do it sled!

The Cosmic Pig · 08-11-2011, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diva Q

those are some excellent looking legs!

That's what I'M sayin'!

HarleyGirl14226 · 08-11-2011, 12:05 PM

Yummy looking legs!

Goddahavit · 08-11-2011, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sledneck

Do you get bite thru skin with that bayou hanger? Im gonna do legs in new holland in 2 weeks. Never done them before t a contest. They most likely will tank but dont care

you can if you treat it like a thigh... sigh, yuck stupid comp chicken...

mikerobes · 08-11-2011, 07:08 PM

Yes , on the legs looking good

GreenDrake · 08-12-2011, 05:23 AM

Gonna do some test legs again this weekend on the Traegers....here we go again. Hey Brian, see you again next month at the Skewered Apple, yes?

08-10-2011, 08:49 AM	#1
GreenDrake is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 06-21-10 Location: Right over there	For those who cook legs in comp turn ins I have been messing with the idea and trying out some batches...but aside from doing a couple dozen legs to get a good six that don't "lollipop" on you, what's the trick to keeping the meat from pulling up the bone on half the dang things? I am all for getting outside the box, thighs are the great satan, but seem to be working okay for now. What's the leg secret?

08-10-2011, 12:31 PM	#2
swamprb somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 10-27-06 Location: Bothell WA	Sounds like you are overcooking the legs if the meat is pulling away from the bone. A lot of teams around here turn in legs, not lollipops-save those for an appetizer. At home I play around with the Rib-O-Lator and the Bayou Classic Wing and Leg Racks. __________________ Brian - Left Hand Smoke BBQ PNWBA 2010 Team of the Year BGE's/WSM's/Pellet Pro WSM/BWS Gater/BDS Clones/Cookshack 008/Weber Performer w EZ-Que/Cajun Bandit/Rib-O-Lator Test Pilot/La Caja China/BBQ Guru/Weber 1000 RK Drum Coffee Roaster Follow Left Hand Smoke on Facebook!http://www.facebook.com/pages/Left-H...462391?sk=wall KCBS CBJ/PNWBA CBJ www.pnwba.com

08-10-2011, 01:51 PM	#3
Matt_A is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 07-19-11 Location: Moore, Oklahoma	What internal temperature do you cook your legs to? Connective tissue collagen begins to dissolve to gelatin. Melting of collagen starts to accelerate at 160F and continues rapidly up to 180F. If you hold it between 160F and 180F for too long the tenons deteriorate as the collagen breaks down. Since the muscle tissue shrinks during the cooking process this causes a lot of tension on the tendons. Once the collagen starts to render into gelatin, the tendons can break loose and cause your chicken leg lollipop. __________________ [B]Matt Armistead[/B]

08-11-2011, 10:13 AM	#4
early mornin' smokin' is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 10-06-08 Location: wading river, ny	I cook mine to about 170 in a kettle indirect. I keep the meatiest part of the leg towards the fire most of the time. __________________ L trailer spicewine, webers, 2-26.75's, performer, heineken 22 1/2, 7 level pro-q 20 excel

08-11-2011, 10:29 AM	#5
Diva Q is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 07-20-07 Location: Barrie,ON,Canada eh!	those are some excellent looking legs! __________________ [URL="http://divaq.ca/"][B]Diva Q Website[/B][/URL] Follow me on [URL="https://twitter.com/DivaQBBQ"][B]Twitter[/B][/URL] and like us on [URL="http://www.facebook.com/DivaQBBQ"][B]Facebook[/B][/URL]. Checkout my new Cookbook on [URL="http://www.amazon.com/Diva-Qs-Barbecue-Recipes-Cooking/dp/0147529824"][B]AMAZON[/B][/URL] [CENTER][SIZE=3][B]Life is too short for bad BBQ[/B][/SIZE]®[/CENTER]

08-11-2011, 10:33 AM	#6
Sledneck is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 12-04-05 Location: Wantagh, NY	Do you get bite thru skin with that bayou hanger? Im gonna do legs in new holland in 2 weeks. Never done them before t a contest. They most likely will tank but dont care __________________ [SIZE="3"][B][COLOR="Blue"][URL="http://bbqilluminati.blogspot.com"]BBQ Illuminati Blog[/URL][/COLOR][/B][/SIZE] [B][COLOR="Blue"][B]Disclaimer: The poster does not take any responsibility for any bad feelings or sense of exclusion that the reader of this post may have-whether real or imagined. Reading threads poses inherent risks. The poster of this thread would like to also remind readers to make sure they have a functional sense of humor before they visit any discussion board.[/B][/COLOR][/B]

08-11-2011, 10:36 AM	#7
early mornin' smokin' is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 10-06-08 Location: wading river, ny	do it sled! __________________ L trailer spicewine, webers, 2-26.75's, performer, heineken 22 1/2, 7 level pro-q 20 excel

08-11-2011, 12:05 PM	#9
HarleyGirl14226 Full Fledged Farker Join Date: 12-30-10 Location: Amherst, NY	Yummy looking legs! __________________ Gail The 5th Artery BBQ [URL]https://www.facebook.com/The5thArteryBBQ[/URL] [I]KCBS / NEBS / CBJ[/I] [I][I]MAK 2 Star General / [/I][/I][I]Yoder YS640[/I] [I]2 - WSM's 22 1/2 / [/I][I]3 - Weber kettle's[/I] [I]Backwoods Fatboy[/I] [I][COLOR=magenta]PINK[/COLOR] Thermapen[/I]

08-11-2011, 07:08 PM	#11
mikerobes On the road to being a farker Join Date: 07-11-11 Location: Durand,MI	Yes , on the legs looking good __________________ Smokin' In The D BBQ Team Durand,MI Southern Q Gravity Limo Cooker Southern Q 500 Water Cooker Sometimes It's better to ask for forgiveness than permission I like to sit down and have a quiet beer, then several noisy ones

08-12-2011, 05:23 AM	#12
GreenDrake is One Chatty Farker Join Date: 06-21-10 Location: Right over there	Gonna do some test legs again this weekend on the Traegers....here we go again. Hey Brian, see you again next month at the Skewered Apple, yes?

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