Going to Grill a Whole Chicken on the OTG - Need Advice

[Happy Hapgood]

Never had a chicken turn out right on the BBQ. This one will be 2 leg quarters and 2 breasts. Will be using Kingsford coal blue bag. Here come the questions:


Should I go over the coals or indirect?
What temp?
How do I get crispy skin?


I'm going to BBQ sauce at the end.


Thanks for any and all input. :thumb:

 

[SmokinAussie]

Use an Oven. :-D

 

[Fishwater2002]

I’ve been spatchcocking them & then doing them indirect at 375 with a quick crisp over the baskets if necessary.

 

[Lynn Dollar]

Use the baskets on both sides. put 25 coals in each side. put a drip pan down the middle with a little bit of water. put chicken in the middle. I've not done this in years, but I belieive the cooking time will be around one hour.


Crispy skin on barbecue chicken is the holy grail and I don't think it exists. And I've smoked hundreds of yardbirds. The bigger question is, why is crispy skin so important ? If ya want crispy skin, fry the bird.

 

[bschoen]

I always go indirect or else the dripping fat will flare on you creating a cremated yardbird. I am hit and miss with crispy skin on the grill. Oh, by grill I mean a Weber kettle.

 

[16Adams]

Love that chicken from Popeyes :-D

Soak chicken overnight in a mixture of water and onion powder (or garlic powder whichever on sale). Ext. 1 cup powder to one gallon water.
Remove Pat dry then let sit in fridge several hours until skin drys out a bit.
Any of the cooking methods. Direct-Offset-reverse sear -center of coals your choice but finish on or near direct glazing with your QSauce several times.

I usually will hit chicken with a few dashes of Worcestershire sometime mid cook. Same with seasoning.

Good luck, have fun and look forward to some photos

 

[16Adams]

Side note. Watched a cooking show a while back where after thigh were cooked skin was removed and fried. Glazing and sauce applied to the meat

Chicken Chicharrones :-D

 

[kls44]

I cook chicken direct over loosely scattered coals. I pat the chicken dry, apply some evoo so seasoning of choice will stick. Place on 350° grill bone side down for about 30 minutes then flip for 10 minutes then flip again. Finish for a few minutes with your sauce. Enjoy!
I use a Weber Performer with top vent wide open, bottom vent to maintain temp. Sometimes I'll put in a small chunk of pecan on the coals.

 

[Dweverett]

I use my slow and sear and cook on the indirect side. Chimney of lit charcoal and have the bottom vent open and the top about 3/4 usually but sometimes I can leave it open. I try to have the dome thermometer reading between 500-600. A whole chicken takes a little over an hour usually, your broken down one will probably be a little under an hour.

Skin browns and crisps up nicely without a need to put it over the direct coals.

Good luck!

 

[Robert]

Mike,


If you do not have a Vortex for your OTG, I highly suggest that you get one. One of the best gadgets I have ever purchased. Your chicken pieces will be done in about 45 minutes. You can then crisp the skin by placing pieces directly over the Vortex for a couple of minutes per side.


Lots of people do the same thing with the Slow-N-Sear. I have one, just do not use it in favor of the Vortex. I really need to stop treating the S-N-S like stray dog and stretch my cooking skills a bit, but it sits in a performer with a cover on it. I'm too lazy to remove it and I cook on the 26" all the time instead of the 22".

 

[tom b]

do you have a rotisserie ring Mike? this has become my go to for whole chicken
https://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=282192

 

[long haired hippie]

Go with Fishwater2002

 

[Lynn Dollar]

What I did on the Kettle came from this cookbook that came with my first Kettle I bought in 1990

 

[HogGrog]

All good advice above!

I realize you asked about a Weber OTG but I like to spatchcock and cook over wood coals on the Santa Maria over medium heat while mopping with schmaltz!

 

[Titch]

What I did on the Kettle came from this cookbook that came with my first Kettle I bought in 1990

I have never had a failure using a Weber Kettle cookbook recipe:thumb:

 

[Happy Hapgood]

Great info guys, Thanks!

 

[Happy Hapgood]

I do not have a SNS or a votex. Going the old fashion way. Coals at one end and going indirect. Bone side down and I will have a probe on the indirect side. Saucing for about 20 mins. Leg quarters closer to the coals. Will try to post pics.

 

[Robert]

I do not have a SNS or a votex. Going the old fashion way. Coals at one end and going indirect. Bone side down and I will have a probe on the indirect side. Saucing for about 20 mins. Leg quarters closer to the coals. Will try to post pics.

One other technique that you could try is the snake method. Some folks line the outside rim of the charcoal grates in a horse shoe shape. Stack the briquettes with two on the bottom and one on top with small chunks of wood spaced around on the top of the "snake". Put three or five lit coals on one end and let it burn around.



I tried this once with my 26" and a Smoke Ezee attachment(it effectively transforms you 26" into a 26"WSM and as far as I can tell is no longer produced) and smoked three 5-6 pound prime rib pieces with pretty good success.



Some folks refer to it on the Weber groups as the Nascar technique.


For me, the snake is more of a low and slow technique which might not work out for a higher temp that a lot of folks prefer for their chicken.


Thanks,


Robert