Had it with chicken thighs!

ViciousGame said:
What's the advantage to brining rather than injecting it with something like FAB C or Butcher BBQ Bird Booster...or simply chicken broth?
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I will give the results of what we got on 2 different occasions. We used untrimmed thighs. We did a test on weight ( since weight is moisture ). 3 different mixes. 1- we weighed to start, used an over the counter soak available to buy, 2- we weighed to start, used our Bird Booster. So we had a starting, reweighed in one hour, 2nd hour, 3rd hour, and the 4th hour. At this point the 1#product that was soaking (brining) gained 6.5% weight and the #2 injected had gained 22%. I decided to take this to the extreme and said lets let all the product set over night. We only had fractions of change over night.

I couldn't replicate every way of cooking so I decided to take the product out of the brines and I then set it on a raised cookie sheet and let it set for 1 hour to see how it retained the moisture. Both products lost less then 1% in weight.

So my finding are 7% gain with saoking/brining or 22% gain with Bird Booster injecting. I will also say I had no Fab C to run a test with.
 
I actually do use FAB C (and D) and can say that even though I have never weighed the end product that it comes out bursting with juice. I believe that the Fab helps keep it in while adding flavor. I probably add 1-2 oz. of injection per chicken piece.
 
rtc said:
I'd be happy to give you the Chicken Secrets if you guys are willing to give up the Tri-Tip secret...
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Ha, ha, ha . . . Tri-Tip is easy compared to making chicken that you can't wait to eat after cleaning 15 of them! Tri-tip you just rub with olive oil, season with Santa Maria, let it sit with rub and come to room temp. Then cook at 250 indirect for 30-45 with cherry wood, then sear it till you get medium rare temp. Rest for 15-20 minutes, slice against the grain and enjoy! It helps to get waygu tri-tips too!

Eggspert
 
Butcher BBQ said:
I will give the results of what we got on 2 different occasions. We used untrimmed thighs. We did a test on weight ( since weight is moisture ). 3 different mixes. 1- we weighed to start, used an over the counter soak available to buy, 2- we weighed to start, used our Bird Booster. So we had a starting, reweighed in one hour, 2nd hour, 3rd hour, and the 4th hour. At this point the 1#product that was soaking (brining) gained 6.5% weight and the #2 injected had gained 22%. I decided to take this to the extreme and said lets let all the product set over night. We only had fractions of change over night.

I couldn't replicate every way of cooking so I decided to take the product out of the brines and I then set it on a raised cookie sheet and let it set for 1 hour to see how it retained the moisture. Both products lost less then 1% in weight.

So my finding are 7% gain with saoking/brining or 22% gain with Bird Booster injecting. I will also say I had no Fab C to run a test with.
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I am definitely trying your bird booster next. I have some, just have to work the courage up to cleaning/trimming more chicken.

I have tried a number of different finish temps. 170-200. I have not found a "sweet finish temp" yet to pull. I hear a lot of people pull at 185, but my chicken is dry/mealy at that temp. 180 it seems rubbery when you chew it but juicy as can be.

I say we all switch to party hot wings! I can cook those like nobody's business, slather them in hot sauce, light a fire under those judges! They won't be able to taste anything else for the rest of the competition!

Eggspert
 
My skin changed for the better when I did not brine it along with the thigh. I keep the skin seperate until I prep to cook.
 
Butcher BBQ said:
I will give the results of what we got on 2 different occasions. We used untrimmed thighs. We did a test on weight ( since weight is moisture ). 3 different mixes. 1- we weighed to start, used an over the counter soak available to buy, 2- we weighed to start, used our Bird Booster. So we had a starting, reweighed in one hour, 2nd hour, 3rd hour, and the 4th hour. At this point the 1#product that was soaking (brining) gained 6.5% weight and the #2 injected had gained 22%. I decided to take this to the extreme and said lets let all the product set over night. We only had fractions of change over night.

I couldn't replicate every way of cooking so I decided to take the product out of the brines and I then set it on a raised cookie sheet and let it set for 1 hour to see how it retained the moisture. Both products lost less then 1% in weight.

So my finding are 7% gain with saoking/brining or 22% gain with Bird Booster injecting. I will also say I had no Fab C to run a test with.
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Not sure what your test proves other than injecting a brine (any brine) introduces more solution into the meat vs. soaking. The results for updake were scientifically (and statistically) incomplete since you did not use the competitor's product as an injection and your product as a brine, thereby allowing you to compare "apples to apples" results from both products using both methods... :wink: just sayin'....
 
Crash said:
That same cook says that he cooks thighs to an internal temp of 145 and then lets it carry over to 150 before it goes in the box. Is there some truth to it.....who knows??
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Are you sure about those temps? I don't recall him stating that, but I could've missed it.
 
kcmike said:
Not sure what your test proves other than injecting a brine (any brine) introduces more solution into the meat vs. soaking. The results for updake were scientifically (and statistically) incomplete since you did not use the competitor's product as an injection and your product as a brine, thereby allowing you to compare "apples to apples" results from both products using both methods... :wink: just sayin'....
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Are the objectives of both products the same? Are they meant to accomplish the same thing via different methods or are they meant to be applied for different reasons? He only compared the two after they were applied as directed. One is an injection and one is a brine so why would we apply each product as not directed?

What I would like to know is, after each product is applied as directed, what product would make the finished meat more tender, juicy, taste better etc.

I plan to try both BTW.
 
ViciousGame said:
Are the objectives of both products the same? Are they meant to accomplish the same thing via different methods or are they meant to be applied for different reasons? He only compared the two after they were applied as directed. One is an injection and one is a brine so why would we apply each product as not directed?

What I would like to know is, after each product is applied as directed, what product would make the finished meat more tender, juicy, taste better etc.

I plan to try both BTW.
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You make a good point. I'm not familiar with David's product nor do I know the "other" product he was using in his testing. However, I do know that in the case of our Game Changer brine, even though it was built as a soak, many are now using it quite successfully as an injection too. So, given that understanding, I guess my presupposition was that any brine/soak/etc. can be used interchangeably as either a soak or an injection. But maybe his can't. Thanks for the feedback!
 
ViciousGame said:
FWIW a well known pitmaster out west you won KCBS TOY Chicken for 2012 said that he does not use any wood lately to flavor his chicken...only the smoke from the burning coals.
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Do don't use any wood either, just lump. It's hard to beat central market mesquite lump. IMO it's just as good as wicked good charcoal. Also you can just move to TX, we only cook halves down here, judge can sample what they like.
 
use fresh chicken, never frozen..fresh no need to brine..you also stated "I cook the darn chicken the same way every time" do you think this could be the issue????
 
I use frozen without brine,marinade or soak and don't scrape the skin at all..bite through every time and bursting with juice..it's all about your process and how well you can replicate it over and over..we had a 1st place last year(more than one)and in one instance the chicken had been frozen for 5 months..I don't doubt a soak or injection would increase moisture though and probably would add another flavor to the mix..and for you guys that have just done a few comps..try this after you turn in your chicken let one of those extra pieces sit 15 min then take a bite..that's really the true test.
 
big matt said:
I use frozen without brine,marinade or soak and don't scrape the skin at all..bite through every time and bursting with juice..it's all about your process and how well you can replicate it over and over..we had a 1st place last year(more than one)and in one instance the chicken had been frozen for 5 months..I don't doubt a soak or injection would increase moisture though and probably would add another flavor to the mix..and for you guys that have just done a few comps..try this after you turn in your chicken let one of those extra pieces sit 15 min then take a bite..that's really the true test.
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Interesting. We had used frozen chicken thighs (not by choice) at our last competition and did fairly well (6th of 40+), but we were certainly surprised with the outcome. We didn't inject or brine, but we did scrape. Every time I've tried not scraping, at least a few peices end up with rubbery skin. We'll keep at it...
 
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Crash said:
100% positive. Here you go......

http://thebbqcentralshow.com/harry-soos-chicken-method/

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=152852

I don't know the ins and outs of his procedure, nor do I want to. The fact is that it works for him in the KCBS world.

Trust me, I don't have the moink balls to try it.
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Hmm. I don't have the courage either! LOL. In his class he certainly did not advocate this practice; however, it is completely understandable as to why not.
 
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