Might want to grill ribs and baked chicken tonight - suggestions?

[SaltyNuts]

I do not grill very often, but am kind of wanting to tonight. Ribs and baked chicken. Any suggestions? Particularly on what temperature to cook them, which ones I should put on the grill first because they take longer, etc. Will be using Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ on them. I like my chicken well done, just FYI. Thanks!

 

[nakedfrog]

450º for 3 hours ought to get it nice and well done for ya.

 

[Captante]

Why exactly are you planning on grilling baked chicken ??

Ribs however will come out better 90% cooked in the oven then finished on the grill or under the broiler.... if cooked on the grill they'll most likely be way too dry even with BBQ sauce.

 

[pete6032]

What type of chicken? Thighs? Breasts? Drumstick? Boneless or bone-in? Meat thermometer is your best friend if you have one.

 

[brianmanahan]

i love how ATOT is your version of google

 

[nakedfrog]

i love how ATOT is your version of google

 

[SaltyNuts]

Why exactly are you planning on grilling baked chicken ??

Ribs however will come out better 90% cooked in the oven then finished on the grill or under the broiler.... if cooked on the grill they'll most likely be way too dry even with BBQ sauce.

I mean baked, like in the "not-fried" sense LOL.

Oh that is interesting about the ribs. What if I put them in a little pan on the grill, and at the bottom of the pan had a little water with butter mixed in, would that not help to keep them plenty moist (via evaporation onto them)?

 

[SaltyNuts]

What type of chicken? Thighs? Breasts? Drumstick? Boneless or bone-in? Meat thermometer is your best friend if you have one.

Definitely breasts, probably thighs and legs as well. I think I have a meat thermometer somewhere. What is a good temp to get the chicken to to make sure it is well done? Thanks!

 

[SaltyNuts]

i love how ATOT is your version of google

LOL! I trust my ATOT homies waaaaay more than any random google search LOL.

 

[dullard]

Definitely breasts, probably thighs and legs as well. I think I have a meat thermometer somewhere. What is a good temp to get the chicken to to make sure it is well done? Thanks!

If you want white chicken meat well-done, you might as well just pick up the dirt around your grill and eat that. At least the dirt would be somewhat moist and have some flavor.

The only well-done chicken worth eating is the dark meat: thighs and legs. 170°F is about right for that (175°F if you must). But, still you are going to really have a much worse meal going fully to well-done. If you are concerned about bacteria, get the air-chilled chicken. At least air-chilled chicken wasn't processed in fecal soup in the factory. Flavorful, moist chicken will have a bit of pink left (and yes, that color terrifies many people).

 

[Captante]

I mean baked, like in the "not-fried" sense LOL.

Oh that is interesting about the ribs. What if I put them in a little pan on the grill, and at the bottom of the pan had a little water with butter mixed in, would that not help to keep them plenty moist (via evaporation onto them)?

Don't get me wrong you CAN make ribs on the grill but you'll have to take "low and slow" to an extreme the way they would be done in a smoker.

You want to keep the heat-source as far from the actual ribs as possible and ideally to seal the moisture in by loosely wrapping them with something like heavy-duty aluminum foil.

You should only expose the ribs to high/direct heat for the last bit of cooking to give them a crunchy "bark" on the outside.

 

[Captante]

Definitely breasts, probably thighs and legs as well.

Stay away from breasts on the grill especially .... white meat just doesn't have enough fat-content to retain much flavor.

These days the only thing I use breasts for is to serve mixed/cubed in a dish with lots of other ingredients like veggies and/or strong-flavored sauces.

 

[brianmanahan]

LOL! I trust my ATOT homies waaaaay more than any random google search LOL.

 

[pete6032]

Like Captane said I would avoid chicken breasts on the grill as they will basically turn into rubber since they aren't fatty enough. Typically I do breasts at 450 degrees. I don't use a timer. I just use the meat thermometer to get the chicken up to 165 degrees and take off the grill then, but you will want to do longer if you want well done chicken. I would recommend marinating the chicken beforehand. Can google some good marinades or just marinade in BBQ sauce.

 

[Zeze]

LOL! I trust my ATOT homies waaaaay more than any random google search LOL.

Aww <3

I raved about brining in this forum before. Here it is again.

1. You must brine your chicken breast or it'll be stringly, tough, and overcooked on grill - I guarantee it. I recently learned this. Brining not only seasons the meat, but waterlogs the meat. When it's on the grill and outside is getting nicely charred, the inside doesn't dry out and remains juicy. You don't really have to brine chicken thighs though. They're juicy/fatty. Google how to brine. It's just 30-45 mins.

2. You must let the grill heat up to scalding hot before putting down your meat. This is what creates those delicious charring / grill marks.

3. Checking for doneness is easy. Just cut a small piece and look at it & eat it. No need for thermostat and timing. It's dumb obvious when chicken isn't cooked - the juice isn't clear, it has red fluid running through it, and the flesh is pink. If you ate a piece of undercooked meat, relax. You won't die.

4. Here's a basic simple grilled chicken recipe. First, cut chicken breasts to desired size/thickness. Brine it. Then pat it dry and put it in olive oil + kosher salt & cracked pepper + lemon/lime juice. That's it. Any meat is already delicious if it's seasoned (salt). Oil + season + acidity = you're basically there.

 

[Captante]

No need for thermostat and timing. It's dumb obvious when chicken isn't cooked - the juice isn't clear, it has red fluid running through it, and the flesh is pink. If you ate a piece of undercooked meat, relax. You won't die.

You most likely won't actually die BUT you may well wish you were dead for a few days!





Seriously though commercial chicken is one of the nastiest meats you can buy in terms of contamination:



Things you can catch eating under-cooked or improperly handled/prepared chicken:

• Campylobacter
• Salmonella
• Clostridium perfringens
• E. coli

And food poisoning isn’t just a brief thing, either. Symptoms can begin within a few hours of consuming the food and, depending on the bacteria, the illness can last up to a week.

Roughly 25% of grocery store whole-chicken pieces test positive for Salmonella on a regular basis.

(Per Cleveland Clinic/CDC)

 

[Cerpin Taxt]

Chop up a whole onion, a roughly equivalent quantity of celery, and the same amount of chopped carrots. Mix and cover the bottom of a cast iron skillet with them. Rest a whole chicken on top, and cover the skin generously with kosher salt and pepper. Also generously dust the cavity with salt and pepper. Truss the bird with twine on top of the bed of vegetables. Insert probe thermometer into the deepest, thickest mass of the breast. Put into a 425F oven until probe thermometer hits 165F. Rest for 10 minutes and carve. We do this once a week at our house.

 

[nakedfrog]

1. You must brine your chicken breast or it'll be stringly, tough, and overcooked on grill - I guarantee it. I recently learned this. Brining not only seasons the meat, but waterlogs the meat. When it's on the grill and outside is getting nicely charred, the inside doesn't dry out and remains juicy. You don't really have to brine chicken thighs though. They're juicy/fatty. Google how to brine. It's just 30-45 mins.

Yeah, I used to think longer is better, but it turns out there is a sweet spot.

HOWEVER... there is personal preference, y'all may prefer your chicken with a bit of pink inside, it may be "better" but I don't like my chicken that way. Blame it on growing up with overcooked chicken or SPD, don't know, don't care, I like my chicken overcooked.

 

[Torn Mind]

You got an alibaba girl at last, Salty?

 

[Zeze]

Yeah, I used to think longer is better, but it turns out there is a sweet spot.

HOWEVER... there is personal preference, y'all may prefer your chicken with a bit of pink inside, it may be "better" but I don't like my chicken that way. Blame it on growing up with overcooked chicken or SPD, don't know, don't care, I like my chicken overcooked.

Please name these crazies that prefer chicken with a bit of PINK inside.

Chicken can be cooked through and be juicy (brined or non-brined).

 

[SaltyNuts]

Thanks so much for all the help guys. I cooked it last night and it came out perfect. I basically took Captante's advice, and cooked it long and slow in the oven, wrapped in aluminum foil to help keep is juicy, then finished it for like 15 to 20 min on the grill outside with a huge amount of hickory wood added to the charcoals to develop maximum smoke. Tasted so good. Thanks!!!

 

[dullard]

Please name these crazies that prefer chicken with a bit of PINK inside.

That would be me. You don't want pink juices. But a bit of pink meat right by the bones is ideal (especially for dark meat).

Despite popular opinion, chicken meat color does NOT indicate doneness or safety. https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/What-color-is-safely-cooked-poultry

 

[HomerJS]

Stay away from breasts on the grill especially .... white meat just doesn't have enough fat-content to retain much flavor.

These days the only thing I use breasts for is to serve mixed/cubed in a dish with lots of other ingredients like veggies and/or strong-flavored sauces.

I do boneless breast all the time. If you marinate overnight and grill at 350 they won’t dry out

 

[Captante]

I do boneless breast all the time. If you marinate overnight and grill at 350 they won’t dry out

I rarely do straight chicken breasts on the grill anymore since I realized how much less effort is required to keep other parts like thighs moist & juicy.... if I'm serving breasts I'll usually bake them.

 

[MrSquished]

I rarely do straight chicken breasts on the grill anymore since I realized how much less effort is required to keep other parts like thighs moist & juicy.... if I'm serving breasts I'll usually bake them.

dark meat just tastes better than breasts except for a few applications - such as chicken salad and some Italian dishes like piccata, marsala, francese, etc....

even in dishes that use the entire chicken like chicken Hainanese or fried chick, the dark meat pieces are the better ones.