Gravy's Cooking Thread

Dr.Retarded

Dr.Retarded

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BrutulTM said:
Meathead has a whole manifesto on why beer can chicken is a terrible idea.

amazingribs.com

Beer Can Chicken Recipe: There Are Better Ways To Cook Chicken

Beer Can Chicken is not a good way to cook chicken. Here's why, and how you can make better roast chicken.
amazingribs.com

Also soaking in the marinade for 24 hours does nothing.
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I don't know who the hell Meathead is, but he sounds pretty goddamn retarded.

Beer can chicken is great for keeping a bird moist. I use the method when cooking whole pheasant, and despite that being a leaner bird, bard with a few strips of bacon and a Stella Artois can, and it always comes out juicy.

I'll even beer can of Turkey with an oil can of fosters, and then toss it into the Big easy, and I've never had a bad bird.
 
BrutulTM

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You clearly didn't read the article. You're wrong. The beer doesn't get hot enough to actually evaporate, and even if it did, it doesn't go into the chicken. I'm sure your chickens turn out fine, but it's not because of the beer can. He measured everything and spells it out in the article. The only thing the beer can is contributing is a big heat sink in the middle of the bird so you need to check the temp at the ribs instead of the center of the breast because it won't cook as quickly on the inside due to all that water absorbing the heat.
 
Gavinmad

Gavinmad

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The person disagreeing with Dr Retarded is right, don't even have to read the article to know that adding a bunch of thermal mass right in the middle of the bird you're trying to cook is a recipe for disaster.

If you've produced good birds it's been in spite of using that cooking technique, not because you were using it.
 
lurkingdirk

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BrutulTM said:
You clearly didn't read the article. You're wrong. The beer doesn't get hot enough to actually evaporate, and even if it did, it doesn't go into the chicken. I'm sure your chickens turn out fine, but it's not because of the beer can. He measured everything and spells it out in the article. The only thing the beer can is contributing is a big heat sink in the middle of the bird so you need to check the temp at the ribs instead of the center of the breast because it won't cook as quickly on the inside due to all that water absorbing the heat.
Click to expand...

That's interesting to me. When I do beer can chicken the can of beer is less than a quarter full by the end, and it's boiling. If it's boiling it's releasing steam. Where does the steam go after it is released into the cavity of the chicken? Honest question. I know it starts as a heat sink in the middle of the chicken, but it's bloody hot and boiling part way though. I've done whole chickens on the bbq with and without the beer can, the results are extremely different. And I would swear I get some of the beer flavour in the chicken as I've tried different types of beer and had different results. Not trying to be a dick, just reporting back first hand experience.
 
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Gavinmad

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lurkingdirk said:
And I would swear I get some of the beer flavour in the chicken as I've tried different types of beer and had different results.
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Power of suggestion/confirmation bias? You're expecting some kind of beer taste so uncertainty gets filled in by your brain as beer taste. As the article points out beer is almost nothing but water and alcohol. Boiling down several beers into a reduction (youd need some kind of thickening agent, a neutral oil or maybe a bit of gelatin powder) and using it as a baste/glaze is about the only way you could get beer taste to overpower the rub/aromatics.
 
lurkingdirk

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Gavinmad said:
Power of suggestion/confirmation bias? You're expecting some kind of beer taste so uncertainty gets filled in by your brain as beer taste. As the article points out beer is almost nothing but water and alcohol. Boiling down several beers into a reduction (youd need some kind of thickening agent, a neutral oil or maybe a bit of gelatin powder) and using it as a baste/glaze is about the only way you could get beer taste to overpower the rub/aromatics.
Click to expand...

I certainly considered that. I think there is actually a taste element here. If I use a generic ale it's one thing. But if I use a really bright IPA with citrus I'm certain I can taste it. And I have validation of this because my wife and kids also say they taste a difference whenever I do a beer can chicken. Plus, I've done three at a time, each with a different beer, and I really could taste the difference. I don't doubt the guy's findings in his article, and maybe I'm imagining all of it, but a huge point of contention for me is the temperature of the beer. It boils, doesn't stay cold. More than half evaporates because it's boiling.

Dunno man, I'ma gonna keep doing beer can chicken because it comes out delicious. Maybe it's just the power of suggestion, still tasty. And different from other preparations.
 
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Lanx

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lurkingdirk said:
That's interesting to me. When I do beer can chicken the can of beer is less than a quarter full by the end, and it's boiling. If it's boiling it's releasing steam. Where does the steam go after it is released into the cavity of the chicken? Honest question. I know it starts as a heat sink in the middle of the chicken, but it's bloody hot and boiling part way though. I've done whole chickens on the bbq with and without the beer can, the results are extremely different. And I would swear I get some of the beer flavour in the chicken as I've tried different types of beer and had different results. Not trying to be a dick, just reporting back first hand experience.
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it's cuz your doing it on a grill where the coals are on the bottom of the can heating the beer directly

in an oven, it's a no go, the beer will be full still cuz of the chicken insulation
 
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Dr.Retarded

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BrutulTM said:
You clearly didn't read the article. You're wrong. The beer doesn't get hot enough to actually evaporate, and even if it did, it doesn't go into the chicken. I'm sure your chickens turn out fine, but it's not because of the beer can. He measured everything and spells it out in the article. The only thing the beer can is contributing is a big heat sink in the middle of the bird so you need to check the temp at the ribs instead of the center of the breast because it won't cook as quickly on the inside due to all that water absorbing the heat.
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I didn't have to read the article because I know it's retarded.

lurkingdirk lurkingdirk knows the score. The beer always comes to a boil and releases steam. You can argue how much of that steam is actually going to flavor the chicken, but that's why you also put herbs or your barbecue rub in there and at least to me it seems to make a difference, and I always get a juicy or chicken versus just straight up roasting or smoking. All I know is I've always gotten good results and like he said, if you use a weak beer, and not something that tastes really good your mileage may vary as far as the flavor, but that's also what the aromatics are for.
 
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Dr.Retarded

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lurkingdirk said:
I certainly considered that. I think there is actually a taste element here. If I use a generic ale it's one thing. But if I use a really bright IPA with citrus I'm certain I can taste it. And I have validation of this because my wife and kids also say they taste a difference whenever I do a beer can chicken. Plus, I've done three at a time, each with a different beer, and I really could taste the difference. I don't doubt the guy's findings in his article, and maybe I'm imagining all of it, but a huge point of contention for me is the temperature of the beer. It boils, doesn't stay cold. More than half evaporates because it's boiling.

Dunno man, I'ma gonna keep doing beer can chicken because it comes out delicious. Maybe it's just the power of suggestion, still tasty. And different from other preparations.
Click to expand...
I also typically use a beer can that's when sitting out on the counter and warmed up to expedite the process. You can even take a empty can, and put something like a white wine in there. I've only done that a couple of times but it turned out pretty good and you can definitely taste the wine. Do you maybe get better results by marinating the chicken and wine, probably, but it was a fun experiment.

I typically also add beer to most of my wet marinades that I make if I'm doing barbecue or fajitas or something.
 
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BrutulTM

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Lanx said:
it's cuz your doing it on a grill where the coals are on the bottom of the can heating the beer directly

in an oven, it's a no go, the beer will be full still cuz of the chicken insulation
Click to expand...
The tests in the article were done on a grill, but not directly over the heat. I think it would be pretty difficult to roast a chicken evenly over direct heat. In any case, you can certainly get a lot more flavor on your chicken by putting herbs and spices directly on it than subjecting it to an unknown quantity of beer steam. Also, as this picture illustrates, most of the chicken is not going to even be touched by the steam.

beer-can-chicken.jpg
 
Lanx

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Ya ll can just go and beer chicken in both oven and grill and see how much beer is still in the can
 
Lanx

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Emeril air fryer
0503251759_HDR.jpg

So the air frying really got to me especially the rotisserie, look at the small pile of grease, usually when I splatchcock a bird and roast it, I get a huge amount of fat, but not the rotisserie. I think that the constant turning keeps the fat and grease from dripping down, which is cool. I also did Canton crispy pork belly. This was to test out how powerful the air fry is, it feels stronger than the ninja I currently have, so far all pluses, just that the basket you get is small, imma need to buy another
 
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Dr.Retarded

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Chef John with a couple of pretty simple recipes that pair well together. I know I've made similar stuff in the past, specifically the potato salad or maybe a slaw with the same flavor profiles, but this is a cheap and tasty combo. Now that we're coming up on Summer for corn season, grilled corn on the cob would probably pair very well with it. Maybe do a little pot of frioli's borracho on the side if you're going to have a big barbecue.





I just figured they were nice simple recipes for grilling season, but it's not as if we don't grill all year long. Chimichurri is probably one of my favorite condiments though apart from variations of mayonnaise. There isn't a lot that beats a good skirt steak with fresh chimichurri.
 
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Lanx

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Lanx said:
Emeril air fryer
View attachment 585199
So the air frying really got to me especially the rotisserie, look at the small pile of grease, usually when I splatchcock a bird and roast it, I get a huge amount of fat, but not the rotisserie. I think that the constant turning keeps the fat and grease from dripping down, which is cool. I also did Canton crispy pork belly. This was to test out how powerful the air fry is, it feels stronger than the ninja I currently have, so far all pluses, just that the basket you get is small, imma need to buy another
Click to expand...
so i've been using it daily, of course i've had to adjust my timings, like this thing takes twice as long as the ninja to heat up (which isn't long still) but thats also b/c this is twice the size of my ninja, of course it'll take longer to heatup. but when it does the air frying is more powerful, idk if it's the limitation in the presets, but i can't go above 45min for the rotissiere, i'm sure i can override or do manual, i'm just too lazy to look at the instructions which i have already put in the attic, lulz

cleanup is way easier, like i said w/ my thought about the french doors, since they go side to side and not flip down, i can reach in easier, the tray is easy to pull out and just throw throw out the aluminum foil and roll out a new sheet. the size of the tray is also the size of aluminum foil so thats fast and easy to conform.
 
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Dr.Retarded

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Lanx said:
so i've been using it daily, of course i've had to adjust my timings, like this thing takes twice as long as the ninja to heat up (which isn't long still) but thats also b/c this is twice the size of my ninja, of course it'll take longer to heatup. but when it does the air frying is more powerful, idk if it's the limitation in the presets, but i can't go above 45min for the rotissiere, i'm sure i can override or do manual, i'm just too lazy to look at the instructions which i have already put in the attic, lulz

cleanup is way easier, like i said w/ my thought about the french doors, since they go side to side and not flip down, i can reach in easier, the tray is easy to pull out and just throw throw out the aluminum foil and roll out a new sheet. the size of the tray is also the size of aluminum foil so thats fast and easy to conform.
Click to expand...
How much was the thing?
 
Dr.Retarded

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Lanx said:
150 I managed to get a busted box, new machine
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That's not bad at all. I wonder if they'll be on sale coming up on memorial Day or July 4th. I'm so using our little poison heart that we got for free from a neighbor that they never use and we're going to just throw out. It does the job for us but I can't do a rotisserie chicken in the damn thing, but I can do three or four chicken thighs, or a couple of breasts. I find myself using it quite a bit when I'm feeling lazy because I don't have to fire up the gas range, and it's been pretty handy.

I guess I need to look at the size measurements on the Emeril one just a good idea of counter space.
 
TJT

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Made smoked beef finger ribs for the firs time for Mother's day. They came out well and only take like 3 hours to smoke beginning to end. Will try that again.
 
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