I'm a huge fan of the spatchcock method. I always dry brine before any other seasoning though. To each their own. Really loved your Alabama comment RTR!
Good comparison. Not too surprising that the temps stayed pretty much the same because the whole chicken was hanging which allowed the gasses to flow around and through the open cavity like it does the spatchcocked bird. This will not be the same if you do a beer-can method or if you simply set a whole chicken down on the grate ending up in done and over-done sections. I almost always spatchcock and indirect. Thanks.
The PBC is very forgiving to first time smokers which is why I love it. My wife was able to smoke a chicken and rack of ribs by herself having never smoked or bbq before. The PBC is very simplistic and awesome
The hung whole chicken is much closer to the coals than the spatchcocked chicken on the grill. Therefore, the whole chicken is being cooked at a higher temperature. That's why they finished at roughly the same time. If you hung the spatchcocked chicken or cooked the whole chicken on the grate along side the spatchcoccked chicken then there would be a greater difference in the cook times between the 2.
The reason they are the same is because of the science of the pit barrel cooker. It’s already designed to cook everything even on top bottom and sides. However this is not the case in a traditional oven or smoker.
Great vid! I usually just cook whole birds for the family just to save some time. I make my rub and add oil to make a paste to spread all over the chicken for an even coat. If I'm cooking for a party, I cut them in half to fit more meat on the pit and just dust with the rub. I always dry brine. Both ways turn out great with little effort. I also always hang them.
The advantage of spatchcocking a chicken is it's easier to season, and it smokes & cooks more evenly... You're still cooking it in a hot oven so from a time perspective It's relatively the same...
Interesting video... I would prefer the Spatchcock method, and it is definitely faster in the oven roasting method. Perhaps having it vertical in the smoker solves the problem of cooking whole chicken.
Love my PBC. I usually split the chicken and hang it. But right now I am going to try it spatchcocked and on the grill grate. Hanging a split chicken usually takes two linked hooks per half, and if I want to cook something else, like corn on the cob, I have to use a basket. I am always looking for ways to simplify.
I did the video you made and turned out great. Got a question though.. what is the name of the song in the background? My wife and I think we heard it on an old John Hughes move from the 80s
That's good to know...... Really no difference. I usually cook chicken whole or halved hanging on the PBC. Man that PBC is awesome. Your channel is very cool. Great job!
Why didn't you hang the spatchcocked chicken as well? To me, it just does not make sense to place it on the grill. Two hooks through the cavity and under the wings works geat.
Yeah I might try that next time. But I think they way Pit barrel works the heat is circling they birds anyway, might not make a difference. But a good reason to experiment and find out. Thanks for checking it out.
kevin I'm so glad you got good knives!! I had to quit watching you channel as I thought you were going to cut yourself with those "Paint scrapers" you were using
That's amazing. I would have thought the spatchcock chicken would have won hands down. It was way closer. Beautiful chickens, Kevin. Are you still using the Kingsford competition charcoal?
Lee Setzer me too. I thought it was going to beat the whole chicken by an hour. I think the barrel has a unique cooking environment. I just used regular blue this time. What ever is a better deal is what I get. Have a good weekend brother.
Very interesting, I usually do halves I guess it dosen't make much difference in the quality guess its more for convenience Nicely done. I'm a dark meat guy though
Chris, I would not really say that. They both have their place. I was actually going to do this video on the Silverbac but did not have enough pellets. I wont buy just any pellets so I had to use the Pit Barrel. Dont worry you will see the Silverback in upcoming videos. Thanks for watching brother.
The charcoal basket sits all the way in the bottom. What happens in the pit barrel is the heat is circling the meat. That's why it did not matter where it was in the cooker. Basically same temp everywhere. Thanks for checking it out.
Thanks, Kevin. Great video and appreciate the scientific method and useful results. Last year I hanged and smoked two turkeys sequentially on my PBC for Thanksgiving. While we were serving and eating the first, the second was smoking so people could take leftovers home. It all came out perfect, and on a single charge of briquettes! Here's my question for this year: Do you think I could spatchcock two turkeys, hang them through the breastbones (one hook per breastbone, two hooks per turkey) and smoke them both at the same time? My concern is the weight - do you think two hooks will hold the weight of the birds (20 lbs each) until they are done? Thanks again, Doug
Thanks for watching Katie. I don't have a good answer for your question. I have never done it that way. Sounds like it would work. my only concern is the weight that will be on the legs when spatchcocked. They Wil just be hanging. The skin could rip and a thigh quarter fall into the coals. Iv usually only laid birds down when cooking that way. it could work though. Let me know if it works.
Thanks for the quick reply. The birds are ready and I'm going for it tomorrow. I'll check them often and if one fails I'll use the grill grate for the other. And I'll let you know how it comes out. 18 people tomorrow, no stress at all!
Well, it worked great. Took a little longer than I anticipated - 6 hours instead of 5 - but it was about 45 pounds of turkey. No apparent issues with too much weakening of the meat and no disastrous falls into the coals below. And it was very good to eat!
Ha I almost forgot I did that. No the only reason for removing that is for easier serving. Without it once its cooked you can just slice them in half Really easy. Does not really affect the cook. Just easier to get to your guest. For me when I am just cooking for my family I least the breast bone in. Thanks for checking it out sir.
With the spatchcock chicken, can you remove the breastbone rib bones to make it basically a boneless breast as well. If so how would you do it. Great video
Poor experiment. Both chickens should have been hung or placed on the rack. The hung chicken was closer to the heat source which sped up its cook time.
Your Spatchcocked chicken looks a litter under cooked on the thighs. you should have taken the temps. from the thighs since they have to reach 175 degrees before they are done.
