What Happened to My Chicken?

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What do you think turned my chicken purple?


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Perhaps it was using hickory chips in the smoker! Or maybe something else we did wrong?


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In spite of my chicken looking a bit un-appetizing, it really did taste good. I do think that next time we'll opt for mesquite since I think the hickory flavor was a bit mild.

We got our smoker last summer and used it ONE time. Mainly because the first time we smoked a chicken, it came out absolutely beautiful, nice and golden and just a sight to see. Only problem was after 6 hours it still was not done! That frustrated us, mainly because we couldn't keep the temperature regulated. This time we watched it very closely and had to open and close the damper frequently to maintain a proper temperature.

There really is no recipe for what we did to make our purple smoked chicken... perhaps that's a good thing? I am intriqued by the whole idea of smoking various types of meats and fish, but I'll tell you the amount of time spent watching over it will make me think twice. You have to really want to hang out at home for hours and watch the temperature. I am going to send My Husband to find mesquite logs or something like that as I think they might burn more evenly, and might allow us a little freedom to do some other things around the house for more than a few minutes.

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Anyone out there smoked chicken, fish or beef with great success? Please do share your tips as I want to master this cooking technique since we have the oversized thing in our backyard!

Comments

That Girl said…
I know Alton Brown has a couple episodes on smoking meats - I never paid a lot of attention, because we don't have a smoker, but I think you can get the transcripts online.
Anonymous said…
My younger son just mustered up the words "wat dat?" when he saw your chicken....I think smokers are a specialty unto their own. I give you lots of credit for trying! :-)
Susan @ SGCC said…
Purple chicken! That is too funny! It looks beautiful on the inside, though.
Patsyk said…
I'll have to check out Alton Brown's back episodes to see what he says to do... he always figures out the "right" way to do things!
amycaseycooks said…
I have never smoked a chicken - that is one funky looking bird!!
WhiteTrashBBQ said…
Wow. With that color, you still think the smoke flavor was too mild? OMG.

When smoking foods, you want what is called "sweet blue" smoke. That is smoke that is barely visible to the naked eye.

You have one of the more difficult smokers to regulate. It can be done, but it does take some practice. If you really want a "set it and forget it" smoker and don't want to go the electric or gas route, check out a Weber Smokey Mountain.
Patsyk said…
By the 2nd day the smokey flavor really became intense - didn't realize that would happen at the point I wrote my post. It did taste good and my hubby's been enjoying it this week. Just couldn't figure out why it turned that color.

I'm kind of "stuck" with this smoker for the time being. Wish we had known this would be the more difficult one to regulate when we bought it. My hubby really wanted this style based on what he had seen other family members use.

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