chicken drippings and beans

I have cooked 4 chickens in my smoker the skin stayed soft and kind of slimy/nasty. I don't think I would want any of it dripping into my baked beans, but you might like slimy chicken skin & fat mixed in.

If you do try it let us know how it turns out heck it might be good.

I wasn't going to smoke anything this weekend but Baked Beans with some pulled pork but and hickory smoke sounds good. Now if I can only find the receipe.

I personally wouldn't let anything collect chicken drippings. The problem is too much bacteria dripping out before it is fully cooked.Pork drippings do not contain as much damaging bacteria as chicken. Just my 02 cents worth!

I'm not sure I would either.. but, chicken fat is what makes stock and dark meat so tasty.

That said.. Gregor.. I don't understand your comment about the bacteria. The chicken is full of it on the surface and if it doesn't stay in the danger zone too long it is killed "dead" before the bad toxins build up. Why would that not hold true if you put something like a cookie pan under the birds while cooking to collect the drippins? It will reach the kill'em dead temp as do the birds... or am I missing something? Thanks, Bill

Chicken because of what it is and how it's processed has a great tendency to have things on it, that's why they talk about cross contamination with chicken so much in Food Safety Classes.

Me, I don't want chicken dripping on anything. Unlike the other meats, that get above 170 and usually for extended times, chicken is coming off the smoker at that time.

Just don't chance it.

As for "killing the bacteria" there was a recent run of food poisoining from the chicken you get at grocery stores, you know the already cooked rotisserie chicken.

The temp will kill SOME/MOST bacteria, but do you want to chance it?

Not me.

Besides, pork and beans are called that for a reason, pork drippings go GOOD with beans.

Russ, I don't understand.. I'd guess that this means we don't cook chicken in the smoker or on the rotisserie? Aside from drippins in the beans.. If we can't rely on the safe temps, that I understand have been reduced in the past years, what do we do about chicken?

Could the poisoning have been from the toxins that build up in food that has not been stored properly prior to cooking?

Smokinokie, thanks for backing me up on this topic. You hear about cautions in cooking chicken all the time, I don't want to risk making anybody sick for the sake of flavor.Stay clear, stay healthy!!

I guess I'll have to wait until next time I smoke a pork shoulder to get my baked beans fix. I did, however, smoke some potatos (sliced red potatos, onions, butter and lawry's seasoning salt, wrapped in foil) above the chicken, and they were a pretty darn good substitute.

Use hickory smoked bacon in your beans....Fry up the bacon first, add to your beans, then smoke and stir every hour....

dan

I've had good luck with this recipe in the past:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_13881,00.html

Just sub malty beer for the veggie stock and you're in business (4-5 hours seems to be about right)

Bill

I NEVER cook anything under chicken. If I cook multiple things, I put chicken on the bottom and let other stuff drip on them.

Just a challenge for vertical smokers. Same issue in any other smoker of a vertical design.

There's a LOT of research on the net about chicken and cooking and temps and I don't have the time or energy to research it. I remember reviewing this before and the subject was covered a lot back then, I just don't remember.

I'm just real safe with prep (I use one cutting board for chicken only) and I have racks that only hold chicken (in case I can't clean them, I don't put something else on it after smoking chicken)

Sorry for the bother.. Just trying to understand. Common sense tells me that the drippings come out of the chicken.. but there is still some inside the chicken after the cooking process is over. If the chicken reaches 170º and the drippings are 170º it seems they should both be safe.. or both should be unsafe.. therefore, we are all eating unsafe chicken

Bill
I don't think that chicken dripppings are by definition dangerous, the problem, like you said, is if they aren't cooked-all the advice I've ever read states that if you poke a chicken and the juices don't run clear (i.e. still have blood) then the chicken isn't done. Thus, if some drippings that still aren't cooked get absorbed by other foods (beans) then there could be a problem

Even if the other foods are also 170*?
I understand what Bill is saying. No matter what drips on what, if the safe temp has been reached in all the food, why wouldn't it be safe to eat?

I agree-if everything is above 170, then there shouldn't be a problem. I've never taken the temperature of beans in the smoker before, but I wouldn't be surprised if after a few hours they are at least 200 degrees. I guess the bigger issue is taste