HOW TO SPLIT CHICKEN. HOW TO MARINADE GRILLED CHICKEN. COOKING TECHNIQUE-GRILLING

HOW TO SPLIT AND TO MARINADE GRILLED CHICKEN

COOKING TECHNIQUES– GRILLING and the right way to do it

GRILLING AND RADIANT HEAT is a form of cooking that involves dry heat applied to the surface of food, commonly from above or below.  Grilling usually involves quite a lot of direct, radiant heat, and tends to be used for cooking quickly, meat that has already been cut into slices (or other pieces).

Food to be grilled is cooked on a “Grill” (an open wire grid with a heat source above or below), a grill pan (similar to a frying pan, but with raised ridges to mimic the wires of an open grill), or griddle (a flat plate heated from below).


Grilling is also termed Broiling and  the pan that holds the food is called a broiler pan.
Direct heat grilling can expose food to temperatures often in excess of 260 °C (500 °F).

Suitable choices of food for the intense dry heat of grilling

-Food should be of good quality  tender items of small / medium  size and are regular in shape to ensure even cooking.

-Meat should have a reasonable fat content - veal escalopes, are so lean that they will just dry out.

-Tough cuts of meat are unsuitable for grilling, because the temperatures are too high, the conditions too dry and the time too short for the connective tissue to be converted into gelatin.

-Tomatoes and mushrooms grill successfully, particularly if they are first brushed with oil, but vegetables with a low moisture content will rapidly dry out and shrivel.

Health benefits of grilling

Lower saturated fats. Grilled foods can become lower in saturated fats, if fat is allowed to drip out after it liquefies in the grilling process.

Health risks of grilling

Carcinogenic effects-  A carcinogen is any substance, radionuclide or radiation that is an agent directly involved in causing cancer. This may be due to the damage of cellular metabolic  processes.
Several radioactive substances are carcinogenic, due to their emission of gamma rays and alpha particles. Carcinogen is in tobacco “smoke”.  Cancer is a disease which is a no programmed cell death.


“Co-carcinogens”   are chemicals that do not cause cancer on their own, but promote the activity of other carcinogens in causing cancer.


Studies have shown that cooking meat, poultry and fish, also frying or baking at high temperatures and overheated potato fries and can lead to the formation of compounds, which are carcinogenic. . via 2 processes:

1)   "HCAs “ (Heterocyclic amines) are formed when amino acids (the building blocks of proteins), sugars and creatine (a substance found in muscle) react at high temperatures

2)   “PAHs” (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons)- PAHs are formed when fat and juices from meat grilled directly over an open fire drip onto the fire, causing flames. These flames contain PAHs that then stick to the surface of the meat 

The body will eliminate carcinogen, through a process called “Biotransformation”. This is to make the carcinogen more water soluble so that it can be removed from the body. But these reactions can also- convert a less toxic one into a more toxic carcinogen


How to reduce carcinogen
i- Proper marinade may reduce the formation of these compounds. Marinades which are already  known to significantly reduce carcinogens when grilling are: garlic, rosemary, basil, mint, sage, savory, marjoram, oregano, olive oil, cherries and vitamin E.


ii-Side dishes and drinks rich in antioxidants, such as veggies and tea, have also been shown to neutralize the toxins by mixing in one's stomach

iii-Another method is pre-cooking the meat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes which helps remove HCA, then draining meat juices so they do not fall onto flames, preventing release of PCAs.

MARINADE RECIPE FOR GRILLED CHICKEN

HOW TO TRIM A WHOLE CHICKEN

Trimming a whole chicken:www.BBQbyDan.com

TRIM
-SPLIT and Cooked Flat. Use a butcher knife, place back of bird down on a cutting board, then run the knife through the entire length of the bird to split open. 

Slightly notch a slice, above the wishbone. Break the two halves apart and spread flat.  Remove the cartilage type backbone and the wishbone. For a better look, bend the wings back behind the body so as to let all the skin be browned.

MARINADE

Seasoning is simple on chicken.  Marinade in your favorite concoction, after marinade, add a  rub on.  Concoction  can be one or a combination of condiments like  soy sauce, teriyaki, honey, garlic, lemon grass juice AND melted butter or oil, marinade onto all the major parts. Marinade for 4 hours in  the fridge. Next, season chicken with either/ or mixed lemon pepper, garlic granules, cumin powder/ salt and marinade again for one hour more.

GLAZING
Most glazes (BBQ Sauces) have sugar content, thus sticky-  wait until the last 15 minutes of grilling, before brushing them on.  So, when just about done- pull, glaze, then put the bird back in for 15 minutes.  After that 15 minute period the bird is done.

MOISTURE IS THE KEY TO GOOD CHICKEN.. 
IT CAN BE BROWN/ BURNT ON THE OUTSIDE, BUT MOIST ON THE INSIDE.

Smoke in 100% pecan OR  80%oak and 20% hickory

FOOD JOKES

1.   Fat (wikiquote )

Saffy: You've been getting dressed for three hours and you still look    like a bloated citrus fruit.

Edina: You are what you eat, remember?

Saffy: Which makes you a very large vegetarian tart.

2-Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside. ~Mark Twain