Chicken - Proof of Concept

It worked, I figured it would, but wanted to try before I go for it with a turkey.  I had read that but taking boneless breast sections and turning them thin end to fat end, the entire breast would cook evenly and stay juicy. I am preparing for an upcoming turkey cook and wanted to try this.  I also recently received a new rub to try, Plowboy's Yardbird, one of the more highly regarded rubs in the BBQ community I belong to.

Here is the preparation of the breasts, carefully skinned, boned and waiting for seasoning.  I decided I would use just the Plowboy's Yardbird and some butter and snipped flat leaf parsley in between the breast sections.

After seasoning I laid the sections thin end to fat end, tied it with cotton string and then seasoned the outside with more of the rub.

Here is the carry pan with the breasts and a similar roll made from thighs. These were waiting to be loaded into the kettle, which was toasting away on it's path to 500F.  Note the cotton butcher wrap, see how even it is, yes, I am bragging.  About 40 minutes later, 150F with a nice crispy skin tells me it is ready to come off the grill.

It worked beautifully, both the thighs and the breasts were juicy, tender and very flavorfull.  The Yardbird rub has an excellent savory quality with a good balance of salt to the other flavors.  It is not hot, I would describe it as savory with excellent depth of flavor and harmony between herbal and spice notes.

 Some beauty shots showing the beautiful color, juicy meat and finally plating. The mini-roasts were rested for about 10 minutes to finish off the cooking and let the meat relax.  I found that the flavor worked it's way through the entire depth of the meat.  On to the turkey, details will follow on that one as it further unfolds.