Chicken turn in box

[Smoke Dad]

Got my first comp coming up in a couple of weeks. Rules say chicken must be cooked whole, half, or quarter sections. Chicken cannot be cooked as Individual pieces. A minimum of 8 pieces must be turned in however. What do you guys suggest for the cook, slicing, and turn in pieces?

[SpratBoy]

That sounds like a real challenge -
Dark meat is typically still the king of the turn in box, so I suppose you could cook enough to be able to cut off the legs (if allowed) and only turn those in. Outside of that, I hope they provide you with some really large turn in boxes since you have to turn in 8 pieces. I say legs would be the easiest, since they might be the easiest to separate from the quarter and still look good in the box. Good Luck!

[Smoke Dad]

So it’s not just me! I can’t imagine putting 8 leg quarters in a box. But dark meat is king in comps huh. I always see pics of thighs. But judges like drums too? You wouldn’t do both?

[rob g]

Originally Posted by Smoke Dad

So it’s not just me! I can’t imagine putting 8 leg quarters in a box. But dark meat is king in comps huh. I always see pics of thighs. But judges like drums too? You wouldn’t do both?

Judges like everything if you cook it well lol. The dark meat pieces tend to be more forgiving when you cook them. The breast meat can dry out quick if overcooked. I don't know what constitutes a "piece" but you could pull your whole chicken into small pieces if needed.

[Smoke Dad]

Yeah I was thinking about just doing the whole chickens and cutting them up. Plus I hate cleaning leg quarters. So much work. And that’s standing at the sink in my kitchen. Where do you go to wash and clean the meat when ur at a comp?

[SpratBoy]

I think the trick comes in because you have to cook a larger piece piece of chicken, then part it out. I would be afraid (because of my knife skills) that when I go to part it out, I would end up with a butchered mess that would not look good in the box. That's why I suggested legs - If you can part out the chicken and still make it look good in the box, definitely use what comes out best. Who knows - maybe the turn in box will be the size of a KFC bucket and you can just throw quarters in!!

[SpratBoy]

Originally Posted by Smoke Dad

Yeah I was thinking about just doing the whole chickens and cutting them up. Plus I hate cleaning leg quarters. So much work. And that’s standing at the sink in my kitchen. Where do you go to wash and clean the meat when ur at a comp?

Every comp is different when it comes to water availability - if you are not certain, you should ask the comp representative about water, but you might want to plan to get a cheap water jug with a spigot (from Wally-World) and carry that with you just in case - You can sit it on the edge of a table with a 5 gallon bucket underneath.
KCBS does allow for meats to be trimmed (but not seasoned, brined, rubbed, etc.) prior to showing up at the event - you might ask if you can trim the chicken at home before you go...

[thirdeye]

Leg quarters sound logical to me. But in order to make a clean cut when parting the leg and thigh.... you might want to sacrifice one and remove the meat so you can learn exactly what angle to make your cut. Consider having a good pair of scissors on hand to clean up around the cut.

[INmitch]

Cornish game hen leg quarters. You can make an awesome looking box with them!

[Smokin D@wg@77]

FBA comp ?

here's one way , these are stand boxes same as KCBS

[Bob in Corona]

Jason... I, for one, would enjoy trying one of those.
But, do they meet the 'cannot be cooked as individual pieces' rule ?

[Smokin D@wg@77]

Originally Posted by Bob in Corona

Jason... I, for one, would enjoy trying one of those.
But, do they meet the 'cannot be cooked as individual pieces' rule ?

No that would not meet that rule , but sanctioning bodies (FBA or KCBS) thats not a rule.

If that's one yall deals then no this example wouldn't work, your looking at half chickens or whole chickens then is my best guess