Ok, speaking of dark vs white meat, why do most folks prefer white? To me, thigh and drumstick always taste so much better. Breast has always tasted powdery to me.

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
Have grown to prefer thighs (more flavorful and juicy) to breasts and haven't noticed any decline in quality here.

This right here.
On the Weber kettle, higher heat to crisp the skin and I can go to 175-180° IT and be fine. Add some apple chunks and it's even better.

Have grown to prefer the skinless boneless thighs but even those are getting huge. Last package I cooked had 3 that had to have been over a pound each.
Great recipe is Adobo Chicken. Marinate in a gallon Ziploc with a can of Adobo Chili from the ethnic isle. Start them in the morning then pull them about an hour before cooking on the grill and dust them with your favorite rub. Great taste with a touch of heat.
Gave up on chicken breast years ago due to the issue raised by OP. Those are disgusting.

Poor quality meat is a problem if the butcher is not paying attention. I think the meat buyers for the grocery you are using are key to meat quality. If they are after the best quality you get a different end experience than the buyer who is after the cheapest price for the company. The quality guy is going to shun a supplier trying to sell him sub-par meat.

When I got my first Big Green Egg and really got into smoking and BBQ 11 years ago, I learned to butterfly chicken breasts, and then marinate them for a time before cooking. I have found that butterflied, marinated chicken breast cooked at 350 for 6 minutes per side is perfect, adequately cooked to 165 internal but still moist and tender. Since the butterflied breast is thinner it takes the marinade better and cooks much faster. If I go a minute or two over it starts to dry out. I discovered that many folks grilling chicken waaaay overcook it thus you get dry chicken breasts.

I grew up on a farm and feedlot in the Midwest where my Dad produced USDA Prime beef. My Mom, of the old school, would take a prime steak and turn it into a piece of shoe leather so tough you had to pour gravy or sauce all over it in order to chew it. In her defense we also butchered about 100 chickens a year and she made fried chicken to die for.

I learned early on that quality meat, and cooking time and temperature control are really critical to a good outcome. I cook on the BGE about 3 times a week. We have discovered the golden times and temperatures for various cuts through much trial and error.

Again for all the people saying this is a cooking issue.

IT’S NOT A COOKING ISSUE

The actual breast meat is woody and fibrous, you can literally see it, it’s striated. The best chefs in the world can’t overcome this issue because it’s from chickens raised too fast.

quote:

Originally posted by old dino:
We eat a lot of chicken in this house ... and exclusively by chicken from Foster Farms. Always been juicy and tender.

That's what we do and it's been tender.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
Again for all the people saying this is a cooking issue.

IT’S NOT A COOKING ISSUE

The actual breast meat is woody and fibrous, you can literally see it, it’s striated. The best chefs in the world can’t overcome this issue because it’s from chickens raised too fast.

Absolutely. You have to start with good quality meat and if your suppler is selling this to you they are either not paying attention or just don't care

With prices escalating across the board grocery and meat suppliers are looking for price before quality these days. They are not going with anything on the upper spectrum of quality and price because it won't sell off the shelves and they have to deal with credits back to the supplier and spoilage. If you want good quality you are going to have to find it on your own and be willing to pay for it imo. The larger metro areas with higher average incomes might have better offerings but where I'm at in the more rural areas with a lower income average this is clearly the strategy.

Strange goings on with all these food processing plants and food distribution warehouse fires and planes crashing into them. Many of those haven't even cycled through to the market yet so prices are going to climb more and shortages will be more prevalent.

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
Many of those haven't even cycled through to the market yet so prices are going to climb more and shortages will be more prevalent.

Whole birds are running $2.79/lb here as of yesterday with parts MUCH more expensive.

I can raise them for so much less than that it isn't even funny. I would encourage anyone with even just a backyard to do the same.

I noticed chicken breast like that 4-5 years ago. I got a couple Sam’s Club bulk packs, thought it was my freezing/cooking or whatever. The next chicken that came from Publix was the same which reinforced my thought process. Then, my wife bought some fancy chicken breast because it was on sale and the difference was astounding. The texture and taste were just like I remembered chicken breast was supposed to be.

That’s when I looked it up on the internet and found some of the theories already mentioned. We solved the issue by eating more dark meat, which we like better anyway, as well as more pork and fish. Chicken breast was never a favorite. It was really just a low cost protein for us until it lost the price advantage.

quote:

When I got my first Big Green Egg and really got into smoking and BBQ 11 years ago, I learned to butterfly chicken breasts, and then marinate them for a time before cooking.

I like to marinate wings and drumettes too then slow cook indirect on my egg.
I then briefly sear to get a bit of a crust then apply the hot sauce.