Smoking Bradley

A very early Father's Day present arrived via UPS yesterday. My new Bradley smoker is supposed to make smoking easier, particularly through regulated heat. Now, so long as I have a grounded outlet, I can smoke anywhere without worry about inconsistent heat, flair ups, dying fires, and the other frustrations I've had with my vertical water smoker.

Setup was a breeze, and I was pleasantly happy with the smoke produced during the seasoning process. Denise had visited Costco earlier in the day, and so I had a choice for my first smoke. I've been smoking a lot of beef lately, so I decided that the five pound whole chicken needed to go in.

Gutted and separated, brined, washed, dried, and into the smoker at 12:50 this afternoon. During preheating the smoker reached 250, despite our 37 degree rainy day. In fact, it would snow as the afternoon went on! A couple of hours in hickory smoke, then a couple more slow cooking. We finished it in the oven, just to get to dinner faster.

I have enjoyed some good meals in my time. I don't remember the last time that a meal didn't even make it to the table! Denise and I tore into the chicken like barbarians. Knives and fingers, grease and juice. Fantastic flavor, moist, and wonderful texture. We finally gave up on the idea of plates and ate over the sink! It was the best chicken I've ever had, and that's coming from a person that doesn't like chicken.

We ended up eating well over half of the bird right down to the bones. The rest is in the fridge, awaiting its sentence as a salad topping. Tomorrow I get back to beef. A brisket is sitting in the fridge!
For ease of use, nice design, and set-and-forget cooking technique, I love my Bradley. I can't wait for summer!