Cold Smoking Chicken?

[commonsense]

I have a question I hope you guys can help me with.

I have a couple friends who asked if I could smoke a chicken for them.

Can you cold smoke a chicken for a couple hours then wrap and freeze without curing.

I was thinking I could cold smoke the chicken wrap and freeze then they could take it home and cook like they would normally?

I live in MN where its only 10 degrees today so its easy to cold smoke.

Any advice will be much appreciated!

Thanks,

Commonsense

[Smoking Duck]

Hi common,

I'm by no means an expert on poultry.  I would think that one could do a chicken with a cold smoke.....I would probably do about 1:20 minutes of a lighter smoke (poultry will really suck up smoke pretty easily).  However, I would not smoke and then freeze if the poultry has been frozen once already.  Additionally, I get paranoid when working with yardbirds because of the bacteria (much more so than beef or pork).  I worry more about yardbird being in the danger zone that any other type of meat although beef and pork can get you just as messed up if not handled properly.  Are you set up for a cold smoke (generator separated from the tower or are you just thinking that because it's so cold in MN that with the smoke generator diectly connected to the tower you can keep the temps low in the box?).  If set up directly to the tower, the SG will still increase the box temp enough to put the poultry into the "danger zone", even at 10F.  It would be difficult, IMO, to keep the tower out of the "danger zone" with the SG directly hooked up to the tower.  With poultry, I don't like to have the bird in that danger zone anymore than absolutely possible.  However, I'm not exactly sure what the ramifications of having it in the danger zone and then freezing it would have upon the bird.  When I deal with poultry, if doing a cold-smoke, it always goes directly into a hotter cooking zone immediately after.  Perhaps Habanero Smoker (who knows more on this subject than I ever will) will chime in and provide more help.  Sorry I couldn't help you more than that.  I'd wait until Habs or one of the other experts on temps and bacteria chime in.

SD

[commonsense]

Thanks SD.

Yeah I think i'll research a while before I do anything with it.

commonsense

[KyNola]

SD,
Thanks for being the first to post to this question as I read it earlier and my first response was I wouldn't risk it but I'm not qualified to make the call on that.  Now that you have come on board, your thoughts are the same as mine.  I would want a "true" cold smoke set up and then straight to the cooking source.  I'm pretty funny about poultry.  Eating raw beef such as a tartar or carpacio I'm fine with.  Salmon carpacio or any raw sushi I'm good with as well.  Poultry is totally another matter for me.

I wouldn't risk it.

KyNola

[Smoking Duck]

Careful, my friend........they say great minds think alike.  It may not be in your best interest to be lumped in with me  ;) ;D ;D

And I still say you belong in the group, Alabama (which is a high compliment, IMO).

SD

[KyNola]

I'll take that as a compliment.  I need all I can get!

KyNola