I was inspired by Scottv to try a whole chicken so I did one whole and the other split. Conclusion: taste about the same. I also wanted to do an experiment for controlling the pit temp. I read somewhere that a KB yields about 17 degrees of BTUs. My goal was to get 300F to cook the chicken. As I am now using Royal Oak briquettes, which are a little smaller than KB, I figured about 20 ROB's should do the job. As a short time cook, I filled the coal basket to about 3/4. My thinking is the amount of coal is related to the length of the cook as opposed to the pit temp. Following the lighting instructions with a chimney starter, the temp stabilized at around 250 (perfect for ribs, brisket, etc). To increase the temp, I did the foil trick on the top so that the lid was not "seated" 100%. The temp then stabilized in the range of 294 to 302 which was fine for me. Chicken was done in less than 2 hours. Used Montreal Chicken rub
On a side note, Mrs Smokin, found my old Chinese cleaver that I purchased in the early 1980's. I cleaned and sharpened it and wow did it slice through the chicken. Made a little mess on the kitchen wall so maybe next time I will do this outside
Can't wait to try it on making rib ends with a pork spare rib brisket bone
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