About chicken exposure to air when making broth

I tend to make my own broth using a 3-4 lb whole chicken. When I start, I have the chicken submerged and use a cheesecloth pouch with the mirepoix to keep it under. However, as the simmering goes on and things get moved by some of the effervescence, some of the chicken peaks out above the now reduced water line. I don't want to add water at the risk of watering down what I'm trying to make. My questions are..

1. Is it okay to leave that bit of chicken exposed or will that ruin it for consumption later?
2. What are some other methods to keep the chicken fully submerged through out the process?

Thank you

BurgeoningBaker
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6 Comments

sexyLAMBCHOPx
sexyLAMBCHOPx November 17, 2016
I weigh the whole bird down with a plate.
 
sexyLAMBCHOPx
sexyLAMBCHOPx November 17, 2016
I forgot to add once I place the bird in I hold it down so the cavity fills up with liquid & that helps to keep it down a bit.
 
Em
Em November 17, 2016
No worries at all! The exposed chicken is probably fully cooked at that point, so there's no danger.

If it bothers you, I would suggest roughly breaking down the chicken before you add it to the pot. This could be as simple as cutting it in half, or quarters.
 
PHIL
PHIL November 17, 2016
Usually once it cooks it will start to fall apart and will be easier to keep under. As C Sanqueza says it is okay , just move it around to the same part isn't sticking up. As far as keeping it submerged, I never found it to be a problem. Why nut quarter the chicken first?

 
pierino
pierino November 17, 2016
You are going to be simmering that chicken for a least a couple of hours so I wouldn't worry about it. I usually keep a lid over it to partially cover the pot but I wouldn't worry about chicken bobbing up. The hot condensed moisture is dripping right back down on it.
 
C S.
C S. November 17, 2016
It's fine. You might want to turn the chicken over though so that it all gets fully cooked and different parts are submerged at different times.
 
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