applescrap
Be the ball!
^^does leaving it unwrapped in fridge do something tasty?
Heavy season with salt and spices initially it will draw moisture from the center out. Then the moisture starts to dissolve the salts. Salts break up proteins making the muscles relax and draw moisture and the seasoning back into the meat. The meat surface gets^^does leaving it unwrapped in fridge do something tasty?
Forgot to ask, is your brisket trimmed? I trim the fat cap down to about 1/2 inch. Cross-score the fat and work the seasoning into it.Thanks for the tips guys! My plan is to check it often and it it goes south it’s not a terrible loss (it was $4.49/lb. and 5.9 lbs) and I have the option of picking up beef ribs as a plan B.
Went and looked at BGEs tonight. Basically $2000 for a functional set up.
Putting that in terms of brand new stainless steel brewing vessels makes it seem like more money than its worth.
Anyone use a BGE, or similar, for a smoker? I'm looking to throw out my rusting propane smoker, but not sure what I need to get yet.
Thoughts are now:
-No electric or propane
-Would like to add a charcoal/lump grill to my patio too, so maybe get a 2-for-1 with a BGE, but only if a BGE makes a great smoker.
-Must have temperature control option (3rd party add-ons ok). Don't use smoker enough now because it requires too much intervention.
My first brisket was a good news bad news situation. I started with a 16 lb full Prime packer from Costco and trimmed 4 lbs of fat (though I probably should have take some more off the bottom). It was salted and injected with a beef broth mixture and covered with some Plowboys bovine bold rub and put in the fridge for about 12 hours.
I started the Rec Tec pellet smoker at 11 pm at 225 using a blend of hickory, cherry, hard maple, and apple pellets with the intent of eating at 2 the next day but my oldest daughter threw me a monkey wrench with a work schedule change the next morning so I had to plan on a 1:30 eat time. My goal was to have it done in time to do a 2 hour faux cambro rest for the flat in my cooler while the point would be cubed, sauced, and put back on the smoker at 275 for burnt ends.
So everything seemed to be going ok except I had a couple of those expected long stalls at 157 and 189 where the temp didn't move at all for almost an hour. I was a little paranoid at the 189 stall that I wasn't going to finish so I set the temp to 275 and that eventually got things going until the brisket got to 203 on the smoker probes and using my Thermapen. We separated the point from the flat and double wrapped the flat in foil and put it in my Yeti with towels above and below for an hour and a half before slicing it.
The bottom of the point had gotten a little crusty, I cooked fat side down, making it hard to cube the burnt ends but they did get done and were pretty good, if a bit chewy on the bottom part. I used Sweet Sauce of Mine and everyone seemed to like them as there weren't many left after the six of us had at them. This is them before saucing and reheating with apologies for my LG phone's subpar optics:
I was not crazy about how the flat turned out though. The flavor was good but it wasn't very juicy at least compared to the many youtube brisket videos I've watched and its pull-apartness could have been better. When sliced and a slice hung over a finger the sides didn't hang straight down. I don't know if that means I cooked it too much or too little, probably the former, but something wasn't right that I hope to improve the next time.
Thanks. I was following the recipe in the Meathead book (he's the main man at amazingribs.com) and he doesn't Texas crutch in it so I didn't either. Doing or not doing that was my biggest concern followed by whether to inject or not and what temp to pull the meat from the smoker.Here’s how a lot of people do it. When you reach the stall at 160 cut the point off and put back on the smoker. Take the flat and double wrap it with foil and put back on smoker until you reach around 200-205, it’s done. The point you can leave on longer if you wanted to. There lots of good info on amazingribs.com. I like this site for all kinds of stuff.
Briskets are tough to do perfect, especially if you have a time constraint.
I routinely smoke packer briskets in 4 to 5 hours with spectacular results every time. It is extremely easy. Here’s how: http://virtualweberbullet.com/brisket4.html
325-375? that ain't smokin'
Gonna roll ~35# of pork butt on the kamado on Saturday, planning on running somewhere in a 300-325 lbs range. As long as it's smoky, that it's indirect (so it ain't grilling), and that it's delicious, that's smokin'.
I did a turkey couple months back. Stuffed with apples and coated with mustard then smoothered with this...Great crispy crust (225-250)!! Pull at when internal temp reaches 165.Anyone have a trick to getting crispy skin on smoked poultry? The meat always turns out delicious but the skin is rubbery right out of the smoker. I've tried the grill afterwards with mixed results.
Gonna roll ~35# of pork butt on the kamado on Saturday, planning on running somewhere in a 300-325 lbs range. As long as it's smoky, that it's indirect (so it ain't grilling), and that it's delicious, that's smokin'.
A lot. I cant remember exactly but a lot. My electric wont go that hot but the grill will indirectly, with ease. Even at 275 vs 225 the time difference is measurable. I almost always like to start higher and finish lower to make sure dinner is on time. I remain certain high temperature is one of the best ways if not the best way to cook a turkey. And I mean 500 Degrees till the Finish. I originally got the idea from America's Test Kitchen or I think it was Cooks Illustrated. They cooked turkey after turkey. Brined, breast up, breast down, every way conceivable and decided that fried and high-heat were the best iirc. A lot of times I will decide what temperature to cook at based on when I want to eat it. And if it's Saturday afternoon at 3 and I want a pork butt for dinner at 5, then the options are very limited. Never put sugar on till the end on a high heat. Haha, i cooked and documented on this thread a pork butt i cooked from straight frozen. And honestly it would have been really good with a few tweaks. Sure some of these methods might not create something that will win a competition (that said it is my understanding that plenty of bbq/smoked meat awards have been won with high heat) but any method is better than ordering a pizza, fast food or some other last minute meal imo.I've only done butt at 225-250. How much time do you cut at higher temps? I like your style smokin a ton at a time. We love the leftovers mostly for tacos.
I often also go fat up for the same reason. Iirc aaron franklin recommends fat down to protect the meat from the fire. So depending on electric, pellet, stick etc...one might decide different methods for their setup. I researched this pretty heavily and found no definitive answer other than personal preference.@beernutz usually cook the brisket with the fat cap on top. Once the fats and collagens start to melt they baste the meat.
I've only done butt at 225-250. How much time do you cut at higher temps? I like your style smokin a ton at a time. We love the leftovers mostly for tacos.
The issue, as I understand it, is that the meat will only absorb smoke until it reaches 125 deg. The faster you get to 125, the less smoke flavor you have in the meat.
I'll be smokin on Sat as well. Spare + beef ribs.
My understanding is that the idea that meat stops absorbing smoke is a myth. That said, going low-and-slow in a kamado also means I'm not producing a ton of smoke at 225, as the fire is tiny. At 325, the fire will be bigger and will be rolling more smoke. So I'm not sure it's a big difference.
I have an electric smoke hollow and I was looking at the ribs recipe in the book it came with. Said to smoke at 225 and foil after 2.5 hrs but not to exceed total a cooking time of 3.5 hrs. This seems quick compared to some recipes that call for 5-6 hours or so. Thoughts?I've got two racks of baby backs going in the electric tomorrow.
This method seems awesome, I especially like the idea of wrapping with honey and tiger sauce or whatever it is. I posted a link to a competition winning recipe for the 3 2 1 method at least a couple times on this thread somewhere. I got it from my cousin. I also think most everybody has seen it and apologize if you're already all over it. At least maybe someone else might find it. I think its from major league grilling. Sadly, I cant use it, thats right....I never wrap my meat!The 3-2-1 seems to work well for me. And if I'm using a sauce with sugar in it, I'll throw them on the gasser for a few minutes for some caramelization.
I have an electric smoke hollow and I was looking at the ribs recipe in the book it came with. Said to smoke at 225 and foil after 2.5 hrs but not to exceed total a cooking time of 3.5 hrs. This seems quick compared to some recipes that call for 5-6 hours or so. Thoughts?
Anyone have any experience with a Pit Boss komado? Costco has them for $600, which is about $1000 less than the comparable BGE and $800 less than the Joe.
I was very close to an impulse buy tonight.
I thought that too. I think I'll do the 3-2-1!I'd trust the internet, not the recipe book. For baby back ribs, a 2-2-1 or 3-1-1 works well. For spares, 3-2-1, since spares are typically meatier.
If nothing else, using your instant-read thermometer as a probe to test for tenderness, or the "bend test", will tell you when they're done.
But I don't think 3.5 hours is typically enough for ribs.
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