Who's smoking meat this weekend?

[davidabcd]

From anyone's experience here, is it easy enough to use a gas grill to smoke? There are some nice pellets at Costco right now. If it's just a matter of a dish of pellets and water or whatever, I wouldn't mind trying my rib recipe outdoors.
Thanks.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

From anyone's experience here, is it easy enough to use a gas grill to smoke? There are some nice pellets at Costco right now. If it's just a matter of a dish of pellets and water or whatever, I wouldn't mind trying my rib recipe outdoors.
Thanks.

Generally, you can get it done. If you have a three-burner grill, you tend to turn on one of the side burners and keep the other two unlit. Set up wood chips in a pack of aluminum foil or a "smoker tray" above the lit burner. Perhaps set up a water pan under the meat if you want to help block the direct heat for an indirect smoke.

It'll look something like this, with only the leftmost burner turned on.

Edit: I'd use hardwood chips [available at pretty much any home improvement store], not pellets designed for a pellet grill. The pellets may not smolder properly.

 

[davidabcd]

@bwarbiany
Wow, I can do that; I have plenty of room. And don't use pellets. I probably don't need water then since space isn't an issue.
I'm going to do some baby back ribs which come out great in the oven. If I am successful, I am going to do a prime rib.
I should never have clicked on this thread and saw all the great-looking food.
Thank you.

 

[applescrap]

Solid.

Generally, you can get it done. If you have a three-burner grill, you tend to turn on one of the side burners and keep the other two unlit. Set up wood chips in a pack of aluminum foil or a "smoker tray" above the lit burner. Perhaps set up a water pan under the meat if you want to help block the direct heat for an indirect smoke.

It'll look something like this, with only the leftmost burner turned on.

Edit: I'd use hardwood chips [available at pretty much any home improvement store], not pellets designed for a pellet grill. The pellets may not smolder properly.

 

[S-Met]

Beef ribs smoked with cherry and hickory. Wishing I would have done just a bit of mesquite too, next time...first time on my new smoker and first time doing beef ribs.

 

[Schlenkerla]

Beef ribs smoked with cherry and hickory. Wishing I would have done just a bit of mesquite too, next time...first time on my new smoker and first time doing beef ribs.

View attachment 650939 View attachment 650940 View attachment 650941 View attachment 650942

Looks good dude!!!

 

[Schlenkerla]

I fired up the smoker for some easy boneless ribs....

Tossed them in this at noon kickoff. Now to warm up the smoker for an hour of heavy smoke and then a grill as normal.

 

[Schlenkerla]

Popped on The Slathered Ribs....

 

[Schlenkerla]

This is after.... Ready to eat.... They got hit with an apple juice spritz once every 15 minutes for about 2.5-3 hours

 

[Schlenkerla]

Boneless ribs with rooster sauce.... Spicy goodness.

 

[mullet6577]

Chicken on Saturday

Ribs for dinner last night, just salt and pepper on this rack

And a tri-tip to bring for lunches at work this week

 

[ThirstyPawsHB]

8lbs brisket in electric smoker Friday. 9hrs in the smoker at 212 then covered in oven with onions/garlic for 2 more at 205. Wood was oak/cherry chips..what I had laying around along with random dry rubs. Funny thing is, came out darn good. Not much of a smoke ring but great flavor/moist and tender.

 

[brewbama]

Wangs. I like ‘em crispy so a small chimney plus a knot of Hickory straightened out these simple SPOG dusted wangs.

Football, wangs, pasta salad, and MyBock. What else does a Southern boy need?!?! Cheers y’all!

 

[ThirstyPawsHB]

First shot at a pork butt. Smoking with Apple wood at 250F. Can always finish in oven.

 

[bleme]

When I first got my electric smoker, it was always a struggle to get the temp in the 225F-250F range. It always wanted to go 300F. Then this last summer suddenly it was hitting that range no matter what I set it at! I didn't discover the problem until I tried to use the same extension cord to run my air compressor and it just wouldn't go. Turns out the extension cord was compromised. Might use it anyway...

 

[S-Met]

First shot at a pork butt. Smoking with Apple wood at 250F. Can always finish in oven.View attachment 656607

Great piece of meat to start with. Very forgiving on times and cooking temps. That looks boneless and untied,if so, should cook relatively fast. Sometimes the big tightly tied or bone-in can take a really long time to get through the 160 stall. Keep cooking or crank the heat. Also fair to move to the oven as it won't absorb much more smoke.

 

[ThirstyPawsHB]

That's interesting. Make sense as we're pumping some current through the wires. Mine is direct connection to outdoor outlet.

When I first got my electric smoker, it was always a struggle to get the temp in the 225F-250F range. It always wanted to go 300F. Then this last summer suddenly it was hitting that range no matter what I set it at! I didn't discover the problem until I tried to use the same extension cord to run my air compressor and it just wouldn't go. Turns out the extension cord was compromised. Might use it anyway...

Great piece of meat to start with. Very forgiving on times and cooking temps. That looks boneless and untied,if so, should cook relatively fast. Sometimes the big tightly tied or bone-in can take a really long time to get through the 160 stall. Keep cooking or crank the heat. Also fair to move to the oven as it won't absorb much more smoke.

I've done brisket and turkey. We had steak last night so decided on pork and damn cheep too! Just checked. It's at 150 deep inside, 5hrs in. Dialed back a bit. Still pull at 200ish like a brisket? Thanks for the responses!

 

[bleme]

Turns out the extension cord was compromised. Might use it anyway...

What do you guys think? Has this cord earned its retirement or is it still good for a few slabs of bacon?

 

[ThirstyPawsHB]

As long as no exposed copper. Some electrical tape and you're good.

What do you guys think? Has this cord earned its retirement or is it still good for a few slabs of bacon?
View attachment 656613

 

[schematix]

What do you guys think? Has this cord earned its retirement or is it still good for a few slabs of bacon?
View attachment 656613

Looks like it’s ready for permanent installation inside a wall.

 

[JB_Brewing2]

What do you guys think? Has this cord earned its retirement or is it still good for a few slabs of bacon?
View attachment 656613

Don't take a chance on your, or your equipment's, longevity, replace now. There may be damage under the sheath.

 

[ThirstyPawsHB]

First shot at a pork butt. Smoking with Apple wood at 250F. Can always finish in oven.View attachment 656607

Pulled at 165, covered in pan/foil with onions/garlic and beer into oven at 350. Pulled at 190F and sat for 45min. Meat melted away! Turned out awesome, nice smoke and flavor. Dry rub was salt/pepper and Tony's w/mustard as a binder. Family was very happy going into thirds.

 

[S-Met]

What do you guys think? Has this cord earned its retirement or is it still good for a few slabs of bacon?
View attachment 656613

You going to wrap the cord in bacon?

 

[applescrap]

Dont ever quit doing beef ribs, those look amazing. I love beef ribs.

Beef ribs smoked with cherry and hickory. Wishing I would have done just a bit of mesquite too, next time...first time on my new smoker and first time doing beef ribs.

View attachment 650939 View attachment 650940 View attachment 650941 View attachment 650942

 

[applescrap]

Effin awesome all the way round. I dontike chicken, but I like that chicken. Ribs look perfect and I cooked a tri tip once that was amazing and it looked just like that. Wow man.

Chicken on Saturday
View attachment 651184

Ribs for dinner last night, just salt and pepper on this rack

View attachment 651185

And a tri-tip to bring for lunches at work this week

View attachment 651186

 

[applescrap]

I forgot to upload the pork I smoked the other day. Its become a hard decision....hickory and cherry or pecan. I love them both so much. Nothing but 2 to 1 sugar to salt. Froze 4 meals and put one bag in fridge. One dinner from fridge bag and leftovers went into breakfast burritos for week. 12 hours at 275, so should give you some idea of how long is needed at 225 with no wrap.

@PianoMan i saw your question and have an answer just no time right now but somewhere above 195 will do. Depends how hungry you are and if you are eating or freezing for later.

 

[Toxxyc]

Oh, awesome thread. Didn't know it was on here. GREAT, because I need advice. I'm planning on doing a brisket next weekend. I have a Weber and I know how to work it. I've made some great cooks on there before, including an absolutely phenomenal pork shoulder (Boston butt). I have made one or two beef cooks, but they have been sub-par. Yes, I was inexperienced at the time (and didn't have a thermometer), but still.

So, I'm planning a brisket for 6~8 people. Not a lot of people, but I don't want THE smallest piece of meat as they tend to dry out. I have considered a 7~8lb brisket for that purpose. I would prefer the point over the flat, and I'm going to ask my butcher as much as well. However, there are some things I'm worried about. Is the weight or piece of meat possibly too small? How long should it go if I'm planning to run it between 225 and 250? I have the whole day, so that's fine.

Also on this topic, the last thing I smoked was a pork shoulder, and it was smoked with hickory. I didn't smoke it for too long, but it was very, very smokey after the cook. Actually a bit too smokey for my taste. It tasted almost like liquid smoke, and I didn't even use a ton of chips (chips is all I can get over here). How many chips should I use if I just want a light or mild smokey flavour? Also, do wet chips create more of a smoke flavour than dry chips, or is it a different smoke flavour? I've always soaked my wood chips prior to smoking, but I'm in two minds about if it actually works...

 

[schematix]

Oh, awesome thread. Didn't know it was on here. GREAT, because I need advice. I'm planning on doing a brisket next weekend. I have a Weber and I know how to work it. I've made some great cooks on there before, including an absolutely phenomenal pork shoulder (Boston butt). I have made one or two beef cooks, but they have been sub-par. Yes, I was inexperienced at the time (and didn't have a thermometer), but still.

So, I'm planning a brisket for 6~8 people. Not a lot of people, but I don't want THE smallest piece of meat as they tend to dry out. I have considered a 7~8lb brisket for that purpose. I would prefer the point over the flat, and I'm going to ask my butcher as much as well. However, there are some things I'm worried about. Is the weight or piece of meat possibly too small? How long should it go if I'm planning to run it between 225 and 250? I have the whole day, so that's fine.

Also on this topic, the last thing I smoked was a pork shoulder, and it was smoked with hickory. I didn't smoke it for too long, but it was very, very smokey after the cook. Actually a bit too smokey for my taste. It tasted almost like liquid smoke, and I didn't even use a ton of chips (chips is all I can get over here). How many chips should I use if I just want a light or mild smokey flavour? Also, do wet chips create more of a smoke flavour than dry chips, or is it a different smoke flavour? I've always soaked my wood chips prior to smoking, but I'm in two minds about if it actually works...

I've done exactly 1 brisket to date on my WSM and it was freakin amazing. 14lb prime packer from Costco. Simple S&P rub. Put it on at 8PM the night before at 225F, pulled it around 8AM the next morning when it was in the stall. Rather than screwing with the charcoal, i brought it inside, threw it in a pan, plastic wrapped, foil wrapped, and threw in the oven at 225 for another 5 hours until i hit 199F. Then i just shut the oven off and let it coast. At 7PM when i cut into it, it was 140F internal temp and heavenly.

Note you're gonna lose something like half the mass so for 6-8 people a 10-12lb whole packer is probably in the ball park. I'm happy i did the whole one instead of just a flat or just the point. I had some slices off of both for the best mix of fat and lean.

 

[Toxxyc]

I have to note, I don't have a WSM, I just have a plain Weber kettle. That means I have to tend the fire, and keep an eye on it. I would PREFER not to have to cook the brisket for 12 to 14 hours, but if I have to, I will. I've been reading a ton and watching a bunch of YT videos and I see there's also a "hot and fast" method where the one vid I saw the guy did a 20lb brisket at over 300 to super tender in 5 hours. I'm not too familiar with too hot though and I'm afraid of burning, so I'd rather do it a bit slower, perhaps around the 250 mark.

If I'm going to lose half the brisket I'll definitely go for 10lb. Two people aren't big meat eaters, but at least three of us really are. My plan is as follows:

1. Trim brisket the night before so it's ready the next morning. I usually also pack the Weber kettle with the snake method at this time, as it saves a lot of time the next morning.
2. Next morning, rub it up with salt and pepper. I'll be doing a slightly more BBQ thing so I'm considering cutting it with a BBQ rub.
3. Start fire.
4. When fire is ready, get brisket on. Leave for 2 hours and start spritzing. I intend on spritzing with my Vienna lager. The flavour is awesome.
5. Spritz on the hour until I hit the stall on the thickest part, between 150 and 160.
6. Double-wrap with the rest of the Vienna lager. I have to add here that I'm not the biggest fan of the thickest bark, so I'll not mind to have a more tender outside finish with more liquid to make a sauce with on the end.
7. At this stage, I'm planning on rinsing the pan under the brisket and I want to add a bit of roast veggies under it so it can roast in the Weber for the last two hours or so. Stir on the hour.
8. Remove from heat when I hit the 205 mark, set in cooler box to rest until serving.

On point 8 - the juices in the foil packet I really want to retain. I want to thicken it up a bit on the stove into a jus, so I'm wondering, do I rest the brisket in the juice or do I take it out? I've seen arguments for and against both, so I don't know.

 

[6th Street Brewer]

A big ass pork loin braid. Lemon dill, Saskatchewan and Paprika/Brown sugar rubs. Turned out pretty good