Finally shoveled the snow off my deck

[digger]

Never use the back door this time of year. (The basement door opens to the driveway.)
Got about 10" of snow and 2" of ice under that on the deck.

Today I shoveled a path to the grill, chipped enough ice to get the door open....

Got the grill fired up right now! Grocery store had T-bones on sale, gonna fix a few burgers.
Yes I have, but it's only my second one.

Been a long winter, guess I sorta got cabin fever. Nice enough to cook out and usually I have done it before now.
So here's to the first cook-out of 2010.

 

[beason]

wasn't my first cook out of the year, but i did some strip steak tonight. man they were great!!

did some ribs a few weeks ago, smoked for 5.5 hours then sauced them, and let the smoke another 30 min. fall off the bone good!!

 

[bergoff]

I would go nuts if I couldn't grill year round. The only time I don't is when it below zero. You are making me hungry for a good steak.

 

[Rolex]

If you waited till March to shovel snow, why are you called "digger"?

 

[digger]

Started to pick up some ribs this morning. Damn that sounds good!
Got a big charcoal smoker, that's what I'm using. Think I've almost got the heat figured out on it. If ya got any tips, let me know.

If you waited till March to shovel snow, why are you called "digger"?

Only thing I could think of when I registered on the site. Used to run heavy equipment. Thought it fit.


Got the burgers. Now I've got 3 big T-bones on the grill. Don't have enough light, but they smell good. Time for another brew and a big ol' steak.

 

[beason]

what type of pit do you have? pic?

here is mine.

the small side to the far right is the fire pit, the next one to the left is the smoking chamber.

i learned real quick to limit the amount of fuel you use. i tried piling it in and regulating the heat with the damper, and that failed completely.

i use royal oak natural wood charcoal, and i dont use any lighter fluid or anything. i use one of those charcoal chimney starter things.

i start the fire about 30-45 min before i want to start cooking, and let the pit come up to temp.

i use a water tray, and load it with about 1/2 and 1/2 water and beer. when i did my turkey i used all apple juice.

i soak the wood chips in a small bucket at least an hour (normally overnight). i normally use hickory, but with the turkey i used apple wood.

i check it every 30 min to an hour, and just add a few hand-fulls of charcoal if the temp is lower then i want. i put charcoal first to make a cool spot, then get a handful of woodchips, let the water drain out, and put them on top of the charcoal. the woodchips are just for flavor, and dont add a lot of heat. i try to get the larger chuncks and not the small ones.

i do ribs at about 250deg, and i close the intake damper about half, and open the stack all the way. average size rack takes 5-6 hours. they will only take smoke for about 3, so if you run out of woodchips dont worry.

i cook ribs meat side up with the bigger side closer to the heat. with about half an hour left i sauce then real thick, and let the smoke the rest of the time.

i use sweet baby rays sauce.

any questions?

 

[RC Addict]

It was 75 degrees out here in the desert today. Threw burgers and brats on the grill for the BDay party. It was a good day. Now raining and wind moving in. Gonna be gusting to 50 MPH tonight and tomorrow. Bet my grill goes over on its side. Hmmm... I am gonna go lay it GENTLY on it's side now...

 

[beason]

Bet my grill goes over on its side. Hmmm... I am gonna go lay it GENTLY on it's side now...

mine weighs just over 250lbs. nothing short of a hurricane will take it out...

 

[hamz9561]

For smoking brisket and ribs you want a long time at a low heat. When my dad used to BBQ, he would cook the ribs for about 3-4 hours at 180*F. Hope that helps.

 

[beason]

at 180deg it would take longer then 3 or 4 hours for them to cook. meat needs to hit an internal temp of 160deg before its safe to eat, and only 20deg over that, would take quite awhile to get the internal temp up.

mine come out excellent at 250deg for 5-6 hours.

another trick i learned is sea salt. use this on your meat. it wont make it salty, but the salt breaks down during the smoking process, and helps to dissolve the meat fibers. its a natural tenderizer.

i have yet to successfully remove the membrane from the bottom of a rack of ribs, but I've heard it makes them more tender, and more moist.

I've done brisket at like 9-10 hours. it was pretty good as well, but I've only done it once, so i need more practice.

a beer can chicken is excellent on a smoker, i did a "beer can" turkey for thanksgiving, but i used apple juice instead of beer. that one took about 6 hours at 300deg

 

[digger]

Beason I've got one similar minus the propane side. http://www.brinkmann.net/Shop/Serie...GPO-3040-W&seriesname=Smoke`N+Pit+(810-3040-W) Need to change the temp ga on it. (scroll down the page) I've seen them at Lowes that have the temperature on them.

Just did a few ribs before. One had the membrane.
Did a beer can chicken. That was good.
Been using apple juice with my pork tenderloin. Ol' lady picked up one of those injectors and I'm gonna try it this year.

I am having trouble regulating mine too. Using the charcoal chimney. Gonna get a temp ga.
Are you using only the fire box on the side? I did that once and it didn't seem like I got enough heat. I usually end up with a few coals in the grill. Maybe I'm rushing it?

 

[beason]

yea you need a better gauge then "low, ideal, high".. lol

you have to give it time. it takes a good 30-45 min, preferably an hour for the smoke side to get up to temp.

it takes a good bit of charcoal to keep it going, i used a half a bag on the ribs.

if yours has a charcoal tray in the big side, if its adjustable, move it up higher, just low enough the water tray will fit between it and the food rack. that will help dissipate the heat around the whole smoke chamber, instead of through the pass through and out the top. i put heavy duty aluminum foil on mine and raise it up to disperse the heat to the far end, like a tunnel.

the smoker side wont get really hot like the firebox will. 250-300deg isnt going to radiate a bunch of heat. but you should be able to hear your water tray boiling a little.

i got the firebox so hot, i burnt the paint off the intake damper.. ooops..

i injected the turkey and the chicken. used "butter Creole" flavor. came out nice!

i normally fill up the charcoal starter chimney and set it on the gas burner to start it. leave it for about 5 min then dump it to the firebox. spread it out, and add 2 or 3 handfulls on top and let that get good an hot. adjust the damper to about half way will create a faster airflow and help it burn hotter. like using a bellows on a fireplace. leave the stack all the way open. this should draw the heat up to the smoke chamber.

after it gets up to temp and holds, i put my meat on, and add 2 handfulls or so of charcoal and a handfull of wood.

smoking isnt precise, if it spikes to 300 or goes down to 200 for a few minutes its fine.

do not open the smoke chamber unless you have to. try not to peak, you will be able to smell it and know its doing good. i only open the firebox to add fuel, and only open the smoker to sauce.

 

[Rolex]

A local rib house owner said he smoked them overnight at 140 degrees before they went on the grill. Superior flavor and fall off the bone tender.

 

[beason]

140 overnight sounds good, but i dont have the firebox to hold enough fuel to burn overnight. i would have to stay up all night!!!

your supposed to be able to stack up the charcoal, and light the end farthest from the intake damper and it should burn to the damper, slow steady burn. i havent mastered that one yet.

 

[Rolex]

The charcoal is for the bar b q. He would put the meat on the grill in the big barrel, and just smolder wood in the small one. that way only the smoke would fill the big barrel and it would stay at 140.

 

[neobart]

Smoking the meat hot will give a more subtle smoke flavor whereas a cold smoke will be more intense. We have a long tradition for preserving meats with smoke over here in Scandinavia. We mostly use beechwood and sometimes throw in some juniper berries. They give of a nice flavor to the meat, but should be used sparingly as they pack quite a wallup. I won't eat pork or poultry unless it has a core temperature of at least 167(75c), but a nice slap of beef sirloin should be served around 135 IMO. I believe that's what you call medium rare.

We made some kille ribs where I was doing my apprenticeship as a butcher. The ribs where put in a 15% brine for two hours, rubbed dry and then basted with a tomato/rum flavored sauce and left to marinate over night. Next day we put them in the oven for two hours at 230 no higher or the sauce will burn(quite a lot of brown sugar in it). Now they are ready to go in the bbq. Give them 30 minutes with the lid closed(the sauce would catch fire if you didn't) and you can suck them dry. Sauce from ear to ear, uhm good.


Great now I'm hungry, great way to loose weight huh.

 

[Rolex]

I'll be back later. I'm going out to eat.

 

[hamz9561]

Remember to your pants on, Rolex. No Shirts, No Shoes No Service also means no pants call the cops.......

 

[Rolex]

I'm back. We ate like royalty.
They also had a sign for the women:

No shoes, no shirt, no problem.

 

[digger]

I'm back. We ate like royalty.
They also had a sign for the women:

No shoes, no shirt, no problem.

Usually works here too.

Thanks for the tips Beason.
Been meaning to get a better gauge. That is a joke.
Think I've been trying to rush it.
If I remember right I just used a "chimney" full of charcoal in my fire box to start with.
Was just waiting 5 or 10 minutes.

Mine has an adjustable charcoal tray. I've tried adding some coals to it. (I use that side to grill on.)
So far if my smoking worked out, it was part on the smoker and part in the oven.

Gonna try some of your tips next time. Thanks again.