The PPlanet BBQ Thread

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Coltsfan2theend said:
Last week I finally got the grill I bought in May up and going. I had to wait on a friend to come out and run a natural gas line to my deck. No more propane for me. I had issues with my old grill. It was my brother in laws before he moved so the heat shield supports were starting to rust and break. Also, it was 1/3 the size of my new grill. Fine for cooking for two, but when I have cook outs, it was hard to cook for more then four people.
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:thumb: Enjoy.

Cheers, BostonTim
 
Tis the season!

best-damn-photos-not-a-veggie.jpg
 
Been doing a little grilling and a little smoking lately.

The best tip I have is for doing a fairly complicated recipe for "making Pastrami close to Katz's famous deli" contained in the link below.

I followed the recipe with a typical bag of supermarket corned beef brisket, nothing fancy, and would recommend following the procedure for soaking the brine off the meat as the recipe states. That takes a while as does the whole process. In fact, under "preparation time" it just says "Oy!"

I thought it was possibly the best Pastrami I've ever tasted. Mine was a little too red in the center for an A+, but everything else was as good as advertised and I thought it was fun to try something outside the norm.

If you love a good Pastrami then you might want to consider giving this a shot. I'd also recommend cooking at least two briskets and maybe more because for all that prep time you don't want it gone in one meal. It's almost as easy to make 3 as it is 1.

I smoked it using hickory, grilled it briefly to set the crust, chilled it and then steamed it prior to serving (on marble rye, with swiss cheese, russian and sauerkraut). I started with a 4 pound brisket and when all was said and done it only made about 4 very large sandwiches.

As much as a pain in the ass as this project was, it was well worth it because the smoky, peppery Pastrami flavor was that tender and good. I can't wait to do it again because I'm craving it badly.

http://amazingribs.com/recipes/beef/close_to_katzs_home_made_pastrami.html
 
Hawg73 said:
Been doing a little grilling and a little smoking lately.

The best tip I have is for doing a fairly complicated recipe for "making Pastrami close to Katz's famous deli" contained in the link below.

I followed the recipe with a typical bag of supermarket corned beef brisket, nothing fancy, and would recommend following the procedure for soaking the brine off the meat as the recipe states. That takes a while as does the whole process. In fact, under "preparation time" it just says "Oy!"

I thought it was possibly the best Pastrami I've ever tasted. Mine was a little too red in the center for an A+, but everything else was as good as advertised and I thought it was fun to try something outside the norm.

If you love a good Pastrami then you might want to consider giving this a shot. I'd also recommend cooking at least two briskets and maybe more because for all that prep time you don't want it gone in one meal. It's almost as easy to make 3 as it is 1.

I smoked it using hickory, grilled it briefly to set the crust, chilled it and then steamed it prior to serving (on marble rye, with swiss cheese, russian and sauerkraut). I started with a 4 pound brisket and when all was said and done it only made about 4 very large sandwiches.

As much as a pain in the ass as this project was, it was well worth it because the smoky, peppery Pastrami flavor was that tender and good. I can't wait to do it again because I'm craving it badly.

http://amazingribs.com/recipes/beef/close_to_katzs_home_made_pastrami.html
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Amazingribs has some excellent recipes and great reviews of smokers, grills and eggs. Love that site.

---------- Post added at 08:51 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:49 AM ----------
BostonTim said:
Is seventh months a timely response? ROFL I have actually been eyeballing the pit barrell for some time. With it and my smokey mountain I could do some pretty serious damage (while at the same time keeping my texas brisket Kosher).

Cheers, BostonTim
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I've been eyeballing that pit barrel smoker as well but with 3 smokers and 2 grills my deck is pretty full now. Can't beat the price and performance though.

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pit_barrel_cooker.jpg

Pit Barrel Cooker $299 - 2nd Year On Our List!

We're running out of good things to say about this simple, affordable smoker. There's nothing else like it on the market. $299 delivered to your door in a big box. Open it up and start smoking. No assembly, no baby sitting and great results every time. If you've wanted to get a dedicated smoker or replace a cheapo rust bucket that never worked well anyway, the PBC beats anything in this price range hands down.
It's a variation on the Ugly Drum Smoker or UDS, but the drum is slightly smaller and, although it comes with a grate, for most recipes you hang the meat vertically from hooks - even turkeys! Your jaw will hit the deck as you pull one round of deliciously smoked meats after another from this magic drum with little more effort than trimming and seasoning. Furthermore the meat hanging method provides beaucoup capacity. PBC easily accommodates eight full slabs of ribs. Whether you're a novice or an award winning competitor (and competition teams now use them), Pit Barrel is a welcome addition to any backyard. Made in the USA. Click here to read our complete review of the Pit Barrel Cooker.


edit: I couldn't resist so I just ordered one from Amazon. Arriving by next weekend. ;)
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Reading this thread at lunchtime at my office is torture.
That is all.
 
I have sort of a general question for folks that pertains (in particular) to cooking, say pulled pork in a smoker.

Why does meat "stall"?

I put some 4 reasonably sized chunks of Boston Butt (which I had trimmed) in my electric smoker at 8AM and 225 degrees.

I had a Kentucky Derby Party to go to and I was supplying the meat and some other stuff.

Everything was going well and the temp was steadily rising when I noticed, after 5 hours of smoking, that the two larger cuts were around 176 and holding steady. The two smaller were at 190ish and gaining, so I figured they'd be OK.

So, I started bumping the heat up and got the two smaller chunks up to my target of 200-205, but the two larger chunks only rose a small increment. I had to bring them inside and put them in the oven at 300 and two hours later they were still under target.

What is the deal with the stall? How do people handle it? How do people tell how long shit takes?

I love feeding people good smoked meat, but at this point I really don't feel I can predict when anything will actually be done in time for it to rest and so forth. Especially with larger cuts of meat.

Any advice would be appreciated.

People really loved my pulled pork, but I was sweating it out and think maybe 7 hours wasn't enough time.
 
Hawg73 said:
I have sort of a general question for folks that pertains (in particular) to cooking, say pulled pork in a smoker.

Why does meat "stall"?

I put some 4 reasonably sized chunks of Boston Butt (which I had trimmed) in my electric smoker at 8AM and 225 degrees.

I had a Kentucky Derby Party to go to and I was supplying the meat and some other stuff.

Everything was going well and the temp was steadily rising when I noticed, after 5 hours of smoking, that the two larger cuts were around 176 and holding steady. The two smaller were at 190ish and gaining, so I figured they'd be OK.

So, I started bumping the heat up and got the two smaller chunks up to my target of 200-205, but the two larger chunks only rose a small increment. I had to bring them inside and put them in the oven at 300 and two hours later they were still under target.

What is the deal with the stall? How do people handle it? How do people tell how long shit takes?

I love feeding people good smoked meat, but at this point I really don't feel I can predict when anything will actually be done in time for it to rest and so forth. Especially with larger cuts of meat.

Any advice would be appreciated.

People really loved my pulled pork, but I was sweating it out and think maybe 7 hours wasn't enough time.
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Understanding and Beating the Barbecue Stall, Bane of All Barbecuers, and How it Helps Create "Bark"



http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/the_stall.html
 
deec77 said:
That was my go too page.

~Dee~
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I'm glad to know Planeteers are using the site. I found it 6 years ago.

The barbecue stall is a simple consequence of evaporative cooling by the meat's own moisture, slowly released over hours from within it's core . As the temperature rises, the evaporation rate increases - until the cooling effect balances the heat input. Then it stalls, until the last drop of moisture is gone. Adding moisture to the pan or injecting the meat increases the length of stall but also makes the meat more juicy. I frequently use Coke in the bottom of a disposable pan along with the pork shoulder. The Coke acts to tenderize the meat in a way apple juice can't although I have also used half coke and half pineapple juice (rich in papain, a proteolytic enzyme) or half pineapple juice and half apple juice very successfully. At 150 degrees meat temp I always use the Texas crutch - wrap in foil tightly - to shorten the stall at low temps. I use 220 degrees as my target for the smoker temperature so that's very low. Some people use higher temps and get great results but I've found the meat has to be watched very closely or it comes out dry when using temperatures above 275.
 
Interesting stuff. I've obviously been on AmazingRibs and am a fan of Meathead, but I never saw that article, so thanks!

It sounded like he was describing me with all the panic and oven usage.

What I got out of reading it is that I wasn't really doing anything drastically wrong, but in the future I'm going to make sure that I have the time that I need, even if that means getting up extra early, and I will use a Texas Crutch as described with a finish on the grill to get the bark a little crustier, since that is how I prefer it.

I have an electric smoker, which have their pros and cons, but the bottom line is that there are a lot of ways to make good BBQ as long as you give yourself plenty of time.

Much obliged!
 
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