What's in your smoker?

[kydsid]

Turkey is done. And since the smoker was already running I figured heck lets do a beef and sausage fatty too!


IMG_20130929_163222 by kydsid, on Flickr


Sunday smoker fun!

[kydsid]

and tomorrow's dinner


IMG_20130929_191246 by kydsid, on Flickr

[357]

Thanks Peter and Jason for the thoughts on the brisket. Unfortunately I didn't see them until just now. Nice looking turkey and fatty there Jason. I've been pretty busy and I haven't been online since my last post. I followed a similar approach I read on SMF to how I handled the chuckies. However, I wanted to slice, not pull the meat at the end.

Here's the 8lb brisket before it went into the Not-So-U, DS.

This is the bottom. It had a thick fat cap that I did NOT trim prior to smoking. Per instructions I read, I put the fat cap on top when I put it into the smoker. I rubbed it in worshteshire first, then a rub I made using these ingredients (which I had on hand)

1/4 cup cumin
1/2 cup of pepper
1/2 cup of koser salt
1/2 cup of granulated garlic
1/2 cup of onion powder
1/2 cup of paparika
1/2 cup of chili powder
1/2 cup of brown sugar

However, I didn't have a half-gallon storage container for all that so I used 2 tablespoons for the 1/2 cup and 1 tablespoon for the 1/4 cup. It made more than enough for the brisket.


I did NOT get any pics before slicing or after. Unfortunately all I could do was take a picture of the leftovers I brought to work for lunch today.


Here's the external thermometer reading pre-meat.



The Story:
I had my cousins wedding to attend Saturday. I had to leave at 5:00 PM to get there on time. Since I was not going to be home for this cook, I had to rely on my MIL to tend to things while I was gone. My plan was to put the brisket on at 225 and cook to an IT of 170, then put it into an aluminum pan, add sauce (apple juice, BBQ sauce, worshteshire mix), put back into smoker, cook to IT of 200, then rest in cooler until I got home. The goal was sliceable meat but almost tender enough to pull. However, the only aluminum pans I had on hand weren't big enough. So I had to cut the brisket in two. I did so with the grain, from top to bottom in the first pic. I put the two halves on the smoker at 4:45 PM. I told the MIL to check the IT temp in 3 hours. I explained the plan and I premade the sauce. She checked the IT at 7:45 PM and it was at 170 already. So, she followed my instructions. I didn't get home until after 3:00 AM so I left the meat in the cooler until morning. At 8:00 AM I checked and the meat was still warm. I poured off the sauce into a bowl and wrapped the meat back up. The bowl went into the freezer so I could skim the fat off of it. When it was time to eat I wanted to warm the two halves back up. But, when handling them the meat under the fat cap felt a little tough. My concern was that perhaps the MIL did not measure the temp correctly, perhaps just getting the thermometer into the fat cap and not the meat. So, I put a little of the sauce with some apple juice into the aluminum pans, covered the meat, and popped it into the oven. I figured warming them and keeping them moist might help them tenderize a bit if it was undercooked (not raw, just tough). I kept them in the over for about 2 hours, when the IT reached about 190. I pulled them out, sliced, and dumped the temp sauce as it was full of rendered fat. The bulk I had kept aside was warmed and poured into a gravy boat. Overall it was very tender, tasty, and a big hit with the whole family. My 20 month old son at 5 slices himself. When slicing I took most of the fat cap off only to realize how much bark/flavor I was losing in the process. My in-laws then told me the like more fat on. Oh well. Not sure if I should have trimmed more and left some on or should repeat and not slice it off next time.

Side note: I forgot to have my MIL close the vents when she pulled the meat off the smoker. I also forgot to check when I got home. So, when I woke up and saw it smoking I checked the temp. Still rock solid at 225. It had been15.5 hours (4:45 PM through 8:15 AM) and was still holding temp perfect. In fact, later Sunday afternoon when I put the smoker away, the charcoal basket still had about 1/4 of its fuel left. Also, my Maverick ET732 is en route. It's an early Christmas present from my mom.

[357]

I forgot to mention the total smoke time was only 4.5 hours. After putting the meat into trays, it only took another 1.5 hours for the IT temp to read 200. Again, not sure my MIL's method of measuring was accurate, but after reheating the way I did both halves were very tender. It came out great. I was worried with that short cook time it would be like shoe leather. I'm guessing the two smaller peices cooked faster than it would have if left whole.

[ucla695]

Originally Posted by T.G

I'm probably going to switch over to the TJ hardwood briquettes since I've been kind of disappointed with KF blue of late. I bought a pallet of the "new" stuff at the last sale and after going through about half of it (roughly 240 lbs so far), I've pretty much confirmed that my burn rates are way up, so something changed again. Not sure if they changed the formula or not, but the new smaller briquette size means you're getting more briquettes per volume and that means more burning surface area, and being smaller, they don't last as long. Royal PITA having to reload and clear ash more often now. One of the things that kept me with KF Blue was the lower burn temps, but now, since I'm ending up with more surface area burning, my temps are higher, back in the ranges I saw with Rancher years ago, since I'm going to be stuck with higher temps one way or the other I see no point in continuing to use something that has to be replenished more often.

Anyone want a good deal on 280# of KF Blue? Local pickup only... free apple wood ('cuz I hate it) with every purchase... lol

I stopped using KBB at the beginning of summer, right after I tried a bag of Trader Joe's briqs. Now, it's my go to. I've been stocking up. I think it's a little harder to get it going and a little more brittle, but definitely has lower ash and longer burn times. I haven't touched my bags of KBB (from last years sales) since.

[fxpose]

I'll help myself to the remaining bags of your KBB's the next time I'm over at The Pool.

[357]

I just got 3 more chuck roasts from my sister. She liked how they came out last time. The deal works like this: I smoke them and we split the end result 50/50. Works for me, plus I get to try out my new Maverick ET-732!

I'll post as many pics as I can. This mission launch is scheduled for Sunday afternoon with completion sometime Sunday evening.

[Chainsaw13]

Elk heart pastrami before going into the smoker.

[357]

Looks goood but, we need more pictures Bob.

My latest effort I started yesterday around 5:00 PM...

My sister donated 3 more chuckies. This time I split it 50/50 and used aluminum pans rather than foil to make sure I didn't lose any of the "Smoky Au Jus" as the recipie called it. Plus, I got to test out my new Maverick ET-732, an early Christmas present from my mom.

All three rubbed in worshteshire and a basic rub I last used on the brisket.


About 2-3 hours in, long before they were foiled.


Largest one after a rest. Notice that bone separation


Smaller two after resting.

[357]

All three pulled and equally divided. One for my family, one for my sister's family.


I popped them into the aluminum pans at IT of about 165, added au jus, and covered. Kept them in until IT of 205. Last, I poured off the au jus and rested them in a cooler, covered in towels. Au jus went into a bowl into the freezer. This morning I popped the fat cap off the au jus and divided it into two. About to warm it up for dinner now.

[T.G]

Nicely done.


BTW, how badly did it hurt when you dropped the knife on your foot?

[Chainsaw13]

I'll post more pics of the pastrami tomorrow. Plan is to steam it, then slice for a sandwich. It smells amazing.

[357]

Originally Posted by T.G

Nicely done.


BTW, how badly did it hurt when you dropped the knife on your foot?

Actually, that was from the au jus. As I was carrying one of the pans into the house it sloshed out and landed on my foot. Obviously it was boiling hot and a portion was rendered fat. Nothing like hot grease burns. I'll be alright, it was worth the sacrifice. The family all enjoyed this BBQ beef for dinner tonight.

[T.G]

Originally Posted by 357

Actually, that was from the au jus. As I was carrying one of the pans into the house it sloshed out and landed on my foot. Obviously it was boiling hot and a portion was rendered fat. Nothing like hot grease burns. I'll be alright, it was worth the sacrifice. The family all enjoyed this BBQ beef for dinner tonight.

That's awesome Mike, even better than a dropped knife story.

Plan on a long recovery time though. The burns on my hands from Brad's Chicken ala Moskovskaya a year and a half ago are just starting to become less visible. (totally worth it though)

[357]

Originally Posted by T.G

That's awesome Mike, even better than a dropped knife story.

Plan on a long recovery time though. The burns on my hands from Brad's Chicken ala Moskovskaya a year and a half ago are just starting to become less visible. (totally worth it though)

It's funny you say that. I layed my left forearm on my UDS barrel while wire-wheeling the paint off the outside. I layed it on a hot spot and felt a burn. There was so much dirt/paint dust on my arm I didn't see a mark so I continued. Later when showering the hot water hit it and I jumped. Once cleaned up I had a nice size burn. It didn't really blister and healed completly but it's still reddish months later. The top of my left foot seems to be following that course so far; no blistering but it's red and tender.

[357]

Found the local Foodland grocery store had a buy-1 get-1 free sale on Boston Butt pork shoulder. It didn't say a price which made it confusing. They had "family packs" which appear to have two cuts in each listed for $2.99/lb. There was some confusion as to whether this was the discounted (two in a pack for the total price listed) or if I bought one family pack for $2.99/lb and got another free. My wife convinced them of the latter. Only setback was one package was 14.5 lbs and the other 12.5 lbs. I had hoped for two of the same, or closer to the same size. Anyway, we payed for the larger and got the smaller free. So, I have 27 lbs of pork shoulder to smoke, and I paid about $43.

[Chainsaw13]

Nicely done Mike. You should turn at least one of those butt's into sausage.

[357]

Originally Posted by Chainsaw13

Nicely done Mike. You should turn at least one of those butt's into sausage.

Never made sausage. I don't have the equipment, but I do like the idea. I'm already thinking about the best way to use my UDS or my grill for cold smoking. I really like the idea of cold-smoking jerky, bacon, cheese, and sausage. It is cold smoked right, sausage I mean? I've seen some different options including http://www.amazenproducts.com/ and some homemade rigs using a tin can full of wood chips & a soldering gun.

[357]

I fogot to say thanks Bob; so Thank you! I knew their original claim that $2.99/lb was the net result of this sale wasn't some great bargain. I did the math and I ended up paying $1.59/lb. I think that's a good deal. I think I might start the smoke tonight. Not sure yet. I don't plan on brining them, just rub and smoke. No foil until they go into the cooler to rest. That's the plan anyway. I'm need to figure out if I can fit all 4 onto my top rack or if I need to put two on the bottom. Given the time it'll take to complete I know if I split them up, I'll likely need to rotate them so they cook evenly. Heck, I'm not even 100% positive there are 4. I haven't opened them up to know for sure yet.

[Chainsaw13]

You can cold smoke sausage, but you'd still need to fully cook it, unless of course you're making a dry cured sausage. Then you'd need a setup for hanging/curing those. I was thinking more of just a fresh sausage, like brats or italian sausage.