ALL THINGS SMOKED & BBQ THREAD

[insaneh]

Looks great! Dont buy another cooker, spend the money one meat and spices instead.

I've got a cabinet full of spices. If I bring home any more, they will likely get shoved in my nether regions. 

The wife brought home a couple of chuck "roasts" the other night. Closer to steaks IMO.
"What do you want me to do with these?"
"I don't know. Grill them"

OK. I seasoned them and cooked them slower than I would a steak.
Mistake. Tough piece of meat.
Not wanting to waste food, I devised a devious plan for Fridays work cook.
I ground it all up, added chopped onions and pickles. Rolled out a couple of pounds of Jimmy Dean. Cooked up a half
pounds of bacon, a layer of pepper jack cheese, a layer of the meat mix and rolled it all up. Another layer of bacon, some rub and
onto the grill with a couple chunks of hickory.

[PetrifiedWood]

That looks good for improvisation.

[wsdstan]

That really looks good. 

[Aven]

Now I'm hungry. 
Any leftovers?

[wolfy]

I'd hate to have to conjure a name for that pile of meat, but it sure looks GOOD!

[Aven]

I'd hate to have to conjure a name for that pile of meat, but it sure looks GOOD!

Wolfy, you can call it lunch or dinner.  Just don't call it a snack.

[insaneh]

I'd have to say a steak, cheese bacon fatty.
Also lunch and breakfast.

[PetrifiedWood]

I fear we are past smoking season in my area. Too breezy for temperature control without building some kind of wind break. I am definitely looking forward to next summer though. I learned a few tricks this year, like propping the door open on my WSM.

Also I need to work oncrisping the skin on chicken after smoking it. The flavor is really good but it needs that crunch when you first bite in. Seems like leg quarters end up tasting way better than breasts in a smoker.

[MnSportsman]

I fear we are past smoking season in my area. Too breezy for temperature control without building some kind of wind break. I am definitely looking forward to next summer though. I learned a few tricks this year, like propping the door open on my WSM.

Also I need to work oncrisping the skin on chicken after smoking it. The flavor is really good but it needs that crunch when you first bite in. Seems like leg quarters end up tasting way better than breasts in a smoker.

  I am not sure if you are propping the bird up on a stand ( like in a sitting position for "Beer can" chicken) or not, so that the butt end of the bird is closer to the heat, or if you are laying the bird on its back with the breasts up without any support, but I have a suggestion for you to try; the next time you do a bird.


   You can either tent the bird with a cone shaped cap of HD Alum. foil for the last 1/2 hour ( maybe longer/shorter depending on your final smoker temps) to keep the heat at the top of the bird on a stand, if it is sitting up right, or just flip the bird over to its front(breast side) for the last half hour or so (your final temp is determinate as mentioned before) to expose the breast side closer to the heat source below, if you started out with the bird on its back. Doesn't matter if your drip pan has moisture in it anymore, but the concentration of the heat from below by directing it to the breast side of the bird with the "tent" or flipping should likely help with the crisping of the skin. ( <BTW , if ya didn't know...Some folks like to call that crisping, "bark", as in tree bark. I find that funny although fairly accurate as a description. LOL )


    See about trying one of those methods next time ya do a yardbird & let us know how it works.
Without knowing more on "your" start to finish method/process, it is the best "I" can do, with my own longtime personal experience in babysitting "portable" smokers. ( I think smoke houses are a completely different system ) but it has worked for me in the past "when necessary", and I smoke meat/fish year round here in Minn..





Anyway, G'Luck! & Good eats!
 
 

[PetrifiedWood]

Mn, thanks for the tips.

I usually butterfly a whole chicken when I smoke one, so that it lays flat on the grate.

The trouble I have is that the low and slow heat of smoking makes the meat delicious, but it doesn't get hot enough to actually render the fat.
I read some ideas from other users of the same smoker, the Weber Smoky Mountain (I have the little 18" one). They suggest to disassemble the smoke chamber and move the grate down over the coals to finish the chicken by grilling it for a few minutes to render the fat i the skin and make it crispy.

This is different than the bark which forms when you smoke something like a pork roast that has a rub on it.

What I've tried is removing the chicken after it is smoked and then putting it on a gas grill for a few minutes to crisp the skin (figuring grilling is grilling). I have had mixed results with this method. Parts of the skin don't get crispy, parts get burnt, and parts are perfectly crisped. Next time I might go ahead and try the recommended charcoal method. But, it will have to wait until spring to test it out.

[insaneh]

I fear we are past smoking season in my area. Too breezy for temperature control without building some kind of wind break. I am definitely looking forward to next summer though. I learned a few tricks this year, like propping the door open on my WSM.

It's like you're speaking a different language. No comprede'. 
Seriously though, this is a pic 2 years ago. Christmas morning. -5 deg.
There was one time I bailed on cooking. I had a plate full of pig shots and was headed out to fire up the BGE. There was a snow devil swirling around right in front of my grill. "Nope. I don't need that s***."
Other than that, pouring rain, wind, cold, nothing stops me. Yes, I have a ceramic cooker, but I've used my WK in inclimate weather when the BGE was otherwise occupied by using that thin foil insulation around it. I've seen it utilized around WSM's also.

For skin I generally cook my chicken spatchcocked in my  directly over a hot, wood fire. I cook it at around 375 for an hour.  I cook it cavity up, skin down for 30 min., then flip it.
 

[MnSportsman]

The last smoked venison front quarter of the year... Very tasty.







Thinking about the 2015 firearm season coming up in about 2-3 weeks since I am not bowhunting this year, due to some medical issues. So I needed to finish up the last of the 2014 deer to make some room for possible replacement meat.





    And.... just for kicks I'm throwing in a pic of when getting started on some ribs...Trying out a "rib rack" to hold the ribs up this time. Didn't like it much using it in this barrel smoker, but I will try it a couple of more times to see if I can find a better way. I usually just run them flat, or overlapped slightly, to do the same amount & size of racks.




I should post up pics more, but much like other things I do, I just have fun in the doins & making memories, more than taking pics. LOL

[PetrifiedWood]

I fear we are past smoking season in my area. Too breezy for temperature control without building some kind of wind break. I am definitely looking forward to next summer though. I learned a few tricks this year, like propping the door open on my WSM.

It's like you're speaking a different language. No comprede'. 
Seriously though, this is a pic 2 years ago. Christmas morning. -5 deg.
There was one time I bailed on cooking. I had a plate full of pig shots and was headed out to fire up the BGE. There was a snow devil swirling around right in front of my grill. "Nope. I don't need that s***."
Other than that, pouring rain, wind, cold, nothing stops me. Yes, I have a ceramic cooker, but I've used my WK in inclimate weather when the BGE was otherwise occupied by using that thin foil insulation around it. I've seen it utilized around WSM's also.

For skin I generally cook my chicken spatchcocked in my  directly over a hot, wood fire. I cook it at around 375 for an hour.  I cook it cavity up, skin down for 30 min., then flip it.

It's not the cold that deters me, it's the wind and the added "tending". On a calm day, my WSM will settle in around 225-275 and just chug along for hours and hours without an variation. But add in a 5 mph breeze and suddenly things get unpredictable. 10 mph and you can forget it.

I had considered an electric smoker for the windy season just because temp control is a no brainer. It's all on a thermostat. I helped a friend install a hot plate element in his Lil' Chief and that boosted the temperature quite a bit, while still giving him a bit of thermostat control.

[insaneh]

I believe the foil acts as a wind barrier.
I can't imagine giving up the smokey goodness.
I have plans drawn up in my head for a grilling gazebo with drop down sides for a wind and snow block.
Probably as far as it'll go.

[wolfy]

Just another in the long list of reasons for owning a tipi.

[MnSportsman]

Using a tarp as a windbreak, moving to the lee side of a building, or even staging a larger profile vehicle to block the wind, is what I would likely do in windy conditions, and I was set on smoking/grilling. I've had to scramble & do some crazy stuff to meet deadlines for smoked stuff before and weather changed from what was expected. "Where there is a will, there is a way.", right?

[Unknown]

I wonder if you could use Al foil to gasket the separate parts making your WSM a bit more air tight?

[insaneh]

I think it's just the wind and cold blowing on the outside casing pulling the temp down.
Double walled insulation which is effectively achieved by either sheltering the unit. 

[Trekster]

Considering building a trash can or steel barrel smoker or similar.

But until then, I have two squirrels (and counting) that I'm cleaning and stuffing into the freezer.

Anybody here made legit jerked squirrel?

I'm planning on getting as many as possible and then marinating them, salting heavily, and bake, pound, bake, pound.

Any tips for success in making them actually taste good? Seasonings, herbs, sauces, etc?

Thanks,

-Ziggy

[PetrifiedWood]

Using a tarp as a windbreak, moving to the lee side of a building, or even staging a larger profile vehicle to block the wind, is what I would likely do in windy conditions, and I was set on smoking/grilling. I've had to scramble & do some crazy stuff to meet deadlines for smoked stuff before and weather changed from what was expected. "Where there is a will, there is a way.", right?

One time I did actually use a combination of garage door, folding table, and family car to create a "triangle" to block the wind. That's when the rain started... 

[Aven]

Sounds like you need a 10 x 10 popup canopy.  I ended up getting one just so I could grill, despite the PNW fickle weather.

[PetrifiedWood]

Sounds like you need a 10 x 10 popup canopy.  I ended up getting one just so I could grill, despite the PNW fickle weather.

I have been eyeing these for several uses. Mostly, for taking my daughter fishing in the summer. The sun can be brutal and it would be good to have a shelter.

[Aven]

When we were going through Dick's Sporting  a few months back they had some 15' x 15' ones that have stouter tubing that we considered picking up.  Price was good, less than $90 if memory serves.  They really don't take up that much room.  The first time setting them up takes a bit, but once you have the top on and everything settled, its really is an easy up.

[PetrifiedWood]

Been a while since this thread has seen any action. In the interim I bought a Masterbuilt electric smoker about 2 years ago and I haven't used the WSM since I got it. I've dome probably 10 racks of ribs in it, a few chicken halves, a couple trays of thighs, recently a tray of drumsticks that turned out ridiculously good, a few briskets and pork shoulders. Right this minute I have a pork shoulder in and it's been about 12 hours. I wrapped it at about 4 hours and it's got up to about 185 degrees so it still has a little way to go to hit the magic 203-205 degrees. I should have put it in last night about this time, lol!

[Plumber]

Nothing special, just some Teriyaki Chicken, and roasted red peppers fresh from the garden. Now, what should I have to wash it down?

[wsdstan]

Chicken and peppers looks good.  Beer is one I have never had but I don't wander far from Miller light or Coors.

[Plumber]

Chicken and peppers looks good.  Beer is one I have never had but I don't wander far from Miller light or Coors.

I feel sorry for anyone who has never tasted "real beer".

[wsdstan]

I always believed it was best to drink what you liked.  I have had them all over the years and would rank Miller light the best, and Coors Banquet the second.   

[Plumber]

I remember when my Uncle would come home to visit, he would stock up on 3.2% beer, because he couldn't get it in Michigan. That was long before there was lite beer.