What are you SMOKIN' ¿?

"itschrome" (itschrome) 06/25/2015 at 13:00 • Filed to: None

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Hey, shout out to Oppo looking for fellow smokers! No I don’t mean tobacco or none of those left handed cigarette smokers either. I’m Talking about Meat!

As you may or may not recall I recently bought a smoker and have been having fun learning how to use it. Well after several good runs and a few learning runs I think I got a handle on it. I more or less have fuel consumption, how to adjust for temp, how long and when to add smoke, ect all down.

So this leads me to my question, What are you guys smoking? It’s Thursday which means tomorrow I will prep what ever I am going to smoke on Saturday. This week I am thinking bacon wrapped meat load and macaroni and cheese, yes I’m gonna smoke both of them! this week is about being cheap as next week I’m gonna go all in on a pork butt and see what I am truly capable of! maybe a small bird too. but for this weekend I wanted to be cheap but I’m growing tired of chicken thighs. which by the way are a great way to learn and calibrate your smoker.

For fathers day I did 20 thighs at 180 for an hour running just hickory chucks throwing good smoke. then 225 with light for 2.5 hours. damn near falling off the bone good! I think I wanna add another hour or 45 min to them next time.

BigBlock440 > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:09

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I pretty much only do venison. Jerky, sausage, etc. Eventually I’ll try to branch out, but I don’t really have my own smoker yet to mess around with, and smoking store bough meat is an odd concept for me. I do like a good pork shoulder and ribs though, so I don’t know.

TahoeSTi > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:14

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Not sure what i’m smoking this week, my friends requested some type of beef and i’m not sure i feel like doing a brisket. Did NY Steaks last weekend they turned out great smoked them at 200 for 20-35min then put in the freezer to chill while i got the grill up to 500 degrees for a quick sear.

itschrome > BigBlock440 06/25/2015 at 13:15

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Yeah I haven’t gone hunting in years, but My buddy usually loads me up. I already burned through all my venison for the year before I bought the smoker. But I can’t wait to do that! Same buddy raises hogs and in the fall I’m getting a whole Berkshire from him! I haven’t tried sausage or jerky yet but great IDEAS! I need a meat grinder before I can make sausage tho.

itschrome > TahoeSTi 06/25/2015 at 13:17

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nice. never thought of doing a presear smoke on a steak. I beat that would be awesome! I haven’t done any beef yet simply due to cost to be honest. I was gonna do a faux brisket using flank steak but apparently flank is now a big deal because they cost almost just as much as a fucking brisket! WTF any ways I’ll get to it sooner or later tho.

CKeffer > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:23

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I did some really nice pork ribs last weekend. 5hrs @220 using a 2-2-1 method (2hrs uncovered, 2 wrapped in foil, 1 more uncovered but with sauce) produces amazing fall off the bone ribs. For chips I used a mix of apple wood and pecan, and then I had apple cider vinegar and a medium dark beer in the pan. But I’v also done rib eye roasts, whole turkeys, ducks, and chickens (beer can chicken is amazing out of the smoker, works for duck too), sausages, and bacon that I cured myself. I plan to try my hand at a brisket at some point this summer, and also want to try my hand at cold smoking salmon and cheese. Oh, and there are also the smoked carnitas I’ve made before that make for freaking awesome tacos.

TahoeSTi > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:24

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Yeah the steaks turned out good perfectly pink all the way through. I hear pork briskets are really good, That’s kinda what I’m thinking about picking up today even. I’ve done pork shoulder a bunch and it’s always great but the pork brisket sound a little different.

505Turbeaux > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:28

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I do sausages, or beef ribs. whenever I see a special for like 2.99 or so a pound for beef ribs I stock up and smoke them thangs.

Meatcoma > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:44

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Try smoking some burgers. Ridiculously good.

About every 3 weeks I’ll smoke some burgers and brats. I just rub the burgers and then I take the brats out of their casings and then rub em down and toss em on the smoker. I don’t think I’ve ever smoked anything for less than 4 hours. I’ve gotten into a habit of taking them off after 4 and bringing them up to temp in the oven over the last few years as it’s cheaper than burning through more charcoal and wood.

Rico > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:45

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Each post here is making me hungrier than the last!

vwbeamer > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 13:56

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hell yea! I do the usual, ribs, pork butts, chicken. Sometimes it turns out great, sometimes it’s not so good. Few things can give a man the satisfaction that perfectly smoking a piece of meat does.

Nice setup you got there.

ceanderson920 > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 14:14

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I usually just smoke ribs on a gas grill (pansy i know) with a tin foil package filled with wood chips. I am really wondering about the Mac n Cheese, I have never heard of anyone cooking that in a smoker, have you done it before and how do you plan on doing it? Boil the noodles first?

911e46z06 > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 14:21

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I’ve never smoked before, but I found an old smoker the other day laying forgotten under a bunch of fuel drums in the shop. Pretty stoked about it.

itschrome > TahoeSTi 06/25/2015 at 14:34

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Pork brisket?? did not know this was a thing! I will have to talk to my butcher.

itschrome > Meatcoma 06/25/2015 at 14:41

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wait so tell me more. what temp do you smoke them at? but you still have to finish them right if i read that right. does the texture change? do you have to add anything to them? I like to keep my burgers unadulterated, so just beef.

itschrome > ceanderson920 06/25/2015 at 14:42

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Boooo gas, you’re a pussy, blah blah blah. haha hey use what ya got right?

As for the mac n cheese I have not done it before just found out about it even being a thing. You make it as you normally would then instead of baking in the oven for like an hour at 350 to finish you move to the smoker at like 250 for 2 or so hours. I bet it’s bomb! I’m dying to try it!

itschrome > 911e46z06 06/25/2015 at 14:45

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score! I like scrounge find. is it like built out of a drum? make sure you burn it off good or ask around about it. maybe they built it then realized what the drum had in it. Buddy of mine build a drum smoker a few years back I come over and check it out. luckily before he cooked with it cause the chemical labels were on it still. forget what it was now but it was bad mojo. we had to throw it out.

itschrome > 505Turbeaux 06/25/2015 at 14:45

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country beef ribs are a go to for my slow cooker I can’t wait to try them on the smoker.

505Turbeaux > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 14:46

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yup, you know what is up!

itschrome > vwbeamer 06/25/2015 at 14:48

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Thanks!

And your god damn right! it’s the best way to spend a week end around the house. The best is when it comes out right! it’s just so amazing to eat home cooked BBQ that’s as good as anything from a restaurant. I tried ribs the other week and failed hard. ran out of fuel! haha but they still got 5 hours on them so they were cooked but not falling off the bone. Next time, next time..

itschrome > Rico 06/25/2015 at 14:48

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hahaha sorry man. but me too!

ceanderson920 > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 14:49

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Hey man I use gas because I don’t have a smoker and I don’t know how to control a charcoal grill very well. But back to the Mac n Cheese, I bet it is going to be awesome having a nice smokey cheese flavor in them, you should add some bacon in them as well!

itschrome > CKeffer 06/25/2015 at 14:50

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I always used the 2-2-1 when i just had a normal grill and i was offsetting the charcoal. But now that I have a smoker I am determined to do the full smoke with out having to use a texas crutch. First try was not so good. but i jumped the gun on trying to do it. I hadn;t figured out fuel consuption yet and ran out of charcoal. Having been drinking all day I also wasn’t gonna drive so eh. still ate them but it was like eating a pork chop.

I need to diversify my wood. I have like 50 pounds of hickory chunks and 20 pounds of apple chips. I keep hearing good things about pecan I need to get some I think. you’re whole list reads like my bucket list! haha I wanna do some “beer can” chicken soon. might try a small one on the 4th when I do the Butt.

also tell me more about the carnitas on the smoker. carnitas braise in liquid so I’m curious how to do that in the smoker.

911e46z06 > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 14:51

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My back’s all messed up, so I haven’t dug it all the way out yet. It’s a commercial model though, not a homemade deal. It’s pretty small, which is fine. If I dig it, I can upgrade.

itschrome > ceanderson920 06/25/2015 at 14:59

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I was only messing around. all grilling is equal to the meat gods man. and it’s a ALOT of work to keep your temps, esp on a smoker. I’m almost constantly messing with my intake and smoker stack to get the right air flow to keep the right temp coming in. and bacon is always a good idea!

itschrome > 911e46z06 06/25/2015 at 15:06

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Hell yeah! I tried to do that too I had one I curb scored but in the end it was gonna be too much work to fix. so i bought this one.

Meatcoma > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 15:17

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I just rub them with the same rub I do on my ribs/pork/brisket. As far as the temperature I try to keep the smoker in the 200 range. Low and Slow. Brats usually take 3-4 hours and they are done. Burgers are about the same depending on the size.

Really anything after 3-4 hours has had all the smoke it’s going to take and you just need to bring it up to a safe eating temp.

I finish off ribs/brisket/pork/turkey. Chicken pieces aren’t that dense so they normally don’t need to be finished off in the over either.

CKeffer > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 15:28

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Pecan gives a great, light, slightly sweet and buttery smoke flavor, I really like using it. Bourbon barrel chips also offer interesting flavor, more robust than the apple or pecan, but still slightly sweet. I used all bourbon barrel chips on the last batch of bacon I made and the results were awesome.

On the carnitas, I’ll just give you the base recipe I found, I’ve only followed it exactly once, every other time I’ve made it I’d just more or less eyeballed everything adding in more or less of stuff as I felt like it. I also use lower heat than called for in the recipe (~235*F) and thus cook time takes a bit longer.

Rub:

3 Tablespoons Chili Powder

1 Tablespoon Kosher Salt

1 Tablespoon Ground Black Pepper

1 Tablespoon Ground Cumin

1 Tablespoon Ground Coriander

2 Teaspoons Garlic Powder

1 Teaspoon White Pepper

1 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Mop & Sauce:

1 12 oz bottle of dark Mexican beer like Negra Modelo

3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup canola oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tablespoons of the Rub

Marinade:

2 cups fresh squeezed orange juice

8 cloves garlic

Directions:

1. Pierce the roast all over to let the marinade work its way in. Place roast in a foil pan with the orange juice and garlic cloves to soak overnight, turning once or twice so the roast marinates evenly.

2. Discard OJ and garlic and rinse the roast off and pat dry with paper towels.

3. Make the rub by mixing together all the ingredients in a bowl and set aside 2 tablespoons for the mop sauce. Pat the rub all over the roast and let sit to cure for a few hours if you have the time.

4. Make the mop sauce – mix all ingredients together and set aside about 3/4 – 1 cup for later when the meat is done to use as a finishing sauce.

5. Set up a charcoal grill for indirect grilling, medium hot (300° max), and use Apple/pecan chips for smoke.

6. Smoke the roast for about 4-5 hours or as long as it takes to get to 195°, add coals every hour and a handful or two of wood chips. Liberally mop the roast with the mop sauce about every 45 minutes to an hour.

7. Cook until it’s well done (195°) in the center – this will help it shred easier.

8. When it’s done, let sit for about 1/2 hour to 45 minutes, then tear it apart into shreds.

9. Ladle the remaining mop sauce over the shredded pork.

I’ve made it 3 times, 2 of those it has pulled beautifully, 1 of them not so much. The 1 time it didn’t, I hacked it into thunks and ran it through the food processor to chop it up. It still tasted really good, and I’m honestly not sure why that one didn’t shred like the others. The other option is to start it in the smoker, and finish it in the crock pot, that’s an idea I’ve kicked around for a while to make for something that still has that nice smokey quality to it, but doesn’t require as much babysitting.

tsac > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 15:47

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I smoked a duck a few months back. Was awful confused at which end to light so I ended up lighting the tail first, then the neck.

itschrome > Meatcoma 06/25/2015 at 15:53

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ok I follow. so instead of cranking temps at the end you save the fuel and just use the oven. that makes sense. No when you say you smoke then for 3 to 4 hour are you actually pumping smoke for that long? I’m super nervous about over smoking my food since i made a huge mistake when i was younger. we smoked ribs for a solid 8 hours with constant smoke, damn things tasted like eating a piece of furniture. yuck. So now I usually let the smoke die down and run just heat for a while then smoke again. So like in an hour i’m only letting it billow smoke for like 2 3rds the time. So far my smoke flavor has been wonderful. I keep adding more and more to find the threshold of acceptable tho.

itschrome > tsac 06/25/2015 at 16:10

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Haha. Yeah when I bought my smoker and talked about smoking meat my dad keep asking me how i plan on stuffing it all into my bong.

itschrome > tsac 06/25/2015 at 16:11

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Also followed for oppo, so welcome out of the grey!

itschrome > CKeffer 06/25/2015 at 16:15

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Huh, well that’s now saved in my google drive. I want to try that! I make carnitas about once a year because it is such a pain but i love them. So i’m dying to try this!

philsphan09 > itschrome 06/25/2015 at 21:15

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So I'm about to buy a webber charcoal grill. Can you give me a newbie smoking lesson? Do you get wood chips or chunks

itschrome > philsphan09 06/25/2015 at 22:49

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Congrats! I started life on Weber and Weber style grills! there’s nothing you can not do with one! As for wood, you want both. Chunks are great for longer amounts of smoke, and chips are great for small bursts.

philsphan09 > itschrome 06/26/2015 at 09:17

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You should make a blog or something. I need to learn more. This is the exact Weber i’m getting. Also any recommendations of where to pick up wood chunks? http://www.amazon.com/Weber-15501001…

tsac > itschrome 06/26/2015 at 09:51

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Thank you sir! To be serious I have smoked turkey, chicken, duck, pork shoulder, pork loin, ribs, brisket, cheese, fish, there’s probably more but I can’t recall. The duck was the most surprising. It took longer to smoke than I anticipated. I also couldn’t get my vertical water smoker over 220 degrees. It tasted great when it was cold the next day but when I warmed it in a crock pot for a family gathering it wasn’t as good.

itschrome > philsphan09 06/26/2015 at 10:01

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Ha, I’m still learning but man I have considered starting up a kinja maybe for BBQ, grilling and Smoking.

Homedepot/lowes usually has a good selection of wood. if you have fruit farms around they usually have wood for sale of what ever kind of tree they have too. Also amazon.

That’s a pretty sweet weber. I need a 2nd grill, for just grilling the fire box on my smoker has a grill I can put in it for grilling but I would like a grill I can adjust for height and a little bigger.

Meatcoma > itschrome 06/26/2015 at 11:27

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Yep, I just pump smoke the entire 3 to 4 hours.

I notice you have pans in the bottom of your smoker, do they have apple juice/water to keep moisture in the smoker or are those for catching drippings? I use apple juice/water in my water pan since it seems to help flavor and apple juice is pretty cheap. I also bought a steam table pan for just this purpose because they are hella durable and easy to clean.

itschrome > Meatcoma 06/26/2015 at 12:02

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ok cool. I’ll try to be a little heavier on the smoke then. and yeah those are just catch pans. I spent 5 hours scrubbing and cleaning that fucker last Saturday on account of not using them before. it was pretty gross having run tons of chicken thighs, ribs, ect since I bought it. One of my pet peeves is a dirty grill. I don’t want to eat off them I don’t want to feed you off them either. the nasty shit people think is OK when it comes to grills is just nasty. So yeah just catch pan. I brine chicken so no need to add moisture to the smoke with them. I also mop starting half way through.