The Thin Blue Smoke Thread IV- BBQ 2012

[BobS]

After some flight delays we got back home from 17 days vacation in Australia, at 5:30 AM Tuesday. It was tough duty, but someone had to do it.

I was hungry for a steak tonight, so I went to Whole Paycheck and got a dry aged rib-eye.



I fixed it with a reverse sear. Here it is after 27 minutes at 200-250 with some mesquite. It was 103 internal.



I roasted some Asian eggplant, yellow squash, onion, and mushrooms.
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Last, I added some heirloom tomatoes. It all added up to a pretty good dinner!



It all went pretty well with this Ommegang, Abby Ale.

[BobS]

I had leftover veggies and more tomatoes, so I needed another reverse sear to continue the trend.
Today, I did it with a bad azz, thick, bone in, pork chop....



I seasoned this bad boy and it did 38 minutes to get up to about 124. Here it is at the turn.



Here it is plated. I did not get a picture of the wine, but I opened a nice Zinfandel and it all went together very well!

[HoosierTrooper]

I've suspected the thermometer on my month old WSM has been less than accurate so I picked up a Maverick ET732. The only issue is that due to a mental math error I also bought the wrong sized grommets to thread the sensors through the sidewall of the smoker.

I don't have grommets in either of mine, I just drilled a hole with a step bit to thread the probes through.

[rvmx]

I'm a sear&grill guy, but have been interested in a while in smoking/low 'n slow method. I really don't have the money right now to buy a BGE or a WSM, but I found a new Weber One Touch Gold for $75 in Craiglist and went for it. I want to start with the basics and then in a near future upgrade to a real smoker. I have a lot of questions but right now I want to ask you guys for help in deciding what should be my first attempt to cook slow: a whole chicken/turkey breasts or some ribs (I have never done ribs in my life). And also what is your recommendation about buying a thermometer, ie. brand, type, etc Any help will be greatly appreciated :)

[simon1]

I'm a sear&grill guy, but have been interested in a while in smoking/low 'n slow method. I really don't have the money right now to buy a BGE or a WSM, but I found a new Weber One Touch Gold for $75 in Craiglist and went for it. I want to start with the basics and then in a near future upgrade to a real smoker. I have a lot of questions but right now I want to ask you guys for help in deciding what should be my first attempt to cook slow: a whole chicken/turkey breasts or some ribs (I have never done ribs in my life). And also what is your recommendation about buying a thermometer, ie. brand, type, etc Any help will be greatly appreciated :)

Smoked turkey breast is fantastic, but I find myself doing ribs the most. Although if you want to use a thermometer do a breast...don't work well on ribs. I just have a little Brinkman meat thermometer I picked up at Home Depot...it seems to be fairly accurate. Unless you're referring to a thermometer for your grill lid, if that's it you probably can find a little oven thermometer at Wally World or somewhere to put on the grate.

I usually pick up a 3 pound slab of baby backs or two, peel the membrane off of the bottom, then rub with salt, fresh ground black pepper, and garlic powder. Get the barrel smoker (indirect heat set-up on your Weber) up to 225 and put the ribs on. I let them smoke for 2 hours (I use straight wood but you'll probably use charcoal, lump is best, with some wood chunks). Then I wrap them in foil and let them cook for about another hour, hour and a half or so, until when I pick them up in the middle with a pair of tongs the ends droop at about a 45 degree angle, kind of like a goose's wings when landing.



Sometimes I'll unwrap them and put them back on the smoker for another 45 minutes or so to firm them up a bit, or just take them off and let them rest a bit before I start gnawing,

Edit-a note about the salt, pepper, and garlic: I put more than a light sprinkle, but not near as much as some of the links show with the spice rub. I like to let the wood do most of the flavoring.

Here's a few links that might help with your first attempt:

http://bbq.about.com/od/rib1/ss/aa011009a.htm

http://wyntk.us/3-2-1-rib-method

http://www.amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/are_they_ready.html

[HoosierTrooper]

Hey Mike, how's the restore project going on the smoker?

[simon1]

Haven't done anything with it yet Tom; been just using the Char Griller.

I need to stop by the sandblasting shop in Blossom and see if he can come out and throw some kind of a tent thing over it and clean it up good, then I'll repaint the outside and season the inside. Just hadn't got a round tuit yet.

[rvmx]

Thank you Mike, with your mini-guide and links I'm confident enough to fire up the OTG this weekend and make some ribs . I have a couple of specific questions that will be addressed by PM later.

[Jim]

Good luck with your cook! Take photos.

[jamesj1578]

wow there is some great stuff in this thread!!!!

[Axebreaker]

Oh dear, another place to post BBQ pics...

Where to begin. A few years ago I felt a deep longing for Southern VA/NC style Piedmont BBQ, so I picked up a Brinkmann and then rapidly abandoned it for a WSM and a guru. I branched out to turkeys, roasts, brisket, and all sorts of good stuff. I moved into a house, and then i got a small Weber grill. Then I got my first gas grill, a Weber Q300, and god down with the lazy. This year my Master's graduation present to myself was a 200$ Masterbuilt XXL gas smoker. The thing is a sparerib cookin machine, and I don't have to roll them, unlike my WSM.

I've got some pics, but nothing recent. I cooked for my job's softball team at the end of the spring season, Ribs and butts one time and chicken and a matambre another. There are probably pictures of me rehabilitating the poor, abused and salt water corroded Performer at a beach house in Pawley's Island my family rented in June. I did some steaks and a couple of pork tenderloins, which were good but not as awesome as some of the reverse seared goodness posted here. I did a lot of spares for some family fiends on the 4th, with some really awesome smoked beans with rib trimmings.

I haven't done too much recently, it's been hot (115+) and stormy a bit much but it's about time to start up again.

[Jim]

For your porky pleasure-

[Commander Quan]

I love pork.

[73mountaineer]

For your porky pleasure-

Save me some, Jim, I think I can be there in about 3 hours!!!! That is a thing of beauty!

[Barbarian]

Had to post a pic of my new baby...

[Jim]

Nice Chris! That will get it done.

[HoosierTrooper]

Good looking pulled pork, Jim. Is that a whole shoulder or just the shank portion?

[Jim]

Just the shank Tom.

[ackvil]

Jim, my mouth is watering!

[HoosierTrooper]

Just the shank Tom.

OK, that's what I thoughtl. Haven't done a shank in awhile, been sticking with the butts but I might give one a go sometime for something a little different.