Well Lets Talk about Smoking meat

[ventureblue]

Who out there has a Smoker and uses it? I just got mine a few weeks ago and I'm still in the learning stages. I did smoke a pretty darn good chicken last week. I am open for tips, ideas and secrets.

[Eck]

 

I did smoke a pretty darn good chicken last week.

 

 

All I want to know is .....which end did you "light up"....??

[kenw]

How do you keep it lit???

Kenw

[Eck]

How do you keep it lit???

 

 

 

Which end do you "puff" from??????

Poor guy, all he wanted to do was talk about smoking meat too.....sorry friend, we do get carried away at times around here.

 

Had a meet smoker a coule years ago....had a pan for water that went inside it. I put a chicken in it and used wood chips and charcol.... about every two hours I would add a couple more chuncks of charcol...did this all night long....adding chips and charcol...it slowly smoked all night and not at a hot temperature, but just enough to keep the wood smoking.. around 11am I removed it and we had lunch..

It was really moist and sure tasted like smoke.....,

[oldandcrotchety]

I have a smoker and use it pretty regularly. It's an all day job to smoke something. My favorite thing is Boston butt, with turkey a close second. There's different kinds of smokers of course, from the little square things you put a little charcoal in to huge rigs that pull behind a car or truck. Mine is about the size of a large B-B-Q and I burn hickory and oak that I cut to size here on my place. I good place to learn a whole lot about smoking and B-B-Q is http://www.barbecuen.com/

[tooldood]

I just smoked 2 racks of ribs last night...

here's a pic of what I use

The Char-Griller Duo w/ the smoke box. Far left has a gas side burner, then the gas grill side.

Far right has the smoker box attached to the charcoal side of the grill...

I love my grill!

[BoomerCPO]

ventureblue......I do quite a bit of meat smoking. Use the genuine hard charcoal always. Make sure you soak your wood for at least 24 hours. Use minimal draft on your smoker to reduce heat flow.

 

Try doing a couple of whole pork loins.........pork is more forgiving than beef!

 

Always check the meat with a meat thermometer before you remove from the smoker!

 

Make sure your smoker is away from the house if you plan to run it overnight while you are sleeping.

 

Relax and enjoy the learning experience!

[yankeereb]

I use a Brinkman Grill Master smoker with the side fire box. I use charcoal and wood chips. I use apple, cherry, pecan or hickory chips. You want to soak the wood chips for about 4 hrs in water. They will last longer and smoke more. You can add mor or less chips to regulate the flavor of smoke you want in the meatI always put a pan of water in the smoker to keep the meat moist. You can add flavoring such as apple cider, hot sauce, or beer in the water to add additional flavor. You want to keep the heat between 250 and 300 degrees. A good rule of thumb is to smoke 1 hr per pound of meat.

[Guest tessa c2]

yup always set the smoker in the far back corner of your yard, and make sure the it's down wind from the house. just remember to keep your temp at about 145 degrees F:witch_brew:

[Tartan Terror]

You have no Idea how afraid I was to open this thread! LOL

[venturejockey]

You have no Idea how afraid I was to open this thread! LOL

 

 

Me too. But I see we both did open it. What does that say about us?

 

Hey, arn't you the guy that wears a skirt?

[KiteSquid]

Sense you missed the M&E at Willies BBQ, let me know when to come up for dinner!!!!!!!

 

Note how I skillfuly invited myself and MrsSquid up for a free dinner of smoked meat!!!!

 

YUMM!!!!!

[Tartan Terror]

Me too. But I see we both did open it. What does that say about us?

 

Hey, arn't you the guy that wears a skirt?

That would be me!!!

[ventureblue]

Sense you missed the M&E at Willies BBQ, let me know when to come up for dinner!!!!!!!

 

Note how I skillfuly invited myself and MrsSquid up for a free dinner of smoked meat!!!!

 

YUMM!!!!!

 

 

I will plan to invite the locals this summer. I want to perfect my cooking 1st.

[ventureblue]

I have a smoker and use it pretty regularly. It's an all day job to smoke something. My favorite thing is Boston butt, with turkey a close second. There's different kinds of smokers of course, from the little square things you put a little charcoal in to huge rigs that pull behind a car or truck. Mine is about the size of a large B-B-Q and I burn hickory and oak that I cut to size here on my place. I good place to learn a whole lot about smoking and B-B-Q is http://www.barbecuen.com/

 

I'm doing a boston butt, chicken and porh chops. Thanks

[ventureblue]

How do you keep it lit???

 

 

 

Which end do you "puff" from??????

 

Poor guy, all he wanted to do was talk about smoking meat too.....sorry friend, we do get carried away at times around here.

 

Had a meet smoker a coule years ago....had a pan for water that went inside it. I put a chicken in it and used wood chips and charcol.... about every two hours I would add a couple more chuncks of charcol...did this all night long....adding chips and charcol...it slowly smoked all night and not at a hot temperature, but just enough to keep the wood smoking.. around 11am I removed it and we had lunch..

It was really moist and sure tasted like smoke.....,

 

I did expect it when i started this thread. i like the humor:rotfl:

[BuddyRich]

 

I did smoke a pretty darn good chicken last week.

 

 

All I want to know is .....which end did you "light up"....??

 

:rotf:

 

I knew this thread was gonna go south fast but not that fast.

 

:rotf:

[brscooter]

If you want a real cooker, look up Cajun Microwave on the net and look at some of them. They are great, cooks a lot, and can be made by handy people.

[Midnight Rider]

http://www.lacajachina.com/

 

This one looks cheaper and works the same way. I was considering buying one of these for myself.

 

 

Dale

[Kregerdoodle]

If you have the kind with the water pan, dump a beer in it and let it steam... I don`t drink, but I really like to cook with it..

 

Good luck and enjoy!!

[hdroyer]

Use small amounts of wood till you get the flavor you want to much smoke can screw up a good piece of meat, should not look like you are sending up smoke signals. A good rub or marinade will help about 24 hrs before. Mix woods Hickory & Mesquites any fruit wood Cheery Apple are good Oak can be strong. 225 is a good temp use a thermometer for the smoker and the meat. A good piece of meat will have good marbling in it, use hot water to soak your wood in it will penetrate better use hot water in the smoker if you use water that way you are not heating the water and loosing heat you can use for smoking. there is soooooo much more!!

Practice, practice, practice!!!!

[Midnight Rider]

When I smoke a brisket I season it night before the smoke. I use Royal Oak lump coal (walmart) it is wood. I might put a few small apple logs on the fire once it gets going good. Don't need alot of smoke coming out of stack. Keep the smoker around 250-270 range. After the meat reaches a internal temp of 140-160 I double wrap it with foil and keep the smoker at 250-270 range till the internal temp of the meat reaches 195-200. Then I take it off and throw it in a dry cooler wrapped in newspaper for about 4 hours then put it in the frig for dinner the next day.

 

Dale

[BuckShot]

Try http://www.sausagemaker.com look at cookbooks--(The smoked foods cookbook) Friend has his own buther shop.We have smoked alot of meat. We get things from The Sausage Maker Inc. alot. I could always ask him questions if you would like. Gil

[nkbjones]

Check out this link http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/

 

It is a forum much this one, but of course focused on smoking meats. They have a lot of good information. I do some smoking here and there and have a friend who is into it hardcore (he just spent 2K on a new smoker). If you ever have any specific questions about what you want to smoke, feel free to shot me an e-mail.

[Roadhand]

I have been reading this with quite a bit of interest since most of the replies seem to be North of the Mason/Dixon Line.

Hummm, Yankees and Bar B Q Hummmm, something seems strange:stirthepot:

 

Here in Texas we have found it best to cook with indirect heat.

I use oak wood but some prefer mesquite

Marinate your brisket, ribs, or pork shoulder for 12 to 24 hours before OR you can use a dry rub. I like to marinate mine to help keep it moist

Start your oak fire and let the smoke turn clear (45 min to an hour) before you place the meat on the rack. Cook it at about 250

If you are cooking brisket place the meat with the fat side up. This will allow it to soak into the meat as it cooks and help keep it moist.

Now some wrap the meat in tinfoil after a couple of hours to help reduce the smokey flavor. Try it and see how you like it as it will keep the juices in and kind of steams the meat as well

Depending on the size, 6 to 8 hours should about do it and you should not have to add additional wood to kep the 250 range.

Let me know how your next one turns out.

As far as Yankees, anyone who knows me know I am just kidding but if you think your brisket is better than mine, I would be willing to ride up :900[1]:and sample yours. Just let me know when it is ready

 

Ha!