LCLC BBQ Thread (1 Viewer)

[TailsWCU]

Alright gents I figured most if not some of us are into the old tradition of cooking some hog low and slow. This thread is dedicated to it. Tips, secrets, recipes, stories, anything BBQ, put it here.

I don't have a smoker yet (thinking BGE) but I do smoke on my Webber Kettle sometimes. In no way is it ideal but it still produces some tasty Q. Had a nice 7lb'r on for around 10 hours yesterday. Came out not even needing sauce. But you know I had a side of Bessingers yellow on hand also a mixture of my own.

I like to pull mine but leave some bigger chunks if I'm not chopping it.

 

[collk22]

@TailsWCU I'll throw in a plug for a WSM as you're considering upgrading your smoker situation. I've had the 18" model for a few years and have been really happy with the functionality of it. The WSM community is pretty active and they have good forums with a lot of information. Unlike the BGE, the WSM is a dedicated smoker that would work in addition to your Kettle grill (could not really pull double duty as a grill like the BGE).

 

[BBQ BOY]

I can't recommend the BGE enough. I have the XL and I can smoke, grill and bake on it. If you want a dedicted smoker only and don't mind tending to it, I highly reccome do a Lang smoker. It's a stick cooker and is a lot of fun to use as it's somewhat old school. There are some really nice cabinet smokers out here too for something that is easy to use and something you don't have to monitor. The BGE is also a set and walk away for hours smoker. Look at stumps and Backwoods cabinets smokers.

 

[CharlestonG8R]

Matt, you know I'm a BGE guy. I sucked at cooking meat until I bought this thing. I burned steaks, burgers, chicken, dogs... You name it... If it goes on a grill, I could make it inedible. It was a fantastic sight to see a raw steak burned to a crisp on one side. The BGE changed that for me and now I enjoy eating the meat I smoke. More to that fact, my wife doesn't pour A1 sauce to mask the taste and texture of pure black carbon.

I know guys that can cook with any tools they are given... If you are a grill MacGyver of a sort, than you will be fine with anything. Your pork looks like it could hold up fine in a taste test against mine. But if I had to do it all over again, I'd still go with a BGE.

 

[Brock]

Go here
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/

http://amazingribs.com/

 

[BBQ BOY]

Brock, the BGE is not a roaster. It performs best as a smoker and does a good job at everything else.
As far as the Lang being for pure smoking, that is also incorrect. I grill on mine all of the time. As a matter of fact, I just grilled burgers and dogs for 100 people on my Lang this past Sunday

 

[Brock]

Michael, I was saying what the items were INTENDED for whether they have other uses or not. The BGE was based after large clay cooking pots found from use in chinese history that evolved from cooking in the ground. The ancient chinese used clay cooking pots and pans were put inside for them to cook rice first......then they also fitted them for roasting meats as it held even heat with low fuel consumption. Just like a Weber Kettle...they may be able to smoke due to draft doors and accessories but it is not what it was originally designed or intended. The Lang is an offset...so while you may be able to crank it up high enough to do grilling...that was not the original intent.

I can do indirect cooking with a smoke box on my Ducane or Weber gas grill as well...not what it was intended for majority of time even with all the attachments they sell.

That was all I was saying. You can make anything work in any manner if you want.... I thought this was about smoking though and buying smokers. LOL Guess I need to stay out of these threads...

 

[BBQ BOY]

Michael, I was saying what the items were INTENDED for whether they have other uses or not. The BGE was based after large clay cooking pots found from use in chinese history that evolved from cooking in the ground. The ancient chinese used clay cooking pots and pans were put inside for them to cook rice first......then they also fitted them for roasting meats as it held even heat with low fuel consumption. Just like a Weber Kettle...they may be able to smoke due to draft doors and accessories but it is not what it was originally designed or intended. The Lang is an offset...so while you may be able to crank it up high enough to do grilling...that was not the original intent.

I can do indirect cooking with a smoke box on my Ducane or Weber gas grill as well...not what it was intended for majority of time even with all the attachments they sell.

That was all I was saying. You can make anything work in any manner if you want.... I thought this was about smoking though and buying smokers. LOL Guess I need to stay out of these threads...

Stay out........why? You offered a lot of great info and I learned something new with the original intent of a BGE. Just saying what I know from experience. With my Lang. I can grill, yes its a smoker, but the way I do it and I'm sure you know already, is i burn at higher temps using mostly lump. I may use one stick of wood for flavor. High temp and clean smoke/heat.

 

[Trollhole]

At home I use a Masterbuilt digital electric cabinet. Works great and it's super easy. When I want to use lump charcoal I use a Weber Smokey Mountain. I love it because I can transport it anywhere and it works really well. Getting a good quality Lump charcoal and smoking wood is the biggest factor.

 

[collk22]

@Brock Don't stay out; I hate that you edited your original post. As far as I know, we're all friends here....When we're talking BBQ, if there's one thing we can agree on, it's that we probably won't agree on much.

WSM is a good tool, but not without limitations. In your original post, you bring up some valid criticism regarding size limitations, but I've had 30# of uncooked butts on on mine before - that will feed a lot more than my "immediate family and a few stragglers." Though maybe you're family is a lot bigger than mine. Also, your estimate of 2 x 15lb briskets for 10-15 people sounds really high - I usually go with 1/2 lb per person (uncooked) and I've never been short.

The temp difference between the racks becomes fairly inconsequential over the course of a long cooking session IMHO, but it doesn't take much effort to change the position of the meat in the cooker if that's a big concern to you (I've managed it both ways). Lastly, the greasy water bowl is any easy fix - don't use water, and cover the bowl with foil. The water bowl acts as a heat sink to help regulate temperature, however it creates a lot of fuel inefficiency because of the amount of energy required to bring the water up to temp. It takes a little more work to get the temp stabilized as things are heating up, but as you said - it's all about the experience, right? (I've found that once the WSM gets dialed in, it holds temps very well).

It's all about trade-offs. I don't desire to do half/whole hogs so the WSM does everything I need/want. You've obviously got other needs and it would not be the right tool for you.

 

[TailsWCU]

Dude! I come back to like 20 posts!!!! Excellent gents! THIS is what I'm talking about!

 

[CharlestonG8R]

Just wait til we start sharing recipes! Bessinger taught me a lot about smoking pork and beef. Also provided good tips on ABT's. I've had Brock's pork shoulder, venison, and the last slice of beef at his Christmas party - all were awesome. We've got some BBQing fools up in here!

 

[Brock]

http://www.smokymtbarbecue.com/2015...a9de518426997aabbc8a07eedec214b6#.VV3hq0arFBu


Pulled Pork Recipe on a Meadow Creek SQ36 Offset Smoker

This past weekend we had some friends coming over, so I fired up my Meadow Creek SQ36 Offset Smoker to smoke a couple pork butts and chickens. We had grilled shrimp, pulled pork, and smoked chicken for dinner along with sides and dessert.

With Memorial Day weekend coming up, I decided it would be fun to share my secrets and tips for smoking pork butts. I’ve compiled a recipe with simple instructions and mouth-watering photos to help you quickly master amazing pulled pork.

Pork butts are very forgiving, and so easy to cook, because of how fatty they are and the high meat to surface ratio. Even if you overdo the smoke, once you pull it and mix everything together, you probably won’t mind it. And you really can’t dry out a pork butt unless you try. Yet some people are still cooking bad pulled pork. Don’t be one of them!

I get my pork butts through special order at a local grocery store with really good meat sources. Your local grocery store will probably have a couple pork butts on display, but if you’re serious about this, go for the two pack 8-pounders, sealed in Cryovac. Make friends with your local grocer or butcher or check out Costco or a wholesale food supplier in your area. It helps immensely to start with quality meat.

There is a lot of debate on whether to put the fat cap up or down, but here’s one thing you have to keep in mind. The fat may not all render out while cooking, which means you would have to peel it off after it’s done. I actually prefer to trim some of the fat cap off before I cook the butt so I can keep all the bark. The butt on the right above could have been trimmed more, but it turned out just fine because of how I cooked it. Whether you cook it up or down, is up to you. In my opinion, it’s irrelevant to amazing pulled pork.

I seasoned both butts with Meadow Creek Brisket Rub. Just sprinkle it all over the surface of the meat.

After a few minutes, the seasoning will start blending with the moisture in the meat and start looking really nice..

I fired my Meadow Creek SQ36 Offset Smoker with 6–8 pounds of charcoal briquettes. I also added a chunk or two of apple wood. My target temperature was 250–275 degrees F. You can cook them slower if you want to. It’s more common to do low and slow around 225 degrees, but I’m not sure that it’s worth the longer cook time on a pork butt.

You may be using a smoker that can’t go above 225 degrees, and that’s perfectly fine. Work within the limits of your smoker and what it’s designed to do.

A couple hours into the cook, it started pouring rain, so I had to move the smoker under a roof. Since I don’t have a covered porch right now, I parked it in the garage with the smokestack outside the overhead door and under the eaves.

In my early days, I would hardly wrap a pork butt for fear I’m breaking the laws of authentic barbecue. Smoking pork butts is a lot of fun and tending the fire is great, but a whole day of tending an offset smoker can get a little old. Once the butts have taken on a healthy dose of smoke, you might as well wrap them in aluminum foil and dramatically shorten the cook time. A good time to wrap them is around 170 degrees internal temperature.

As easy as it is to run a Meadow Creek smoker, the temperature does still depend on how you fire it. After I moved the smoker out of the rain, I fired it with more charcoal and a chunk of wood. I adjusted the firebox vents to give it slightly more draft to compensate for the weather and walked away. When I came back about 30 minutes later, the temperature was up to 325 degrees at the built-in thermometer (grate level must have been even hotter). Yikes! I closed the vents and smokestack for a while to get it back down and went on with life. I could not tell any negative effects in the finished product.

Once the meat reaches an internal temperature of 200 degrees, it’s done cooking. Take it off the smoker and let it cool enough to pull it. If you have insulated gloves or bear paws, you can do it immediately. It’s time to make sandwiches!

These butts finished in 7–8 hours because I wrapped them in foil. (One of them was smaller and it finished before the other one.) I burned a few chunks of wood and close to 23 pounds of charcoal during this cook.

Flavor Boost: As awesome as freshly pulled pork is, I almost always ramp it up a notch by adding some barbecue sauce and seasoning after it’s pulled. Sweet Baby Rays or Meadow Creek Hickory Sauce would be a great choice. I wouldn’t add much; just enough to moisten and flavor it a little. Sprinkle a little Meadow Creek Brisket Rub over it and mix it all together. This is a great place to experiment with various flavors to discover what you like best.

Freezing Tip: Pulled pork freezes well. If you have some you can’t eat right away or keep in the fridge, just pack it into quart-sized zip-loc bags, then date and freeze it. This makes it easy to thaw the pork in small batches. You can thaw it in the fridge and heat it in a kettle of water (in the bag) on the stove or remove it from the bag and heat it in the microwave or oven. Be careful not to overheat it and it will taste great. Not quite like fresh, but still amazing as can be!

Any questions or comments, feel free to email me or leave a comment below.

Sizzling regards,

Lavern Gingerich

 

[Brock]

The SQ36 used above is not as efficient/advanced as the reverse flow models...but also is not as expensive and is more versatile all-around...great choice for backyard BBQ'r. I have the PR42...without offset...just a full length drawer for wood/charcoal so the heat does not escape during the fueling. If anyone wants to see my cooker in action I will be doing 6-8 racks of ribs on Saturday between 11 and 4pm give or take an hour depending on when they are ready.

 

[Trollhole]

Cool idea on the charcoal drawer.

 

[Brock]

I wish it was slightly deeper so my oak or pecan chunks fit better...just means I have to split my wood down more. Some larger chunks of my Royal Oak hardwood charcoal can stick up but have a handy poker to shove them down so they dont hit when closing...but does much better for adding wood/charcoal without losing all of your heat in cooking area...also prevents flare ups if any grease was to make it past my heat shield/drip pan.


One day will likely also get a small Lang or another Meadow Creek with the reverse flow and offset firebox and keep the PR42 for large cooks or whole hogs when needed.
http://www.meadowcreekbarbecue.com/

 

[BBQ BOY]

Brock,
Why don't you use lump instead of briquettes? Have you seen my Lang?

 

[CharlestonG8R]

And do you let your pork butts rest after they are pulled off the smoker? I've been putting mine in a cooler for an hour.

 

[Beau Diddly]

Brock,
Why don't you use lump instead of briquettes? Have you seen my Lang?

Lump can get relatively expensive, would it be worthwhile if some of us went in together on a pallet?

 

[collk22]

Brock,
Why don't you use lump instead of briquettes? Have you seen my Lang?

I know the question wasn't directed at me, but I went from lump to briquettes last year because I found the briquettes to be more predictable (given the manufactured uniformity) and therefore easier to manage. I also stocked up at Lowes Memorial Day sale and am still working through what I acquired last year.

And do you let your pork butts rest after they are pulled off the smoker? I've been putting mine in a cooler for an hour.

I've been doing that lately too, but mostly because I've been timing the cook around being done before people show up so I can hang out and not be messing around too much with food when it's time to party.