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It's going down 
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Nov 23, 2017 18:08
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| # ? Jun 5, 2024 18:14 |
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LMAO this thread cursed me. Tested the maverick probe this morning it read the ambient temp correctly. Stuck it in the bird threw it on the smoker and reads 150 when it should be around 50. Fortunately I had a spare that works.
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Nov 23, 2017 18:22
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C-Bangin' it 
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I had a maverick and it broke after 1 use. I bought some nonsense home depot offbrand and it's been going strong for 5 or 6 years now.
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Nov 23, 2017 18:52
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Uh yeah, turkey turned out delicious. I'll be doing more of these.
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Nov 23, 2017 20:00
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First time smoking a turkey. Went with dry brining and no injection. Just pulled it and it looks fantastic. Got done a little sooner than I expected so it's in the cooler right now but pics to follow. BTW I just got back from my deployment a week ago. Thanks for letting me live vicariously through you guys! As an aside, one of the kids is already asking me when I can make pulled pork. If anyone has teenagers you know they basically don't know what a compliment is so I'm very gratified by this lol.
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Nov 23, 2017 21:13
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We do a late dinner on Thanksgiving, just shoved a 15 pounder (spatchcocked and split) in.
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Nov 23, 2017 21:20
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 Turned out good.... And there's none left.
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Nov 23, 2017 21:51
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vulturesrow posted:First time smoking a turkey. Went with dry brining and no injection. Just pulled it and it looks fantastic. Got done a little sooner than I expected so it's in the cooler right now but pics to follow. BTW I just got back from my deployment a week ago. Thanks for letting me live vicariously through you guys! Anyways, welcome back. Thank you. Moey posted:We do a late dinner on Thanksgiving, just shoved a 15 pounder (spatchcocked and split) in. I love late dinners but dang, I'd be comatose at that hour. But I'd love to give it a go.
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Nov 23, 2017 22:15
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Welcome home, Vulturesrow.  I’m deep frying my turkey, because my smoker is at the wrong house.  I feel like I’ve let the thread down.
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Nov 23, 2017 22:20
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Colostomy Bag posted:I love late dinners but dang, I'd be comatose at that hour. But I'd love to give it a go. We are living in a ski resort town and have guests every Thanksgiving. So day time is on the mountain, then late dinner. Back when I was in Illinois, you ate starting at 1 like a normal American.
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Nov 24, 2017 01:43
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Wow, what an adventure. First time hosting Thanksgiving and only the second time cooking a Turkey (the first being a test bird last weekend). It loving poured rain all day and although my MES was under a tarp that still made trips outside pretty miserable. Everything seemingly went wrong. I thought I got the process started way to late (didn't get the smoker preheating until after 7:30am, with a goal of having the 14lb bird resting around 1pm). Turned out it got up to temp way faster than I was expecting. It was already mid 140's by 10:15am and I was planning on pulling it around 150f. Finally pulled it and it sat around for 90 minutes because my wife's pies were taking way longer than expected. Threw it in a 500f oven to crisp the skin and the drat thing shot up to 160f by the time it settled and even after 30mins of rest it was still much hotter than I would've liked to carve at and had already been hotter than my target temperature twice. Fortunately dry brining and injecting with Creole Butter did the trick and everything was super moist and flavorful. Unlike my test bird the skin also got crisp. Honestly, I think I could have done better, but it was still the best Thanksgiving turkey I've ever had. Anyway, here's a shot of the bird. Doesn't really look that pretty, but the taste and texture were awesome. I got a little distracted when I used the broiler to try to add some extra crispness to the skin. I brushed on olive oil before smoking and again before crisping, which may have helped that as well. 
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Nov 24, 2017 04:51
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My two turkeys ended up great even with all my thermometer issues. The cheap thermometers I bought worked well enough for now. I didn't take any pics as I was in a hurry. Arrived at relatives house right at 4pm which was the appointed dinner time. Using all the leftovers tomorrow at game night for sandwiches.
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Nov 24, 2017 18:06
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I failed on getting photos of the turkey or the brisket, but god drat that smoked gravy was everything. Can't wait to do that again!
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Nov 24, 2017 18:19
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What's everyone cooking up this weekend?
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Nov 25, 2017 15:53
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I'm half tempted to smoke a turkey breast because the turkey I made for Turkey day was such a success I hardly have any leftovers for a drat sandwich. And I should follow up. I brined a store bird that was already brined and I injected it. I was worried about the saltiness but it turned out awesome and wasn't salty at all. It was just right and probably the best turkey I have ever made. And for 59 cents a lb can't be beat. I was somewhat stressing during the cook. It was 32F out. Had the smoker @ 325 and when I tossed it all on it dropped to 219 and took it's sweet rear end time to get back up to temp (like a couple hours). But in the end temps rose in the bird quickly after it got going. I figure tossing 20 some pounds into the cooker is quite a thermal mass to overcome. After I pulled it I needed to toss a small ham on. There was more drama because the temps were reading 500. I was wondering wtf was going on, then realized a wood chunk was shooting flames up and hitting the temp sensor. Homer Simpson moment.
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Nov 25, 2017 16:09
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MrYenko posted:Welcome home, Vulturesrow. Thanks!  Sooo... my turkey looked great but I pulled it too late. The dark meat was fine but the breast was overcooked. It wasn't horribly so but it was dry. Flavor was real nice though and I only used one chunk of hickory wood so that is a good reference point. Then I was talking to the missus and she informed she "doesn't really like smoked turkey."  Luckily I made a breast in our air fryer.
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Nov 26, 2017 00:35
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vulturesrow posted:Then I was talking to the missus and she informed she "doesn't really like smoked turkey." Divorce
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Nov 26, 2017 15:13
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vulturesrow posted:Then I was talking to the missus and she informed she "doesn't really like smoked turkey." Is it weird that you made it through the whole deployment, and it wasn’t till you got home that you had to really start thinking about ejection?
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Nov 26, 2017 18:03
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MrYenko posted:Is it weird that you made it through the whole deployment, and it wasn’t till you got home that you had to really start thinking about ejection?  Luckily she loves most other BBQ. 
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Nov 26, 2017 20:02
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So I have a question for you folks. In my area (Boston) I find that Boston butt or pork butt is more expensive than picnic shoulders, so I make my pulled pork with the latter. Do you guys skin your shoulders or leave the skin on? I've smoked all of mine with the skin on, skinned the smoked shoulder, chopped the skin into small bits, and then added that to the pulled pork. Yesterday I smoked my first shoulder that I skinned, and I found it to be somewhat more flavorful, but a little drier/tougher on the side that was under the skin when compared to skin on smoked shoulder. Is that because of some other factor, or is that to be expected from skinned shoulders?
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Nov 27, 2017 05:12
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Nothing like getting busy with your smoker on a mellow Saturday night. Temps and wind were mild, temps in high 40s when I started at 5pm, wind almost completely dead all night. It was time to smoke some lamb. I intended to get a bone-in leg, but the only ones available at MB were massive, so I settled with a small butterflied leg. Rubbed with half rosemary, half fine diced garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper.  I tried my hand at skinning the giant pork shoulder I got for $11. I found out I really need a better knife and more practice with holding the skin with my left arm.  The pork shoulder and the ribs got a modified Memphis Dust with plenty of ancho chili and a little roasted cumin.  —  The meats hit the smoker at 5pm, and the lamb hit 130 in a little over an hour.  After resting for almost an hour, I sliced into my little packet of heaven. It was the best lamb I've ever smoked. Might even use more garlic next time though.  The ribs came out really great, and the rub REALLY came through for me. They weren't falling off the bone, but weren't even remotely tough. In my eyes, they were perfect. Sweet smoke ring, too.  I decided to smoke these beautiful two Atlantic salmon fillets I was planning on throwing on my cast iron.  After they had been in the smoker for about 20 minutes, I glazed it with a honey mustard glaze I planned to use as part of a dressing. The glaze took in a bunch of smoke flavor and was a really good idea.  The pork shoulder ended up tasting phenomenal, and my coworkers are hooked on it now. 
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Nov 27, 2017 05:44
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BritishRacingGreen posted:So I have a question for you folks. When I do a picnic I usually just score the skin because I'm lazy since it basically falls off in the end.
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Nov 27, 2017 15:23
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BritishRacingGreen posted:So I have a question for you folks. I always remove the skin from picnics as that means I can get more rub onto the meat.
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Nov 27, 2017 17:25
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Colostomy Bag posted:When I do a picnic I usually just score the skin because I'm lazy since it basically falls off in the end. I found that the flavor improvement from skin off easily made up for the somewhat annoying work skinning the shoulder is. VERTiG0 posted:I always remove the skin from picnics as that means I can get more rub onto the meat. I'm definitely doing it from now on, just gotta work on my skinning skills. What do you do with the skins? I decided to make pork rinds in the oven, but they came out horribly. Recipe said "wait until the skin blisters" but it turned out completely overcooked and borderline inedible 
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Nov 27, 2017 19:14
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BritishRacingGreen posted:What do you do with the skins? I decided to make pork rinds in the oven, but they came out horribly. Recipe said "wait until the skin blisters" but it turned out completely overcooked and borderline inedible Pork rinds are best done by drying the skins out (I use the oven at a very low temp to do this, if you have a food dehydrator that should work much better) and then frying them in oil. I'd be interested in seeing the recipe you have that just does them in the oven.
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Nov 27, 2017 20:25
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BritishRacingGreen posted:I found that the flavor improvement from skin off easily made up for the somewhat annoying work skinning the shoulder is. The key to puffing any food like that is three steps: 1. Overcook 2. Dry out 3. High heat quick cook to turn residual water into steam and puff So typically you would boil the skin for a long time, then dehydrate, then deep fry/microwave/maybe hot oven.
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Nov 27, 2017 21:04
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BritishRacingGreen posted:What do you do with the skins? I decided to make pork rinds in the oven, but they came out horribly. Recipe said "wait until the skin blisters" but it turned out completely overcooked and borderline inedible *whispers* I just throw them out
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Nov 27, 2017 21:07
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BritishRacingGreen posted:I found that the flavor improvement from skin off easily made up for the somewhat annoying work skinning the shoulder is. Yeah I have no problem with that. Problem is how much can you do with the amount of a picnic skin? I've never done cracklings, but skinning a full ham you can get a decent sized portion of lard. The good stuff. As for skinning, pick up a cheap Victronix boning knife from Amazon. Makes quick work and can be used and abused.
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Nov 27, 2017 21:10
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Hi all. I'm going to smoke some chickens in my electric smoker this weekend amd could use some advice. Anyone have any brining/rub ideas? Should I put anything in the cavity? If I brine it, I need to let it dry before putting it in the smoker, right? What temp and how long would you recommend? Anything anyone wants to throw out here is appreciated! Also, does anyone have a good link to internal Temps and time per pound for different meats?
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Nov 27, 2017 21:42
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10 Beers posted:Hi all. I'm going to smoke some chickens in my electric smoker this weekend amd could use some advice. Anyone have any brining/rub ideas? Should I put anything in the cavity? If I brine it, I need to let it dry before putting it in the smoker, right? What temp and how long would you recommend? Anything anyone wants to throw out here is appreciated! 1) Spatchcock it. Basically means using a pair of heavy duty scissors and cutting out the backbone then flattening the bird. Eliminates the cavity and gives better smoke flavor due to surface area. 2) Invest in a ton of ziploc gallon bags for the brine of your choice. Soy sauce, garlic/jarlic, a few TBSP of olive oil and whatever else you want to throw is all it takes. Rub is whatever you want. Or skip that step and just season it. 3) You are somewhat limited since you have an electric and that only hits at 275 at the max. Drying it in a fridge won't do much for skin crispness at that temp. I would expect it to take 2-2.5 hours. 4) Secret is to not overcook birds. You want to shoot for around 165 in the breast. That is a safe area because you are relying on safe temp area and the plus/minus deviation of your thermometers. 5) Use cherry for a nice look.
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Nov 27, 2017 23:11
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Colostomy Bag posted:1) Spatchcock it. Basically means using a pair of heavy duty scissors and cutting out the backbone then flattening the bird. Eliminates the cavity and gives better smoke flavor due to surface area. 1) Agree wholeheartedly, although I seem to end up just halving my chickens when I smoked them so I can try different rubs. 2) Dry brine. Sprinkle a fair amount of salt over the outside of the bird 24 hours or so before you smoke. No need to wet brine. For bonus moistness/flavor inject with creole butter (should be available with injector syringe at your local grocery store or WalMart). As for rubs, you can obviously try whatever you like. If you have a Trader Joes nearby, they sell an awesome garlic and coffee rub for only a couple bucks which is my favorite chicken rub. Coffee sounds weird, but it doesn't end up tasting anything like coffee and instead just tastes awesome. 3) I have a Masterbuilt and typically cook chicken until it reaches 155f or so and pull it. Then I throw it in a hot oven (400f+) for a few minutes to crisp the skin. Sometimes I even throw the broiler on. 4) A note on temperature. According the USDA's own studies, salmonella (and other bacteria) will be killed off to an acceptable level if the meat hits the temperatures below for the time listed. This means that as long as you hit, say, 145f for four minutes you should be just as fine as if you took it to 165f. IMHO, chicken tends to get a bit dry at 165f so I'm going to be aiming lower in the future.  Chicken is awesome. Super cheap, fast, and fairly easy.
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Nov 28, 2017 06:59
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Pulling at 165 is a recipe for disaster if you ask me. I'd probably do it about 150.
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Nov 30, 2017 20:53
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Hey folks, I've been casually smoking meat on my Weber kettle for a few years but decided to step up my game and grab a MES on Black Friday. I'm breaking it in tomorrow with a 5lb pork butt and I have a few questions. Any suggestions for seasoning? I was going to slather mustard on it then do a dry rub of brown sugar, salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, and chili powder. Is this overkill? I was going to do it with a Carolina style sauce but I'm open to trying other styles if folks have suggestions. I'm going to avoid injections to start until I have a better sense for how much smoke flavor I get from the MES. I was going to run it at 275F with applewood chips for a few hours, spraying with apple cider vinegar and water everyone 90 minutes or so, then foil it once it hits 160 and put it back in until it's done. Does this sound ok? I keep reading 1.5-2 hours per pound. Does that seem right? Which brings me to record keeping. I'd like to gather metrics around my smokes. Beyond having purchased the bluetooth version is there anything I can do to profile and record the smoker temp and meat temp? I have a Maverick wireless thermometer but I'm not opposed to buying other gear.
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Dec 2, 2017 20:49
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First, you're going backwards by getting an electric smoker vs. using your Weber. The results won't be as good. Second, rub it with whatever you want. Your rub recipe is pretty standard, good stuff. If you like the Carolina style sauce, use that, otherwise try some of the stuff that Meathead has on amazingribs.com. I'm partial to his Columbia Gold sauce recipe, it's a killer. 275 is a good temp for a butt. Having spritzed and not-spritzed shoulders many times, in my experience there is no difference. Foiling will help you power through the stall, which is nice if you're aiming to be done at a certain time. However, every piece of meat is different and I've had shoulders bought at the same time that took 12 hours to cook and some that took 16 hours. They can be funny that way. They're done when they're done, so start way earlier than you think you should. The meat will hold fine for hours wrapped in foil and towels in a cooler. To log your cooks you can build a Heater Meter, though some (more expensive than a Maverick) commercially available devices do this now too.
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Dec 3, 2017 02:52
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VERTiG0 posted:First, you're going backwards by getting an electric smoker vs. using your Weber. The results won't be as good. Thanks for the advice. The MES isn't a replacement for the Weber, it's for those long smokes when I want to set it up and go back to sleep. Like tomorrow when I'm going to start the butt at 5am and go back to sleep. Long term I'm planning to pick up an amps and do some fun stuff with cold smoking cheeses.
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Dec 3, 2017 03:09
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Right on. I've considered an electric for things like that, but I'm just not willing to give up that flavour. Let us know how the cheese smoking thing goes if you get into it, I'd love to try that.
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Dec 3, 2017 03:31
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I'd love to see how many people can tell the difference between electric smoked BBQ and trad smoked BBQ in a blind taste test. Aside from the smoke ring, I haven't noticed an appreciable difference. Maybe side-by-side it would be more stark, but tasty BBQ is tasty BBQ and I will gladly take the theoretical flavor hit if it means that I can nail a brisket every time with minimal effort.
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Dec 3, 2017 04:28
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It's night and day IMO. It's even night and day between charcoal and pellet cookers. I like to think of them as "smoker-lite" devices.
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Dec 3, 2017 05:01
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My pellet smoker makes a smoke ring.
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Dec 3, 2017 07:19
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| # ? Jun 5, 2024 18:14 |
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I meant the resulting flavour, not a smoke ring, sorry.
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Dec 3, 2017 15:10
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