Anyone cook with a smoker?

[Rocketsan 773]

Can anyone point me towards an FAQ about smoking in general? Would love to learn more before I make the investment...

[echo88 74]

Can anyone point me towards an FAQ about smoking in general? Would love to learn more before I make the investment...

 

http://www.smoking-meat.com/

 

NSFW....

[The Four Horsemen 6]

Can anyone point me towards an FAQ about smoking in general? Would love to learn more before I make the investment...

 

I like the site that I posted the link to earlier. http://www.bbqaddicts.com, they are pretty knowledgeable. They have a forum page that has a wealth of information, similar to our own DD. They also have a page with types of smokers and grills, recipes, sauces and rubs etc.

 

If you want information on temps and length of times to cook, you can look at sites like http://www.smoking-meat.com or here is a link for other cook times in a chart that I have used in the past.

 

http://www.smokymtbarbecue.com/bbq-tools/bbq-smoking-times-temperatures-chart.php

 

To be honest, the first time I used mine, I just went trial by fire (pun intended). I then went to my local library and read a few articles and books and got hooked from there.

 

Alot of the stuff I do now, I just dream up rubs, sauces and marinades on my own and give it a try. The more you do, the more you will learn and try. Wood choice can make a big difference too, mesquite is real strong, hickory is pretty standard. I also like to use apple, peach and cherry wood sometimes too. The fruit woods are not nearly as strong as hickory or mesquite.

Edited April 30, 2012 by The Four Horsemen
added content

[Rocketsan 773]

Thanks for those links. Was going to just focus on deep frying turkeys; however, want to expand and do some BBQ of my own...

[The Four Horsemen 6]

Thanks for those links. Was going to just focus on deep frying turkeys; however, want to expand and do some BBQ of my own...

 

Something else that I just thought about, start off with a few easier things to smoke. Don't go after a brisket for your first attempt. I would recommend cornish game hens, chicken or a pork loin. Those are all pretty easy items to cook and will usually turn out pretty successful, even for a novice. You can also try that bacon explosion i linked in an earlier post. It has a short cook time and is pretty hard to screw up.

 

Ribs are fairly easy, just make sure to either remove the membrane on the back yourself or better yet, have it done by the guys that sell you the meat. It took me about 4 tries to perfect ribs, they should pull off the bone easily when chewed, but not fall off the bone.

 

Brisket can be a real b*@ch! it takes forever to cook. If not done properly, it will be tough. You also have to cut the brisket a certain way. Work up to the brisket, trust me on that one. Maybe read up on it before you give it a try.

[Rocketsan 773]

Good to hear as I was going to start with brisket...

[echo88 74]

Thanks for those links. Was going to just focus on deep frying turkeys; however, want to expand and do some BBQ of my own...

 

I smoked a whole turkey using apple woodchips this past Thanksgiving. Hard to keep the tips of the legs from burning, but wow, was it good. Took about 13-15 hours but well worth it....

[die4irish 0]

I second the Bradly. My wife and kids got me one last year for Christmas and I love it ( so do they). Just finished up 20 lbs of bacon over the weekend. It is very easy to use and they have their own web site. http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/

 

The smoking meat web site is really good also.

[echo88 74]

Something else that I just thought about, start off with a few easier things to smoke. Don't go after a brisket for your first attempt. I would recommend cornish game hens, chicken or a pork loin. Those are all pretty easy items to cook and will usually turn out pretty successful, even for a novice. You can also try that bacon explosion i linked in an earlier post. It has a short cook time and is pretty hard to screw up.

 

Ribs are fairly easy, just make sure to either remove the membrane on the back yourself or better yet, have it done by the guys that sell you the meat. It took me about 4 tries to perfect ribs, they should pull off the bone easily when chewed, but not fall off the bone.

 

Brisket can be a real b*@ch! it takes forever to cook. If not done properly, it will be tough. You also have to cut the brisket a certain way. Work up to the brisket, trust me on that one. Maybe read up on it before you give it a try.

 

I second this. Brisket is a bitch and it took me 3-4 tries to get ribs to turn out right. Pork loin is the easiest by far....

[The Four Horsemen 6]

Here are a few pics of my handiwork. That brisket on the bottom was about 14 lbs. It took almost 16 hours to cook.

 

 

 

 

 

[Rocketsan 773]

sweet pics...

 

Don't you lose all your heat when you have to open the smoker to check the internal temp? or am I missing something?

[echo88 74]

sweet pics...

 

Don't you lose all your heat when you have to open the smoker to check the internal temp? or am I missing something?

 

The heat only drops about 5 degrees when you open the smoker long enough to check the temp, but remember that you're only checking the meat when it should be close to being done. So for a pork loin that takes 6 hours, Im checking once every 15 mins only after the fifth hour or so. The temp returns to where you had it very quickly and it really has no effect on your project at all...

 

A key thing to remember is that the meat continues to cook after you remove it from the smoker, so I usually remove it about 3-5 degrees before my target temp...

 

You can also get a digital wireless thermometer that will relay the temp back to you without having to open it.

[The Four Horsemen 6]

I actually have a thermometer that I use. It is meant for high temp so I insert the probe and the wire runs out under the lid to a digital display. I only open the lid a few times to spritz the meat with apple or grape juice, depending on what i am cooking. I will also open the lid when geting close to being done to take some pics for all to see

[The Four Horsemen 6]

The heat only drops about 5 degrees when you open the smoker long enough to check the temp, but remember that you're only checking the meat when it should be close to being done. So for a pork loin that takes 6 hours, Im checking once every 15 mins only after the fifth hour or so. The temp returns to where you had it very quickly and it really has no effect on your project at all...

 

A key thing to remember is that the meat continues to cook after you remove it from the smoker, so I usually remove it about 3-5 degrees before my target temp...

 

You can also get a digital wireless thermometer that will relay the temp back to you without having to open it.

 

Along with that statement that the meat continues to cook, the meat also needs to rest once you are done cooking. If you cut right into the meat, most of the juices will be lost. If you allow the meat to rest, the juices will absorb back into the meat. Big thick cuts like brisket and pork loin should rest for usually around a half hour before they are cut into.

[echo88 74]

Along with that statement that the meat continues to cook, the meat also needs to rest once you are done cooking. If you cut right into the meat, most of the juices will be lost. If you allow the meat to rest, the juices will absorb back into the meat. Big thick cuts like brisket and pork loin should rest for usually around a half hour before they are cut into.

 

Definitely....

[foreverirish34 11]

Go to echo's link smoking_meat.com best website for a newbie. There are some great guys there. I did Jeff's recipe for cranberry juice brined turkey. super bomb. anyway pm me if you ever have any questions, sounds like echo and four horseman know what there doing too.

[Tenacious_ND 0]

mmmmmm ribs.

[ND FANATIC 0]

Don't forget, you can smoke vegetables too - my personal favorites are corn on the cob and stuffed/bacon wrapped jalapeno peppers (ask DJ, there incredible)

[The Four Horsemen 6]

Don't forget, you can smoke vegetables too - my personal favorites are corn on the cob and stuffed/bacon wrapped jalapeno peppers (ask DJ, there incredible)

 

We do stuffed peppers all the time, FANTASTIC! I love to do Jalapenos with a little bacon wrapped around them .

[ObieKnobbe 47]

I didn't see this addressed yet so I figured I would chime in. When you use a smoker make sure you get your coals good and hot and then add a DRY seasoned piece of wood. The goal in doing this is to get a BLUE smoke, not a white smoke. White smoke will make your meat taste only like smoke while a blue smoke you will get a smoke ring on the outside of the meat but you still have the flavor of the meat with the smokiness. VERY IMPORTANT TO GET BLUE SMOKE. A blue smoke is basically invisible while a white smoke you will be able to see billowing out of the smoker. I can't count how many times that I see someone smoking meat and they are putting way too much wood on the coals creating billows of white smoke thinking that is good when in fact is the exact opposite of what you want.