THE BBQ THREAD THAT SHALL LIVE OR DIE ON ITS OWN MERIT.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Thu Apr 12, 2012 5:46 pm

Just for you, Xtian, I'm going to revisit crushed garlic as a potential ingredient in my BBQ. I smashed five or six cloves and put them in the oil for my mop on this brisket (extra light olive oil, salt, pepper, crushed garlic). If the temp stays under control, I think it will work. If it gets hot in there, it may burn.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Thu Apr 12, 2012 9:52 pm

Bigshankhank · Post by **Bigshankhank** » Fri Apr 13, 2012 3:44 am

Yeah, but what does it look like inside?

Vitiare · Post by **Vitiare** » Fri Apr 13, 2012 5:21 am

Ive seen the cooking-on-a-rock technique before and I think you're right: there's something about it that stirs the ancient caveman inside you. Its not any better than a good cast-iron skillet, but it sure looks rustic and impressive to guests.

Bigshankhank · Post by **Bigshankhank** » Fri Apr 13, 2012 1:31 pm

I guess I am confused about the flat rock thing. How does one keep the burning wood from collapsing onto your food? Or even from dropping embers and ash/charred wood onto your delicious meat? I have baking stones for lasagna, cookies, pizza, all kinds of things and I agree they do cook differently and I prefer them, and I have cooked a steak over an open flame on a cast iron grille over a fire pit, so putting them together I get the concept, just not the excution as WAFS described it.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Fri Apr 13, 2012 2:17 pm

Embers fall, and you brush them off before you eat. As far as a collapsing fire goes, you really aren't cooking the meat long enough for a structural change to occur in the fire. The steak could probably get to medium well, tops, before the outside of it started burning pretty badly.

I will post a pic of the inside of the brisket, but it's not gonna be as pretty as it was last night. It's got a hot pink smoke ring, though.

rc26 · Post by **rc26** » Fri Apr 13, 2012 7:20 pm

This thread has been a true inspiration. I'm throwing 10 lbs of ribs on the grill tomorrow. Smoking with hardwood in a "Texas smoker".

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sat Apr 14, 2012 12:13 am

Tomorrow I'm doing a chicken, and Sunday I'll probably do another pork butt. I got a small one (3lb) and between the two and the remaining brisket, I should have my protein covered for several days.

Vitiare · Post by **Vitiare** » Sat Apr 14, 2012 6:48 am

Chef Hubert Keller has a dish that he does in one of his many restaurants. They take a large flat-ish rock and get it super hot in an oven, then at tableside, they lay thin strips of meat across the stone and serve it to the guests.

Its more of a neat gimmick than an actual good way to cook the meat.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sat Apr 14, 2012 11:49 pm

Tonight was another pork butt that I forgot to take pictures of before I pulled it, along with grilled/smoked mussels, and dried dates with warmed apples, wrapped in chevre and bacon (this was not cooked on the grill, but was still part of the meal and deserves mention).

Pics when I get 'em from my roommate.

I also brined the aforementioned chicken while I was at it. Decided to add some fresh ground pepper and rosemary to the brine. I toasted them in a pan first in order to get the oils to release and hopefully work their way into the bird a bit. Not sure if/how that's gonna work out, but it's worth a shot.

Vitiare · Post by **Vitiare** » Sun Apr 15, 2012 4:35 am

Brining is another secret trick for really juicy meat. Especially if you are smoking the meat.

Muscle tissue is composed of long chains of cells called myofibrils, which are about 20% protein and 80% water. When you place a piece of meat in a heavy saltwater solution, the salt ions enter the myofibrils through diffusion and start breaking down the connective proteins. This causes the meat to absorb more water, while the broken-down proteins make the meat less fibrous, and thus, more tender.

I never really thought about adding herbs to the brine, but it makes sense that the solution would carry the flavors into the meat.

With that thought, Im going to have to experiment with a brine with rosemary and garlic in it and see if there is a noticable taste from this process.

Thanks for the suggestion!

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun Apr 15, 2012 12:40 pm

If you did it right, it could do alternate duty as both.

If you did an offset firebox, and then put a lower level grill, you could put coals on the lower level grill, and clean the ashes out into the firebox for grill form, or just have the fire in the firebox itself for smoker form.

Put a vent on the lid for grilling, and smokestack for smoking.

All that being said, it occurs to me to ask what the keg is made out of.
Stainless steel?

Can you (personally) weld stainless? (And do so without poisoning yourself?)

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun Apr 15, 2012 1:51 pm

180 degrees. The land of temptation. It's when you start thinking "Do I *really* care if it's pulled pork or sliced pork?"

I've got the bird rockin, and the grill at a nice, steady 250f. I might actually take a chance and dip out for a session at the gym while it's cooking.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun Apr 15, 2012 1:54 pm

Oh, and speaking of 180 degrees...
I had a part of the pork I did last night that stalled out at 180 for freggin EVER. Must have been a tough bit with a lot of connective tissue to melt. The rest of the meat had topped out over 200, but this one part on the other side of the bone just sat there.
I finally just took it off the grill.
Mostly pulled pork with 1/4 of it being sliced pork works just fine for me.

calamari kid · Post by **calamari kid** » Sun Apr 15, 2012 4:53 pm

If you've got the space in your cooker the beer butt chicken Hank mentioned above is a great method for "fall apart if you look at it funny" bird cookin'. If space is tight I've had good results with V8 cans half full of beer and game hens.

Zim · Post by **Zim** » Sun Apr 15, 2012 5:18 pm

I've sodomized a chicken with a can of beer quite a few times. IIRC, once or twice on a Weber Smokey Joe. Loved that little bugger.

This is a dangerous thread. I'm powerful hungry for meat.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun Apr 15, 2012 8:45 pm

I thought about beer butting this chicken, but then decided I didn't want to hassle with it.
It still fell apart when I looked at it funny.

Can't tell if brining with the seasonings worked or not, coz I used the same seasonings for the rub. At any rate, it was fucking delicious. Pics when my roommate gets em to me.

Mk3 · Post by **Mk3** » Tue Apr 17, 2012 5:28 am

We're missing a few glorious points

1. pit barbeque. Dig a 1 1/2 pig sized hole; Burn the shit out of a bunch of fallen fruitwood; lay pig on coals, cover.

2. Pig roast BBq with whole pig on a spit or flippable grate

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/7Xc5wIpUenQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Tue Apr 17, 2012 10:20 am

I think I'm gonna do a pit BBQ or a pig roast when I graduate, actually. My graduation party is really the only occasion I can think of where I'm gonna get enough people to show up to eat that much meat.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:25 pm

I bought a cheap chuck roast, and cut it into a bunch of small pieces to make some jerky.

Right now it's marinading in salt, pepper, garlic, tamari, and worcestershire sauce. (I only used salt because it was low sodium tamari. Otherwise I would have left it alone).

SSCAM · Post by **SSCAM** » Fri Apr 20, 2012 8:50 am

I'm doing a simple smoke today. Pork ribs that have been brined and rubbed with a garlic pepper combination held on with a brown mustard. I'm smoking over straight apple wood.

Target temperature acquired:

This is my rig. Nothing fancy, but just about the best that you can buy at a home improvement store.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Fri Apr 20, 2012 4:47 pm

With a few mods, those things supposedly get pretty good. There are websites devoted to getting the most out of your mass manufactured smoker.

http://smokermods.com/

http://www.amazingribs.com/tips_and_tec ... okers.html

...for starters.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun Apr 29, 2012 8:50 pm

Another pork butt.
I think I'm gonna start experimenting with slathers, just because.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Mon Apr 30, 2012 9:42 pm

That last piece was done with a more "traditional" mustard based rub. It came out with a really good color, but seems like it didn't have as good a smoke flavor as the sriracha based rub I was using before.
May have to switch back.

Mk3 · Post by **Mk3** » Fri May 11, 2012 5:23 pm

I won't even bother failing to upload a picture. I had to cut down 2 maples in my yard from last years drought kill off, and decided to make a few shakes to cook on. so 1 cut flat piece of wood; 2 soak flat piece of wood in water, and coat top with oil (olive, motor, your choice); 3 put meat on wood &put wood/meat on grill. sprinkle with salt if desired.

Just the maple and the meat juices were freakin amazing without doing a damn thing to the meat (various meats thus far, including steak, chicken, and tillapia).

Also, I just took a calf to the butcher, so as of next week I'm looking forward to about 3 months of barbeque. I'll share any successful wacky ideas.

Vitiare · Post by **Vitiare** » Sat May 12, 2012 4:14 am

Wow. That Palin smoker is just...amazing. and...wrong, all in one.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sat May 12, 2012 11:15 am

Mk3, I am jealous of your calf slaughter, and abundance of maple.

The palin smoker is epic. I'd own it, for sure!

Jonny · Post by **Jonny** » Sun May 13, 2012 2:51 am

Ok, this is not barbeque, but is meat-related. Well, steak, to be precise. Earlier in the thread I remember someone talking about cooking steak and I just had to chime in with this video. I saw it on the telly here a month or so ago and have been using this technique ever since and getting stunning steak results. Seriously the best flavoured, juiciest, tender steaks imaginable.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/5-9NgOZuUXM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Heston is gift from Above and a Prophet of Food Preparation.

WeAintFoundShit · Post by **WeAintFoundShit** » Sun May 13, 2012 9:17 am

Dig it. I will try that this week. My only problem is that my fridge isn't big enough to age the meat properly.

My roomie threw a party last night, and asked me to cook pulled pork.
I overheard a conversation towards the end of the evening:

"I've had a LOT of pulled pork before, and that was probably the best I've ever had."

Score!

Vitiare · Post by **Vitiare** » Sun May 13, 2012 11:58 am

Thanks for the video, Johnny!

The trick I've learned for doneness is Steve Raichlen's "finger test" Basically you make an "A-OK" sign with your fingers and feel the firmness of your thumb muscle.

Touching your index finger and thumb together = rare
Index and middle finger= medium rare.
Index and ring finger = medium well.
Index finger and pinky = well done.

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THE BBQ THREAD THAT SHALL LIVE OR DIE ON ITS OWN MERIT.

cookin my wood