Smokin Today

What did you put on yours?
These days it's whatever generic rub I find at the store. I used to go all out back when I first started but at the end of the day the spices don't really matter if the meat is moist and the smoke is true. ;)

I do prefer to smoke pork ribs with apple wood and spritz with 50/50 apple juice/apple cider vinegar during the cook.
 
These days it's whatever generic rub I find at the store. I used to go all out back when I first started but at the end of the day the spices don't really matter if the meat is moist and the smoke is true. ;)

I do prefer to smoke pork ribs with apple wood and spritz with 50/50 apple juice/apple cider vinegar during the cook.


Are you a believer in the honey?
 
I am though I don't use it as often as I should. When I'm tempted to amp up the sweet I often want to amp up the heat. When I do that I fear the wife might end me in my sleep... 🤣

EDIT: I usually stick with brown sugar based rubs.

If you're making your own rub or just adding brown sugar to a generic rub, nuke the brown sugar on a plate for a bit and it will be easier to spread with less chance of scorching if you want to cook at higher temps.
 
I’ll be bugging the shit out of you guys soon, looking for advice. I’m going to get a pellet grill to make it easier on myself, but I’m sure you guys have some good tips.
 
I’ll be bugging the shit out of you guys soon, looking for advice. I’m going to get a pellet grill to make it easier on myself, but I’m sure you guys have some good tips.
Quite a few of us have written novels about smoking meat on that other board, most are willing to share.

There are also some great forums dedicated to bbq and grilling.

One thing you'll find is that there are endless ways and techniques of cooking the same piece of meat.
 
I’ll post some pictures later on today of recent cooks.

I try to smoke at least 1 meal a week. With all this COVID stuff I have been using my smoker constantly this year. everything from reverse sear lamb loin chops to beef ribs.

even smoked a cabbage a few weeks ago

Have you smoked cheese? That is some good stuff if you do it right.

best advise I can give you is to buy something other than a pellet grill

I am going to disagree a bit. When I first started, I bought an offset vertical smoker to burn real wood. It took the better part of the summer to finally figure out how to really control the temp/smoke in that smoker. I was never able to get a true test on rubs/injections or consistent outcomes. If a person is just starting, it may not be a bad route to go. IMHO the best part of smoking meat is working the fire all day while drinking beer while watching games, but that not be everyone's cup of tea.
 
best advise I can give you is to buy something other than a pellet grill
I appreciate the advice but at this point I’m more interested in getting predictable results without ruining the meat or not having the food ready until hours after I thought it would be.

I like the idea of the “lifestyle grilling” where I can spend a leisurely day outside tending to my smoker, but at this point that’s just not feasible. I have joined some groups and forums where most posters who have both types of grill say they use the pellet grill more often. I’m not ready or able to be a purist just yet.
 
I appreciate the advice but at this point I’m more interested in getting predictable results without ruining the meat or not having the food ready until hours after I thought it would be.

I like the idea of the “lifestyle grilling” where I can spend a leisurely day outside tending to my smoker, but at this point that’s just not feasible. I have joined some groups and forums where most posters who have both types of grill say they use the pellet grill more often. I’m not ready or able to be a purist just yet.

That is the same situation my son is in and being he is in Spokane, WA there just is not good BBQ restaurants. He is really struggling on charcoal smokers but that is more a factor of having five kids with ages ranging from 2-10. He is almost forced to cook high and fast and really cannot pay proper attention to the smoker. With a pellet smoker, he can use his phone to keep track of temp, smoke and meat temperature. Once he learns to make BBQ good, I hope he will go to a wood smoker and learn how to make it great.
 
I’ll be bugging the shit out of you guys soon, looking for advice. I’m going to get a pellet grill to make it easier on myself, but I’m sure you guys have some good tips.
I appreciate the advice but at this point I’m more interested in getting predictable results without ruining the meat or not having the food ready until hours after I thought it would be.

I like the idea of the “lifestyle grilling” where I can spend a leisurely day outside tending to my smoker, but at this point that’s just not feasible. I have joined some groups and forums where most posters who have both types of grill say they use the pellet grill more often. I’m not ready or able to be a purist just yet.
I was gonna tell ya, make it fun,, learn as you go, starting block advise: smoke everything on 250 degrees (for now) chops, sausages, hot dogs (try em), individual chicken pieces,, bout 1 hour - Chicken leg quarters, whole chicken, beer can chicken,, bout 2 to 2and a half hours, Butt ,, bout 8 to 10 hours, Brisket,, bout 12 hours,,
get a meat thermometer and learn to use it,, and then learn to wrap the bigger cuts to reduce time and keep them moist..
but MAKE IT FUN :)
 
I was gonna tell ya, make it fun,, learn as you go, starting block advise: smoke everything on 250 degrees (for now) chops, sausages, hot dogs (try em), individual chicken pieces,, bout 1 hour - Chicken leg quarters, whole chicken, beer can chicken,, bout 2 to 2and a half hours, Butt ,, bout 8 to 10 hours, Brisket,, bout 12 hours,,
get a meat thermometer and learn to use it,, and then learn to wrap the bigger cuts to reduce time and keep them moist..
but MAKE IT FUN :)

Some pellet smokers have temp probes for the meat and you can monitor that from your phone ... it will alert you when set temp is reached.
 
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