Memorial Day Weekend Plans?

[RunInRed 16,383]

I'm planning on throwing some ribs and wings on the BGE (thanks @Barnacle for the recipe/inspiration on the ribs) ... I'll keep everyone posted!

[Barnacle 9,064]

2 hours ago, RunInRed said:

I'm planning on throwing some ribs and wings on the BGE (thanks @Barnacle for the recipe/inspiration on the ribs) ... I'll keep everyone posted!

Heck yeah! Let us know how they turn out. 

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

 

The best [and many lesser] laid plans of mice and men gang aft a-gley (Robert Burns, w./ my [edit])

 Post hoc report of my weekend plan reveals mixed results and teachable moments. (I’m still in the KISS stage of this smoking thing). Primary drivers of the plan were use of what’s still in the freezer, and what flavors, sauces, and marinade materials were in the pantry. Sorry for length.

 

Part one (utter failure):

Charcoal-fueled smoker – Still my go-to, ‘cause it provides flexibility for smoke source (my wood pile is generally mixed oak w./ some local hickory, pecan, and wild cherry included), and to continue establishing a common language with smoker fires (I’m actually quite conversant with, and even competent to train, grilling-, fireplace-, and camp-, but never even attempted a meaningful exchange with wild-*, fires).

Cooking – Plan was for a relatively hot smoke (targeting at grills = 250F, internal = 150F, before another ½ hr w./sauce) of pork spare ribs (w./ “brisket bones included”), rubbed with Alton Brown’s recipe left over from previous use of his Good Eats recipe for (oven-cooked) ribs, and sauced with Sweet Baby Ray’s Habanero/Honey (it’s available at the Dollar General across the river). Aim was for ready to eat when rested a bit and any company arrived.

Result – Flavoring was OK, but the meat was inedible. Loss, and needed reconstitution, of fire led to wild, wide temperature excursions and tough meat. Moreover, meat had obviously (though, far as I could tell, invisibly) been freezer burned. Much as I hate waste, it went to the can.

Don’t risk potentially old meat, and don’t (no matter how comfortable you’re getting with the process) go try to fix a lawn mower during smoking.

 

Part two (worthy of further exploration):

Electric smoker – B’day present this year doesn’t provide as much room for learning; thermostat control is harder to talk to, and wood source is limited to chips (i.e., ‘til I get my axe down here, store-bought hickory), but it does have bigger capacity, and does allow me to smoke two things at once.

Cooking – Reverse-Sear method (cooler smoke ~200F to internal 135F final) on pork chops (cut at ~1-3/4”, a bit over 1-lb/ea, from a boneless loin) for as-needed (crowd-dependent) top-off pan browning (Maillard Reaction, I think?) to ~145F (seems to take ~3-4 min to a side, even from the refrigerator, for these chops). Rub (really just a patted-in sprinkle) was of roasted garlic powder, chipotle powder, and salt.

Results – Excellent. Good, simple flavoring choice (worthy of further experimentation?) but (more importantly, to my learning) cooler smoking, before browning, seems to provide greater, and apparently non-drying, smoke infusion into at least these medium-sized pieces of meat. Universal kudos from recipients of every chop eaten, and all remnants frozen (with dates on the packages!) for near-future brown-and-eat.

 

Part three (in progress):

Pork bellies (<never tried this one before) currently in the midst of a 5-day salt/sugar/peppercorn cure in the fridge, with an aim to smoke cure at 175F to 150F final internal. Recipe I’m exploring tells me that, afterwards, I’m supposed to fry/grill like thick-cut bacon as needed.

[*Hard to believe that such would seem needed, but I’ve even seen recent warnings to Hawaiians that toasting marshmallows over lava flows is unsafe! e.g. http://www.foxnews.com/science/2018/05/29/hawaii-volcano-not-safe-to-roast-marshmallows-over-usgs-says.html ]

[kevon67 2,368]

Good advice all around......earlier this year had a similar experience with the smoker.....had been a while and got sidetracked.......meat was edible but there's something about eating steak from grill you know is not your best work.....regardless of what others say it ruined my appetite as I am my own worst critic.

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

13 hours ago, kevon67 said:

Good advice all around......earlier this year had a similar experience with the smoker.....had been a while and got sidetracked.......meat was edible but there's something about eating steak from grill you know is not your best work.....regardless of what others say it ruined my appetite as I am my own worst most discriminating and trustworthy critic.

Edits mine

As long as you pay attention to you, I don't see pickiness as a vice.

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

On 5/29/2018 at 4:40 PM, AUld fAUx@ said:

...

Part three (in progress):

Pork bellies (<never tried this one before) currently in the midst of a 5-day salt/sugar/peppercorn cure in the fridge, with an aim to smoke cure at 175F to 150F final internal. Recipe I’m exploring tells me that, afterwards, I’m supposed to fry/grill like thick-cut bacon as needed....

Follow-up

Cure (from recipe* at https://barbecuebible.com/recipe/made-from-scratch-bacon/) was

-1/3 cup kosher salt

-3 tbsp cracked peppercorns

-2 tsp pink curing salt [note: I didn’t have any, so I to the un-calculated risk of proceeding w./o a nitrites source]

-1/3 cup brown sugar

Even with attention, lower-temp fires seem more difficult to keep at constant temp, but held it to ~[-5F - +10F] of target. Smoked it y’day w./ wild black cherry wood :

Test-drove a few slices today, (after recommended overnight, refrigerated rest) intentionally selecting fatty parts and several levels of doneness to explore cure- and smoke-penetration, and crisping behavior:

(and forgive me, still stuck w./ my phone camera)

Verdict: Might tweak some things for second batch, but there will be a second batch. Easily good enough that the first batch will not last until our (late-planted this year) tomatoes ripen.

*I’ve always tended to treat recipes as (like those lines on the road?) suggestions. If anybody decides to open a “baking” thread or club, rest assured that participation by me will be of little value.