***Official 2013 Grilling and Smoking Thread*** (1 Viewer)

[CletiusMaximus]

Try to get a turkey that's not been injected and then bringer it - I do it overnight in a five gallon bucket with salt and sugar only. Don't stuff it. I prefer to roast it at 300 - 325 or so with a mild wood like cherry. Low and slow doesn't work well for turkey in my experience. Cook to about 160 in the breast then let it rest uncovered for at least 30 min.

 

[TheFanatic]

Smokenator arrived yesterday.

We're having friends over Saturday and I'm going to smoke a whole fresh turkey since the wife doesn't eat red meat. Any suggestions for marinade/rubs and roughly how long per lb.?

I agree with brining too. My go to brine is apple juice (cider is better), salt, pepper and garlic. The ratio is 1 gallon of liquid per cup of salt. A turkey might need an entire gallon. But if you are brining say a pork tenderloin, a quart of juice will do and a 1/4 cup of salt...

 

[-jb-]

Smokenator arrived yesterday.

We're having friends over Saturday and I'm going to smoke a whole fresh turkey since the wife doesn't eat red meat. Any suggestions for marinade/rubs and roughly how long per lb.?

I agree with brining too. My go to brine is apple juice (cider is better), salt, pepper and garlic. The ratio is 1 gallon of liquid per cup of salt. A turkey might need an entire gallon. But if you are brining say a pork tenderloin, a quart of juice will do and a 1/4 cup of salt...

whycome?

 

[TheFanatic]

Smokenator arrived yesterday.

We're having friends over Saturday and I'm going to smoke a whole fresh turkey since the wife doesn't eat red meat. Any suggestions for marinade/rubs and roughly how long per lb.?

I agree with brining too. My go to brine is apple juice (cider is better), salt, pepper and garlic. The ratio is 1 gallon of liquid per cup of salt. A turkey might need an entire gallon. But if you are brining say a pork tenderloin, a quart of juice will do and a 1/4 cup of salt...

whycome?

It's got a much more robust flavor profile than apple juice and that is transferred into the meat...

 

[TheFanatic]

Anybody grill anything this weekend? I did some steaks yesterday along with crostinis oh and some bacon wrapped dates...

 

[jamny]

Anybody grill anything this weekend? I did some steaks yesterday along with crostinis oh and some bacon wrapped dates...

I'm doing up some pork tenderloins for the first time. Slathered with some mustard and Dizzy Dust. Apple wood chips soaking.

 

[Tony Jabroni]

Chicken legs about to go on indirectly shortly....thinking about bacon wrapped corn as well. Fresh bread and some Zatarains Dirty rice will round it all out.

I purchased my first container of Tony Chahere's creole seasoning last month. It has been life changing......leftovers will be pulled for my chicken noodle soup tomorrow.

Cooking is awesome.

 

[Tony Jabroni]

Anybody grill anything this weekend? I did some steaks yesterday along with crostinis oh and some bacon wrapped dates...

I'm doing up some pork tenderloins for the first time. Slathered with some mustard and Dizzy Dust. Apple wood chips soaking.

Pork tenderloin is the friggin' bomb. Good luck.

 

[Bull Dozier]

Did some burgers and brats. Is there a trick to brats? I never know how to tell when they are actually done. I usually go a few minutes too long. I hate to keep cutting them open on the grill.

 

[[icon]]

Did some burgers and brats. Is there a trick to brats? I never know how to tell when they are actually done. I usually go a few minutes too long. I hate to keep cutting them open on the grill.

I personally grill mine till most of the way done or done, then drop them in a beer bath (sam adams or guiness) with kraut and let them simmer on "Warm" setting. Keeps them warm, finishes to suitable temp without overcooking, has them sitting ready for folks to come grab one whenever they want.

NEVER cut into your brat or puncture it on the grill... lets all the juices out and IMO that is contributing more to your dry brat issue than overcooking. As long as the skins don't pop it's pretty hard to OVERcook a brat.

 

[Keerock]

Did some burgers and brats. Is there a trick to brats? I never know how to tell when they are actually done. I usually go a few minutes too long. I hate to keep cutting them open on the grill.

I personally grill mine till most of the way done or done, then drop them in a beer bath (sam adams or guiness) with kraut and let them simmer on "Warm" setting. Keeps them warm, finishes to suitable temp without overcooking, has them sitting ready for folks to come grab one whenever they want.

NEVER cut into your brat or puncture it on the grill... lets all the juices out and IMO that is contributing more to your dry brat issue than overcooking. As long as the skins don't pop it's pretty hard to OVERcook a brat.

I do mine the other way around. Boil them in a beer/onion/garlic bath for about 10 minutes, then about 10 more on the grill, away from flames.

 

[Bull Dozier]

Did some burgers and brats. Is there a trick to brats? I never know how to tell when they are actually done. I usually go a few minutes too long. I hate to keep cutting them open on the grill.

I personally grill mine till most of the way done or done, then drop them in a beer bath (sam adams or guiness) with kraut and let them simmer on "Warm" setting. Keeps them warm, finishes to suitable temp without overcooking, has them sitting ready for folks to come grab one whenever they want.

NEVER cut into your brat or puncture it on the grill... lets all the juices out and IMO that is contributing more to your dry brat issue than overcooking. As long as the skins don't pop it's pretty hard to OVERcook a brat.

Thanks.

I usually cook more than we intend to eat (the whole package) and just use one to cut open to check the insides. I don't cut all of them open.

I'll try the bath next time.

 

[coyote5]

Did some burgers and brats. Is there a trick to brats? I never know how to tell when they are actually done. I usually go a few minutes too long. I hate to keep cutting them open on the grill.

I personally grill mine till most of the way done or done, then drop them in a beer bath (sam adams or guiness) with kraut and let them simmer on "Warm" setting. Keeps them warm, finishes to suitable temp without overcooking, has them sitting ready for folks to come grab one whenever they want.

NEVER cut into your brat or puncture it on the grill... lets all the juices out and IMO that is contributing more to your dry brat issue than overcooking. As long as the skins don't pop it's pretty hard to OVERcook a brat.

I do mine the other way around. Boil them in a beer/onion/garlic bath for about 10 minutes, then about 10 more on the grill, away from flames.

How do you get that nice char if they are away from the flames??

 

[Keerock]

Did some burgers and brats. Is there a trick to brats? I never know how to tell when they are actually done. I usually go a few minutes too long. I hate to keep cutting them open on the grill.

I personally grill mine till most of the way done or done, then drop them in a beer bath (sam adams or guiness) with kraut and let them simmer on "Warm" setting. Keeps them warm, finishes to suitable temp without overcooking, has them sitting ready for folks to come grab one whenever they want.

NEVER cut into your brat or puncture it on the grill... lets all the juices out and IMO that is contributing more to your dry brat issue than overcooking. As long as the skins don't pop it's pretty hard to OVERcook a brat.

I do mine the other way around. Boil them in a beer/onion/garlic bath for about 10 minutes, then about 10 more on the grill, away from flames.

How do you get that nice char if they are away from the flames??

Oh, it chars... you just don't want huge flames that are going to cause cracks/leaks which lead to more flames and dried out brats.

 

[soothsayer]

Did some burgers and brats. Is there a trick to brats? I never know how to tell when they are actually done. I usually go a few minutes too long. I hate to keep cutting them open on the grill.

I personally grill mine till most of the way done or done, then drop them in a beer bath (sam adams or guiness) with kraut and let them simmer on "Warm" setting. Keeps them warm, finishes to suitable temp without overcooking, has them sitting ready for folks to come grab one whenever they want.

NEVER cut into your brat or puncture it on the grill... lets all the juices out and IMO that is contributing more to your dry brat issue than overcooking. As long as the skins don't pop it's pretty hard to OVERcook a brat.

I do mine the other way around. Boil them in a beer/onion/garlic bath for about 10 minutes, then about 10 more on the grill, away from flames.

This is the method I was taught by someone from Wisconsin:

Bring pot of water to a boil

Add one stick of butter

Add one onion - sliced

Add brats and reduce heat - simmer for 20 minutes

Grill for 10 minutes

Dip each one back in the original cooking water and then serve. That last bath gives the charred brat a nice buttery smooth texture (rather than the chalky/charred feeling).

 

[sho nuff]

Nothing big here lately.

Though, a college friend was on BBQ Pitmasters last week.

He was one of the guy's assisting and actually made the tri-tip that the judges all loved.

 

[Megla]

Did Ribeyes and Shrimp for the wifes bday, did some chicken cordon blue on the smoker that turned out nice.

When I do brats/sausage for catering I always smoke them first, usually around 1.5 hours, at the same time I put my sliced onions and peppers in a tin with Dr. Pepper and splace on the smoker, once the brats/sausage are done smoking a place the them in the onions/peppers until they are bought.

 

[TheFanatic]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

 

[Keerock]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

 

[jamny]

Anybody grill anything this weekend? I did some steaks yesterday along with crostinis oh and some bacon wrapped dates...

I'm doing up some pork tenderloins for the first time. Slathered with some mustard and Dizzy Dust. Apple wood chips soaking.

Pork tenderloin is the friggin' bomb. Good luck.

Came out amazing btw.

 

[Pipes]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

Use to boil brats in beer and put on the grill because that's what my dad did. Didn't know any better until we tailgating and didn't pre cook them and they were so much better. This is the proper approach.

 

[Softballguy]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

The great brat debate... I urge anyone who prefers boiling them ahead of time to try both methods and find out for yourself - TheFanatic's method above will give you the best tasting brat possible.

 

[TheFanatic]

Anybody grill anything this weekend? I did some steaks yesterday along with crostinis oh and some bacon wrapped dates...

I'm doing up some pork tenderloins for the first time. Slathered with some mustard and Dizzy Dust. Apple wood chips soaking.

Pork tenderloin is the friggin' bomb. Good luck.

Came out amazing btw.

Time to take it to the next level. Stuff those pork tenderloins.

I stuffed these with a combination of apples, onions, walnuts and garlic. Sort of like a meat apple pie!

 

[Tony Jabroni]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

The great brat debate... I urge anyone who prefers boiling them ahead of time to try both methods and find out for yourself - TheFanatic's method above will give you the best tasting brat possible.

As a fellow Wisconsin boy, browning then putting them in a simmering beer bath is my preferred choice. I've found if you have a warming rack on your grill, put them up there over high heat to avoid splitting them. Just keep an eye on them though.

 

[jamny]

Anybody grill anything this weekend? I did some steaks yesterday along with crostinis oh and some bacon wrapped dates...

I'm doing up some pork tenderloins for the first time. Slathered with some mustard and Dizzy Dust. Apple wood chips soaking.

Pork tenderloin is the friggin' bomb. Good luck.

Came out amazing btw.

Time to take it to the next level. Stuff those pork tenderloins.

I stuffed these with a combination of apples, onions, walnuts and garlic. Sort of like a meat apple pie!

I saw a nice pesto stuffing too. Definitely will stuff next time.

 

[TheFanatic]

Anybody grill anything this weekend? I did some steaks yesterday along with crostinis oh and some bacon wrapped dates...

I'm doing up some pork tenderloins for the first time. Slathered with some mustard and Dizzy Dust. Apple wood chips soaking.

Pork tenderloin is the friggin' bomb. Good luck.

Came out amazing btw.

Time to take it to the next level. Stuff those pork tenderloins.

I stuffed these with a combination of apples, onions, walnuts and garlic. Sort of like a meat apple pie!

I saw a nice pesto stuffing too. Definitely will stuff next time.

I LOVE pesto!!!

 

[Bigboy10182000]

A friend of mine is selling a Weber Spririt gas grill that's roughly 1 year old for around $200. His has the knobs on the side "table" he says but every pic I see has them on the front of the grill. Is he mistaken what tyupe of grill he has or is this an older model?

I'm a total newb when it comes to propane grills BTW so be nice

 

[BigJohn]

What I do with Pork Loin, now. Simple, yet very effective... Quick sear on direct heat, move to the cool side for about 20 minutes. Unreal.

 

[sho nuff]

A friend of mine is selling a Weber Spririt gas grill that's roughly 1 year old for around $200. His has the knobs on the side "table" he says but every pic I see has them on the front of the grill. Is he mistaken what tyupe of grill he has or is this an older model?

I'm a total newb when it comes to propane grills BTW so be nice

Older models the knobs were on the side...burners went east/west rather than the newer models with the knobs on the front with the burners going north/south.

 

[Bigboy10182000]

A friend of mine is selling a Weber Spririt gas grill that's roughly 1 year old for around $200. His has the knobs on the side "table" he says but every pic I see has them on the front of the grill. Is he mistaken what tyupe of grill he has or is this an older model?

I'm a total newb when it comes to propane grills BTW so be nice

Older models the knobs were on the side...burners went east/west rather than the newer models with the knobs on the front with the burners going north/south.

So is it possible that he bought this grill a year ago?

 

[TheFanatic]

What I do with Pork Loin, now. Simple, yet very effective... Quick sear on direct heat, move to the cool side for about 20 minutes. Unreal.

So you treat them like filet mignon? Bacon wrapped and rubbed? That's pretty ingenious!

 

[SteevieG]

What I do with Pork Loin, now. Simple, yet very effective... Quick sear on direct heat, move to the cool side for about 20 minutes. Unreal.

So you treat them like filet mignon? Bacon wrapped and rubbed? That's pretty ingenious!

I've been cutting them into medallions and pounding them to about a1/4". I "brine" them in some buttermilk for 8 hours then bread them and fry them. Those are good too.

 

[Buckfast 1]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

My mom's boyfriend does this with chicken before putting it on the grill to "avoid drying it out." If you need to pre-boil chicken to avoid drying it out on a grill, then you are clearly doing something wrong on the grill. I feel like your average backyard griller is so scared of undercooking their meat that they instead err by overcooking everything.

 

[Bigboy10182000]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

My mom's boyfriend does this with chicken before putting it on the grill to "avoid drying it out." If you need to pre-boil chicken to avoid drying it out on a grill, then you are clearly doing something wrong on the grill. I feel like your average backyard griller is so scared of undercooking their meat that they instead err by overcooking everything.

Most people dont realize you just need a good meat thermometer to remedy this. I bought my brother one to solve this same problem--I was tired of eating dry chicken over there lol

 

[[icon]]

Working on scratch making a cinder block pit to smoke a 70lb hog (donated) for my bday party on saturday.

My buddy is the executive chef over all BB Kings and got the hog donated. He's doing Mac & Cheese and Slaw. I'm doing the Peach and Pork Beans. The trick is we don't have a Hog pit. So on a large area of the decking (concrete) we're going to build one.

The plan is to build it from cinder blocks, using rebar as a structural "shelf" then lay expanded metal grate over the rebar to support the hog. The smoke/heat will come from foil trays of charcoal slid into the pit and positioned in the corners. Lid will be Plywood (coated in foil on underside if needed).

HEre is the rough scale design (side view as well as overhead view of the base and 2nd/3rd levels. Open to feedback from anyone who might have done something like this before. It's based on this type of design with the hog sitting on the grate like this.

At etiher end of the base layer you'll see one block turned sideways to vent outward. This will make it shorter than the other blocks so it can slide out allowing us to slide in additional trays of lit coals as needed. If it runs hot we can lock off the hole with surplus blocks to stifle airflow a bit.

Thoughts?

 

[TheFanatic]

Working on scratch making a cinder block pit to smoke a 70lb hog (donated) for my bday party on saturday.

My buddy is the executive chef over all BB Kings and got the hog donated. He's doing Mac & Cheese and Slaw. I'm doing the Peach and Pork Beans. The trick is we don't have a Hog pit. So on a large area of the decking (concrete) we're going to build one.

The plan is to build it from cinder blocks, using rebar as a structural "shelf" then lay expanded metal grate over the rebar to support the hog. The smoke/heat will come from foil trays of charcoal slid into the pit and positioned in the corners. Lid will be Plywood (coated in foil on underside if needed).

HEre is the rough scale design (side view as well as overhead view of the base and 2nd/3rd levels. Open to feedback from anyone who might have done something like this before. It's based on this type of design with the hog sitting on the grate like this.

At etiher end of the base layer you'll see one block turned sideways to vent outward. This will make it shorter than the other blocks so it can slide out allowing us to slide in additional trays of lit coals as needed. If it runs hot we can lock off the hole with surplus blocks to stifle airflow a bit.

Thoughts?

So the only heat source is going to be aluminum trays of charcoal? How long you plan on grilling it?

What about going up one layer of blocks, fill the entire bottom with 100 lbs of charcoal (60 under the shoulders, and 40 under the hams)? Cover the grill grate entirely with foil to deflect the heat around the pig. You could smoke that pig in 6 hours that way.

Or go rent a six foot grill from a local butcher. They rent them around here for about $100. Do the same foil trick...

 

[[icon]]

Working on scratch making a cinder block pit to smoke a 70lb hog (donated) for my bday party on saturday.

My buddy is the executive chef over all BB Kings and got the hog donated. He's doing Mac & Cheese and Slaw. I'm doing the Peach and Pork Beans. The trick is we don't have a Hog pit. So on a large area of the decking (concrete) we're going to build one.

The plan is to build it from cinder blocks, using rebar as a structural "shelf" then lay expanded metal grate over the rebar to support the hog. The smoke/heat will come from foil trays of charcoal slid into the pit and positioned in the corners. Lid will be Plywood (coated in foil on underside if needed).

HEre is the rough scale design (side view as well as overhead view of the base and 2nd/3rd levels. Open to feedback from anyone who might have done something like this before. It's based on this type of design with the hog sitting on the grate like this.

At etiher end of the base layer you'll see one block turned sideways to vent outward. This will make it shorter than the other blocks so it can slide out allowing us to slide in additional trays of lit coals as needed. If it runs hot we can lock off the hole with surplus blocks to stifle airflow a bit.

Thoughts?

So the only heat source is going to be aluminum trays of charcoal? How long you plan on grilling it?

What about going up one layer of blocks, fill the entire bottom with 100 lbs of charcoal (60 under the shoulders, and 40 under the hams)? Cover the grill grate entirely with foil to deflect the heat around the pig. You could smoke that pig in 6 hours that way.

Or go rent a six foot grill from a local butcher. They rent them around here for about $100. Do the same foil trick...

4 pans of charcoal are going to be a good 40-60lbs of coals. Using chimneys to get them red hot. May end up putting them under the hog but was worried about cooking too fast at 16" above coals. Is that a concern?

The hog will be covered near surface level with aluminum lined plywood reflecting the heat right back down (there is only 8" between rebar support and the lid). I gotta think that would trap a good bit of the heat and bounce it back down?

Hrm... youve got me wondering now.

Definitely want to do the pit. No way to get a hog smoker out back by the pool and we want this to be a component of the party. Hence the temp pit.

 

[Buckfast 1]

I'm thinking of smoking some brisket on Sunday for the Breaking Bad premiere.

I got some fresh Hatch chiles yesterday, which I am planning on roasting on my grill and then incorporating into my BBQ sauce. I figure that a New Mexico Hatch chile BBQ sauce will be nice thematic compliment to Breaking Bad.

 

[Bigboy10182000]

A friend of mine is selling a Weber Spririt gas grill that's roughly 1 year old for around $200. His has the knobs on the side "table" he says but every pic I see has them on the front of the grill. Is he mistaken what tyupe of grill he has or is this an older model?

I'm a total newb when it comes to propane grills BTW so be nice

Older models the knobs were on the side...burners went east/west rather than the newer models with the knobs on the front with the burners going north/south.

So is it possible that he bought this grill a year ago?

Help a bruva out!

 

[[icon]]

Working on scratch making a cinder block pit to smoke a 70lb hog (donated) for my bday party on saturday.

My buddy is the executive chef over all BB Kings and got the hog donated. He's doing Mac & Cheese and Slaw. I'm doing the Peach and Pork Beans. The trick is we don't have a Hog pit. So on a large area of the decking (concrete) we're going to build one.

The plan is to build it from cinder blocks, using rebar as a structural "shelf" then lay expanded metal grate over the rebar to support the hog. The smoke/heat will come from foil trays of charcoal slid into the pit and positioned in the corners. Lid will be Plywood (coated in foil on underside if needed).

HEre is the rough scale design (side view as well as overhead view of the base and 2nd/3rd levels. Open to feedback from anyone who might have done something like this before. It's based on this type of design with the hog sitting on the grate like this.

At etiher end of the base layer you'll see one block turned sideways to vent outward. This will make it shorter than the other blocks so it can slide out allowing us to slide in additional trays of lit coals as needed. If it runs hot we can lock off the hole with surplus blocks to stifle airflow a bit.

Thoughts?

So the only heat source is going to be aluminum trays of charcoal? How long you plan on grilling it?

What about going up one layer of blocks, fill the entire bottom with 100 lbs of charcoal (60 under the shoulders, and 40 under the hams)? Cover the grill grate entirely with foil to deflect the heat around the pig. You could smoke that pig in 6 hours that way.

Or go rent a six foot grill from a local butcher. They rent them around here for about $100. Do the same foil trick...

4 pans of charcoal are going to be a good 40-60lbs of coals. Using chimneys to get them red hot. May end up putting them under the hog but was worried about cooking too fast at 16" above coals. Is that a concern?

The hog will be covered near surface level with aluminum lined plywood reflecting the heat right back down (there is only 8" between rebar support and the lid). I gotta think that would trap a good bit of the heat and bounce it back down?

Hrm... youve got me wondering now.

Definitely want to do the pit. No way to get a hog smoker out back by the pool and we want this to be a component of the party. Hence the temp pit.

Pit under construction.

Oink Oink

 

[TheFanatic]

Working on scratch making a cinder block pit to smoke a 70lb hog (donated) for my bday party on saturday.

My buddy is the executive chef over all BB Kings and got the hog donated. He's doing Mac & Cheese and Slaw. I'm doing the Peach and Pork Beans. The trick is we don't have a Hog pit. So on a large area of the decking (concrete) we're going to build one.

The plan is to build it from cinder blocks, using rebar as a structural "shelf" then lay expanded metal grate over the rebar to support the hog. The smoke/heat will come from foil trays of charcoal slid into the pit and positioned in the corners. Lid will be Plywood (coated in foil on underside if needed).

HEre is the rough scale design (side view as well as overhead view of the base and 2nd/3rd levels. Open to feedback from anyone who might have done something like this before. It's based on this type of design with the hog sitting on the grate like this.

At etiher end of the base layer you'll see one block turned sideways to vent outward. This will make it shorter than the other blocks so it can slide out allowing us to slide in additional trays of lit coals as needed. If it runs hot we can lock off the hole with surplus blocks to stifle airflow a bit.

Thoughts?

So the only heat source is going to be aluminum trays of charcoal? How long you plan on grilling it?

What about going up one layer of blocks, fill the entire bottom with 100 lbs of charcoal (60 under the shoulders, and 40 under the hams)? Cover the grill grate entirely with foil to deflect the heat around the pig. You could smoke that pig in 6 hours that way.

Or go rent a six foot grill from a local butcher. They rent them around here for about $100. Do the same foil trick...

4 pans of charcoal are going to be a good 40-60lbs of coals. Using chimneys to get them red hot. May end up putting them under the hog but was worried about cooking too fast at 16" above coals. Is that a concern?

The hog will be covered near surface level with aluminum lined plywood reflecting the heat right back down (there is only 8" between rebar support and the lid). I gotta think that would trap a good bit of the heat and bounce it back down?

Hrm... youve got me wondering now.

Definitely want to do the pit. No way to get a hog smoker out back by the pool and we want this to be a component of the party. Hence the temp pit.

OK, two things. First, I do this every year on Memorial day (the birthday of what was my youngest son, and now my true youngest - birthdays of the 28th and the 29th of May) and the 6 foot pit only has about 16-18 inches between the bottom of the grate, so this should work. I also put down about four layers of foil to deflect the heat. So if you want to go this route, you can do that with that level of the grill grate. But with coals in four aluminum bins, I'm not sure how much heat you will get. You may get enough, I don't know. Instead of 5-6 hours, it might take 7-8. That's not bad!

Second, placing hot charcoal on concrete is a bad idea. I have this little slab in my backyard that used to have a shed over it well before I bought the place. I have no use for it other than tossing a couple Adirondack chairs and a table on it that nobody ever sits on. Well, I used it to burn up some leaves and yard waste. Not major burns. Something that lasted less than an hour and someone warned me it would crack the concrete. I thought they were nuts but didn't care anyway as I want to take the slab out. They were right. The slab is cracked all over. High heat and concrete do not mix. Place something under the charcoal pans to keep them from heating the concrete too much...

 

[TheFanatic]

Working on scratch making a cinder block pit to smoke a 70lb hog (donated) for my bday party on saturday.

My buddy is the executive chef over all BB Kings and got the hog donated. He's doing Mac & Cheese and Slaw. I'm doing the Peach and Pork Beans. The trick is we don't have a Hog pit. So on a large area of the decking (concrete) we're going to build one.

The plan is to build it from cinder blocks, using rebar as a structural "shelf" then lay expanded metal grate over the rebar to support the hog. The smoke/heat will come from foil trays of charcoal slid into the pit and positioned in the corners. Lid will be Plywood (coated in foil on underside if needed).

HEre is the rough scale design (side view as well as overhead view of the base and 2nd/3rd levels. Open to feedback from anyone who might have done something like this before. It's based on this type of design with the hog sitting on the grate like this.

At etiher end of the base layer you'll see one block turned sideways to vent outward. This will make it shorter than the other blocks so it can slide out allowing us to slide in additional trays of lit coals as needed. If it runs hot we can lock off the hole with surplus blocks to stifle airflow a bit.

Thoughts?

So the only heat source is going to be aluminum trays of charcoal? How long you plan on grilling it?

What about going up one layer of blocks, fill the entire bottom with 100 lbs of charcoal (60 under the shoulders, and 40 under the hams)? Cover the grill grate entirely with foil to deflect the heat around the pig. You could smoke that pig in 6 hours that way.

Or go rent a six foot grill from a local butcher. They rent them around here for about $100. Do the same foil trick...

4 pans of charcoal are going to be a good 40-60lbs of coals. Using chimneys to get them red hot. May end up putting them under the hog but was worried about cooking too fast at 16" above coals. Is that a concern?

The hog will be covered near surface level with aluminum lined plywood reflecting the heat right back down (there is only 8" between rebar support and the lid). I gotta think that would trap a good bit of the heat and bounce it back down?

Hrm... youve got me wondering now.

Definitely want to do the pit. No way to get a hog smoker out back by the pool and we want this to be a component of the party. Hence the temp pit.

Pit under construction.

Oink Oink

You going to be able to straighten him out? I always get my pigs runner style, which is how you plan on grilling yours. There's some give, but I can't imagine trying to bend one of them in half like that. I've smoked pigs from 80-120 lbs and none of them I don't think I could've bent like that. Do you have one of those giant white coolers? Maybe try to bend him out straight and place it in the cooler and put a bunch of weight on top of the cooler until you are ready to grill porky

 

[[icon]]

We built it.

Grate is 16" above the ground level. Lid is 8" above the grate.
Definitely never was going to put coals right on concrete. Agreed that would be a bad idea. We laid down plywood. Then 2 layers of foil. then some pea-gravel. Each end has a 12-14" wide hole for accessing pans and reloading the fire s needed. It can be blocked easily by a block when not in use.

Coals and Applewood chunks will be going into 4 doubled up restaurant pans so the fire can be positioned as needed. If you guys think it'd be best to put the coals right under the hog then we can do that.

It's a 85lb hog or so. Going to split it for sure.

 

[[icon]]

Working on scratch making a cinder block pit to smoke a 70lb hog (donated) for my bday party on saturday.

My buddy is the executive chef over all BB Kings and got the hog donated. He's doing Mac & Cheese and Slaw. I'm doing the Peach and Pork Beans. The trick is we don't have a Hog pit. So on a large area of the decking (concrete) we're going to build one.

The plan is to build it from cinder blocks, using rebar as a structural "shelf" then lay expanded metal grate over the rebar to support the hog. The smoke/heat will come from foil trays of charcoal slid into the pit and positioned in the corners. Lid will be Plywood (coated in foil on underside if needed).

HEre is the rough scale design (side view as well as overhead view of the base and 2nd/3rd levels. Open to feedback from anyone who might have done something like this before. It's based on this type of design with the hog sitting on the grate like this.

At etiher end of the base layer you'll see one block turned sideways to vent outward. This will make it shorter than the other blocks so it can slide out allowing us to slide in additional trays of lit coals as needed. If it runs hot we can lock off the hole with surplus blocks to stifle airflow a bit.

Thoughts?

So the only heat source is going to be aluminum trays of charcoal? How long you plan on grilling it?

What about going up one layer of blocks, fill the entire bottom with 100 lbs of charcoal (60 under the shoulders, and 40 under the hams)? Cover the grill grate entirely with foil to deflect the heat around the pig. You could smoke that pig in 6 hours that way.

Or go rent a six foot grill from a local butcher. They rent them around here for about $100. Do the same foil trick...

4 pans of charcoal are going to be a good 40-60lbs of coals. Using chimneys to get them red hot. May end up putting them under the hog but was worried about cooking too fast at 16" above coals. Is that a concern?

The hog will be covered near surface level with aluminum lined plywood reflecting the heat right back down (there is only 8" between rebar support and the lid). I gotta think that would trap a good bit of the heat and bounce it back down?

Hrm... youve got me wondering now.

Definitely want to do the pit. No way to get a hog smoker out back by the pool and we want this to be a component of the party. Hence the temp pit.

Pit under construction.

Oink Oink

You going to be able to straighten him out? I always get my pigs runner style, which is how you plan on grilling yours. There's some give, but I can't imagine trying to bend one of them in half like that. I've smoked pigs from 80-120 lbs and none of them I don't think I could've bent like that. Do you have one of those giant white coolers? Maybe try to bend him out straight and place it in the cooler and put a bunch of weight on top of the cooler until you are ready to grill porky

He's getting split and straightened out tomorrow (going on the coals around 10am saturday).

Guy who's heading this up is the executive chef over BB Kings Franchise so I'm leaving that side of things in his capable hands... though feedback/suggestions are always welcome

 

[Tony Jabroni]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

My mom's boyfriend does this with chicken before putting it on the grill to "avoid drying it out." If you need to pre-boil chicken to avoid drying it out on a grill, then you are clearly doing something wrong on the grill. I feel like your average backyard griller is so scared of undercooking their meat that they instead err by overcooking everything.

No offense, but he sounds like a dumb ###.

 

[Tony Jabroni]

We built it.

Grate is 16" above the ground level. Lid is 8" above the grate.

Definitely never was going to put coals right on concrete. Agreed that would be a bad idea. We laid down plywood. Then 2 layers of foil. then some pea-gravel. Each end has a 12-14" wide hole for accessing pans and reloading the fire s needed. It can be blocked easily by a block when not in use.

Coals and Applewood chunks will be going into 4 doubled up restaurant pans so the fire can be positioned as needed. If you guys think it'd be best to put the coals right under the hog then we can do that.

It's a 85lb hog or so. Going to split it for sure.

Coals and chunks in the pans sounds like a great idea.

 

[[icon]]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

My mom's boyfriend does this with chicken before putting it on the grill to "avoid drying it out." If you need to pre-boil chicken to avoid drying it out on a grill, then you are clearly doing something wrong on the grill. I feel like your average backyard griller is so scared of undercooking their meat that they instead err by overcooking everything.

No offense, but he sounds like a dumb ###.

Yep.

Brine a chicken and you're going to have to WANT to dry it out.

Buy him a cheap instant read thermometer and help the poor fella out.

 

[Buckfast 1]

Need to address some issues here with brats. Simmering brats at the end of a cook to keep warm is fine. Boiling ahead of time is not.

If we boil say a turkey carcass in a pot of water, what happens? Does the turkey take on the flavor of the water? In a ways yet, but more importantly, the water takes on the flavor of the meat and makes the meat less flavorful. Same thing happens when you boil a brat ahead of time. You are going to lose some of that tasty fat as it leaches into the water.

Take the brats out of the package, SLOW cook them on the edge of the fire. The last thing you want is a split skin. Basically, just brown them around the outside and then you are done.

My mom's boyfriend does this with chicken before putting it on the grill to "avoid drying it out." If you need to pre-boil chicken to avoid drying it out on a grill, then you are clearly doing something wrong on the grill. I feel like your average backyard griller is so scared of undercooking their meat that they instead err by overcooking everything.

No offense, but he sounds like a dumb ###.

He's honestly about the best you could ever ask for as far as mom's boyfriends are concerned, but he's certainly no chef or grillmaster. I'm always trying to resist the urge to be a #### by second-guessing their cooking methods. However, I was not able to restrain myself when I saw my mom boiling BBQ chicken breasts.

 

[TheFanatic]

Ok, one more thing. You HAVE to skin the pig. I've done it both ways. I did it with the skin on and the pork was terrible with little smoke flavor. I talked to a guy named Mike Emerson who owns one of the top BBQ restaurants in the country and he told me smoking a skinned pig is like trying to put smoke into a football. Very appropriate reference for both going whole hog and this website. Start with very sharp knives or have many knives ready as the skinning process will wreck the finest of blades, but I can't stress this enough.

You can't put rub on the outside of of the skin and have any effect on flavor. The smoke won't penetrate the pig skin. And it will cook a little faster. Go ahead and skin it. Skin that smoke wagon and see what happens!

 

[Guster]

Doing chicken wings on my BGE on Sunday. I've done them a couple times before and they always turn out good, it never amazing... Any tips?