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

Got my prime rib thawing in the fridge. Commissary had it frozen because it was near its "sell by" date, and got it for $5.50/lb. Does anyone marinate theirs prior to smoking?
I do not. I don't think it needs it.

I follow Malcom Reed's method. Turns out amazing every time.

Is it bad that the thing I'm looking forward to most at Christmas is the smoked prime rib?
That's not a bad thing at all.

Dad has two beef tenderloins in the fridge, dry aging them. They should get about 6 days of aging before reverse searing.

 
Got my prime rib thawing in the fridge. Commissary had it frozen because it was near its "sell by" date, and got it for $5.50/lb. Does anyone marinate theirs prior to smoking?
Do a dry brine. Heavy coat of salt and seasoning on the outside.
Is there any harm in seasoning it today to cook on Wednesday (Christmas Day)?

I'd worry the most about the heavy salt.

And Fanatic, do you have a prime rib cook on your site, which I love, by the way?

 
Got my prime rib thawing in the fridge. Commissary had it frozen because it was near its "sell by" date, and got it for $5.50/lb. Does anyone marinate theirs prior to smoking?
Do a dry brine. Heavy coat of salt and seasoning on the outside.
Is there any harm in seasoning it today to cook on Wednesday (Christmas Day)?

I'd worry the most about the heavy salt.

And Fanatic, do you have a prime rib cook on your site, which I love, by the way?
I would rub it with whatever rub and then do the salt later. I do heavy salt like that right before going on. And do I have a post on Prime Rib? The Front page of the website is loaded with them. The one with the flame porn, I rewrote and it was published on Sears GrillingIsHappeniness.com site yesterday. I have one where I show how to french the bones . One where I do the barebones basics (the flame porn one), and another one where we glaze it with Andria's. I will also have a video today or tomorrow showing exactly how to do it start to finish. It's long. It was on a stocks show where we did the grilling segment in between talking about investing. I may have my video guy see if he can cut it down to a manageable video. But still good to watch...

 
Wife wants me to do chicken breasts stuffed with cornbread stuffing for Christmas.

I've done stuffed chicken breasts before but not with the cornbread stuffing.

A) Anybody have a good cornbread stuffing recipe(preferably without chicken livers)?

B) Do i just mix it up and let it cook on the grill? (She also wants extra stuffing that would be served on the side. I figured that would be cooked separately)
Smoke 1 lb pork sausage rolled up with apples, a bit of onion, sage and thyme.

Melt butter in a skillet and saute up a couple cloves of garlic, the remainder of your onion and a few stalks of celery until soft.

Mix in the sausage with either cornbread stuffing mix or make cornbread, break into 1/2"-1" cubes and toast it.

Add enough chicken broth to moisten.

What you don't get stuffed into the chicken you can put in a baking pan, whip up a couple eggs, pour over the top and cook in the oven.

 
Got my prime rib thawing in the fridge. Commissary had it frozen because it was near its "sell by" date, and got it for $5.50/lb. Does anyone marinate theirs prior to smoking?
Do a dry brine. Heavy coat of salt and seasoning on the outside.
Is there any harm in seasoning it today to cook on Wednesday (Christmas Day)?

I'd worry the most about the heavy salt.

And Fanatic, do you have a prime rib cook on your site, which I love, by the way?
Here's the link to the podcast where I grilled a prime rib start to finish.

 
Nice..

I'm just curious.. Prime rib is hard to find most of the year and seems to be a 'holiday' cut. Since it's so expensive, what do the butchers do with the cut the rest of the year? I can't imagine they make hamburger with it.....

 
Nice..

I'm just curious.. Prime rib is hard to find most of the year and seems to be a 'holiday' cut. Since it's so expensive, what do the butchers do with the cut the rest of the year? I can't imagine they make hamburger with it.....
Its basically a rib eye

 
Folks were out of town to visit the grandkids so the GF and I ended up going down to our best friends' place for christmas eve / christmas. he's got a new masterbuilt electric smoker and wanted to put it through it's paces so we did just that. In a 24hr span we smoked:
• 19lb Turkey
• 9lbs of Chicken Thighs
• 2 Slabs Baby Back Ribs
• 5lbs of Italian Sausage
• 4lbs of Sirloin Steak

Thing is super convenient and produced a great volume of decent smoke. Seemed a little acrid to me and lacked some of the overall quality of that of a real smoker.. but it wasn't bad. Rebound times from opening the doors were long as well. That said, it served it's purpose rather well all things considered. The built in meat probe crapped out christmas morning, suddenly going from registering 135 degree breast temps to 205 degrees... odd.

Food Spread included:
• Smoked Turkey
• Baby Back Ribs (cheated and used Rendezvous Rub and Stubbs sauce)

• Pinned and smoked chicken thighs
• Smoked the sirloin for a batch of alien mac & cheese
• Smoked the Italian Sausage with Rendezvous Rub. Was fantastic when paired with pretzel chips and Cabot 3yr aged Vermont Cheddar.

• Newlyweds had a TON of ripe Harry & David pears that went into a spinach, pear, toasted pecan, scallion and blue cheese crumble salad.

• usual mashed potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, etc.

Massive feast that came together famously. Great 2 days of cooking, eating, drinking, and just good times. Really is enjoyable when you get 4 people together who enjoy cooking and put them in a big kitchen with time to burn. Girls tag teamed some dishes, we handled others. Awesome.

 
Folks were out of town to visit the grandkids so the GF and I ended up going down to our best friends' place for christmas eve / christmas. he's got a new masterbuilt electric smoker and wanted to put it through it's paces so we did just that. In a 24hr span we smoked:

• 19lb Turkey

• 9lbs of Chicken Thighs

• 2 Slabs Baby Back Ribs

• 5lbs of Italian Sausage

• 4lbs of Sirloin Steak
This is so friggin cool! I'm so jealous.

I met the president or CEO or whatever of Masterbuilt. Such a down to earth, great guy.

How did the unit fair? The guy told me don't leave it out in the elements or it will break down. I don't have a covered deck and don't want to haul it in and out of my garage. But in my next house I will have that and I might have to get one of those...

 
Honestly I was impressed, though I had somewhat low expectations.

Seems quite well built. The on board meat probe therm was buggy with erratic readings. The unit definitely generated ample smoke but seemed a touch acrid. I'm curious to try it again the water pan loaded. I don't feel like it's quite on par with my Weber Smoky Mountain but the capacity was nice as was the small remote control. Seems quite convenient for overnight cooks.

 
[icon] said:
Honestly I was impressed, though I had somewhat low expectations.

Seems quite well built. The on board meat probe therm was buggy with erratic readings. The unit definitely generated ample smoke but seemed a touch acrid. I'm curious to try it again the water pan loaded. I don't feel like it's quite on par with my Weber Smoky Mountain but the capacity was nice as was the small remote control. Seems quite convenient for overnight cooks.
That's what I was thinking. The convenience would be nice.

 
I've used my parent's Masterbuilt a couple of times with no issues. Worked great. If fact, it worked so well I kept telling my wife I should get one to do jerky and sausage in.

I guess she got the message because I got one for Christmas. The 30" model. I'm going to christen it with some jerky this weekend.

 
Anyone tried Plowboys Yardbird and/or Simply Marvelous Cherry rubs for pork ribs? I've heard great things about them but haven't tried them. Can't find them in stores either.

What are your favorite commercial rubs, if you don't make your own?

Any good rub recipes for a sweet taste that is not too hot/spicy you'd recommend?

 
Anyone tried Plowboys Yardbird and/or Simply Marvelous Cherry rubs for pork ribs? I've heard great things about them but haven't tried them. Can't find them in stores either.

What are your favorite commercial rubs, if you don't make your own?

Any good rub recipes for a sweet taste that is not too hot/spicy you'd recommend?
McCormick's 'Sweet and Smoky' has been my go-to for awhile now. I've tried a bunch of rubs and I kept coming back to this one. It's balanced perfectly.

 
Anyone tried Plowboys Yardbird and/or Simply Marvelous Cherry rubs for pork ribs? I've heard great things about them but haven't tried them. Can't find them in stores either.

What are your favorite commercial rubs, if you don't make your own?

Any good rub recipes for a sweet taste that is not too hot/spicy you'd recommend?
McCormick's 'Sweet and Smoky' has been my go-to for awhile now. I've tried a bunch of rubs and I kept coming back to this one. It's balanced perfectly.
Thanks, I'll check it out.

 
Got my prime rib thawing in the fridge. Commissary had it frozen because it was near its "sell by" date, and got it for $5.50/lb. Does anyone marinate theirs prior to smoking?
I do not. I don't think it needs it.

I follow Malcom Reed's method. Turns out amazing every time.

Is it bad that the thing I'm looking forward to most at Christmas is the smoked prime rib?
That's not a bad thing at all.

Dad has two beef tenderloins in the fridge, dry aging them. They should get about 6 days of aging before reverse searing.
quick question about this method. Do you cut away the brown outside of the meat after sitting for six days prior to cooking?

 
On the 1 stage of the 321 for ribs. Been waaaay too long since I smoked something so I threw these together quick. I will report back. They're also grocery store ribs so I'm not expecting miracles.

 
Got my prime rib thawing in the fridge. Commissary had it frozen because it was near its "sell by" date, and got it for $5.50/lb. Does anyone marinate theirs prior to smoking?
I do not. I don't think it needs it.

I follow Malcom Reed's method. Turns out amazing every time.

Is it bad that the thing I'm looking forward to most at Christmas is the smoked prime rib?
That's not a bad thing at all.

Dad has two beef tenderloins in the fridge, dry aging them. They should get about 6 days of aging before reverse searing.
quick question about this method. Do you cut away the brown outside of the meat after sitting for six days prior to cooking?
You cut it away if it's completely nasty. It wasn't. Just darker than the other one. Most people preferred the non aged one. I felt the aged one had a beefier flavor and liked it better, but the majority liked the un-aged one better. That being said, the un-aged were cooked a little less. The aged ones were a little more done.

 
I smoked some thick bone-in pork chops over the weekend, which turned out pretty amazing. I picked out some big thick bone-in pork chops at my local butcher shop and then brined them in a solution of saltwater, beer, apple cider vinegar, and spices. I applied a barbeque dry rub that I made from a bunch of different spices (paprika, black pepper, salt, chipotle powder, roasted garlic, toasted onion, etc.) and turbinado sugar. Then, I smoked the chops for about 2.5 hours with hickory and apple wood chips while applying occasional spritzing of apple juice, beer, and apple cider vinegar. Everyone was amazed at how incredibly tender the pork chops turned out. For some reason, most people seem to associate pork chops as being a tougher and drier piece of meat, but it is amazing what you can do with a brine and "low and slow" cooking over a smoker. Both my brother and wife said they never really liked pork chops until they had mine. Here is a picture of the chops:

http://imageshack.com/a/img10/153/qiqt.jpg

I also made some homemade au gratin potatoes with gruyere, sharp cheddar, and parmesan cheeses. They were a big hit as well and a nice compliment to the pork chops:

http://imageshack.com/a/img844/1520/3i58.jpg

 
On the 1 stage of the 321 for ribs. Been waaaay too long since I smoked something so I threw these together quick. I will report back. They're also grocery store ribs so I'm not expecting miracles.
So fall off the bone ribs?
Yeah.. That method is too much time for perfectly cooked ribs.
Would 2 2 1 have been better? They were not fall off the bone they were kinda dry.
I personally avoid the foil step because as people have mentioned, it can make the ribs mushy and too fall off the bone. I just smoke em for a bit longer. To test for doneness, learn the "bend test" http://www.amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/are_they_ready.html

A "perfect" rib should not fall off the bone. Instead it should stick to the bone just a bit. If you take a bite out of one, only the part you bit should come off the rib.

 
I use this one from the same article.

The twist test. Another technique is to grab ahold of the tip of a bone somewhere near the middle. If you twist, it should start to break free of the meat. This means the collagens in the tough connective tissues have melted and turned to gelatin.
As for the below I use the 2-2-1 and check them like I mentioned above.

Would 2 2 1 have been better? They were not fall off the bone they were kinda dry.
 
Foiling for anything more than 30-40 minutes is usually a recipe for FOTB ribs. I generally avoid foiling all together, but do it from time to time if I want to really infuse the ribs with something.

 
On the 1 stage of the 321 for ribs. Been waaaay too long since I smoked something so I threw these together quick. I will report back. They're also grocery store ribs so I'm not expecting miracles.
So fall off the bone ribs?
Yeah.. That method is too much time for perfectly cooked ribs.
Would 2 2 1 have been better? They were not fall off the bone they were kinda dry.
What cut was it? St. Louis, or a full spare?

I'm doing St. Louis spares for 4 hours in the smoke. 45 minutes in foil with additional rub/agave nectar on top of the ribs and some apple juice underneath them, and then another 45 minutes in the smoke.

After the first 4 hours at 225 the meat has just barely started to pull away from the bones. The foil definitely speeds that process up, tenderizes, and keeps them moist. The last 45 minutes tightens them back up. I consistently get a clean bite straight through to the bone without the entire rib pulling off of the bone.

 
Foiling for anything more than 30-40 minutes is usually a recipe for FOTB ribs. I generally avoid foiling all together, but do it from time to time if I want to really infuse the ribs with something.
1. What is your variation of the 3-2-1 method when you do foil? I've done 3-1-1 and it was good but I thought it could use another 30 mins (1.5) in the foil (all at about 226-230 degrees).

2. What is your method (and time) when you do ribs without using foil? Specifically, how long to you smoke them? first 3-4 hours or do you smoke for the entire cook?

 
I smoke for 5 hours usually with no foiling. They have just the right amount of pull for me but not FOTB.

 
Jayrok said:
bryhamm said:
I smoke for 5 hours usually with no foiling. They have just the right amount of pull for me but not FOTB.
at what temp?
And do you mop or spritz? Straight smoke with nothing else seems to dry ribs out on my cooker.
@ 225-250

I'm about 50/50 on whether I spritz or not. I don't mop. When I spritz, it's usually a AJ/Captn mix.

Even when I don't spritz, they never dry out.

 
Foiling for anything more than 30-40 minutes is usually a recipe for FOTB ribs. I generally avoid foiling all together, but do it from time to time if I want to really infuse the ribs with something.
1. What is your variation of the 3-2-1 method when you do foil? I've done 3-1-1 and it was good but I thought it could use another 30 mins (1.5) in the foil (all at about 226-230 degrees).

2. What is your method (and time) when you do ribs without using foil? Specifically, how long to you smoke them? first 3-4 hours or do you smoke for the entire cook?
If I'm foiling, generally, I'm trying to get FOTB. My in laws love them that way so I go ahead and oblige them.

If they are for me, I will foil for 45 minutes. Maybe an hour.

My standard method is this. 300 degrees, Baby Back Ribs on for 2 hours. No foiling. Perfect every time. Maybe 2.5 hours for big spares...

 
I'm about 9 hours in for a smoke of a pork shoulder right now. Around noon today, the weather in Denver was sunny and nearly 60 degrees. By 6:00 PM, it was snowing with freezing temperatures. Colorado weather is crazy.

 
Today, I smoked a pork shoulder for 12.5 hours using primarily peach wood chips. I think it may have been my favorite thing that I've ever smoked. Here are some pictures of the pork right off the grill and after I pulled it to serve:

https://imageshack.com/i/nb3jeaj

https://imageshack.com/i/ma9qzqj
Is there a reason you use chips to smoke a shoulder? I would never do that, I find large chunks work better because they don't burn up as fast. I'll keep some chips on hand if I want to stoke the fire, but I throw them in and they burn up quickly. You must have to constantly be tossing chips in there.

 
Today, I smoked a pork shoulder for 12.5 hours using primarily peach wood chips. I think it may have been my favorite thing that I've ever smoked. Here are some pictures of the pork right off the grill and after I pulled it to serve:

https://imageshack.com/i/nb3jeaj

https://imageshack.com/i/ma9qzqj
Is there a reason you use chips to smoke a shoulder? I would never do that, I find large chunks work better because they don't burn up as fast. I'll keep some chips on hand if I want to stoke the fire, but I throw them in and they burn up quickly. You must have to constantly be tossing chips in there.
That's interesting. I have generally always used wood chips when smoking, but it makes sense why wood chunks would be preferable for a long cook. I was adding more wood chips to the coals about every half hour or so. I should try using chunks for my next long cook.

 
Today, I smoked a pork shoulder for 12.5 hours using primarily peach wood chips. I think it may have been my favorite thing that I've ever smoked. Here are some pictures of the pork right off the grill and after I pulled it to serve:

https://imageshack.com/i/nb3jeaj

https://imageshack.com/i/ma9qzqj
Is there a reason you use chips to smoke a shoulder? I would never do that, I find large chunks work better because they don't burn up as fast. I'll keep some chips on hand if I want to stoke the fire, but I throw them in and they burn up quickly. You must have to constantly be tossing chips in there.
That's interesting. I have generally always used wood chips when smoking, but it makes sense why wood chunks would be preferable for a long cook. I was adding more wood chips to the coals about every half hour or so. I should try using chunks for my next long cook.
Definitely, give it a whirl. They sell them in the charcoal aisle at some grocery stores, but you'd be less likely to find them in peach. You could always order online too: http://charcoalstore.com/c4500/Wood-Chunks

 
Not sure if it's been posted, but Sam's now has 20 lbs. of lump charcoal for $9.98.

Frontier brand. Picked up a bag, but haven't tried it yet, so I have no idea how good it is. But that's pretty cheap.

 
Today, I smoked a pork shoulder for 12.5 hours using primarily peach wood chips. I think it may have been my favorite thing that I've ever smoked. Here are some pictures of the pork right off the grill and after I pulled it to serve:

https://imageshack.com/i/nb3jeaj

https://imageshack.com/i/ma9qzqj
Is there a reason you use chips to smoke a shoulder? I would never do that, I find large chunks work better because they don't burn up as fast. I'll keep some chips on hand if I want to stoke the fire, but I throw them in and they burn up quickly. You must have to constantly be tossing chips in there.
That's interesting. I have generally always used wood chips when smoking, but it makes sense why wood chunks would be preferable for a long cook. I was adding more wood chips to the coals about every half hour or so. I should try using chunks for my next long cook.
Definitely, give it a whirl. They sell them in the charcoal aisle at some grocery stores, but you'd be less likely to find them in peach. You could always order online too: http://charcoalstore.com/c4500/Wood-Chunks
I generally buy my smoking wood at the Bass Pro Shop near my house because they have a pretty wide selection of wood varieties, including good selection of wood chunks. They had wood chunks in basically every commonly used smoking wood variety, including peach.

I am interested in ordering from some of those specialty charcoal websites online. It looks like they have some interesting rare varieties beyond what is available at Bass Pro. I really want to buy some pimento wood online to use next time I smoke some jerk chicken.

 
Today, I smoked a pork shoulder for 12.5 hours using primarily peach wood chips. I think it may have been my favorite thing that I've ever smoked. Here are some pictures of the pork right off the grill and after I pulled it to serve:

https://imageshack.com/i/nb3jeaj

https://imageshack.com/i/ma9qzqj
Is there a reason you use chips to smoke a shoulder? I would never do that, I find large chunks work better because they don't burn up as fast. I'll keep some chips on hand if I want to stoke the fire, but I throw them in and they burn up quickly. You must have to constantly be tossing chips in there.
That's interesting. I have generally always used wood chips when smoking, but it makes sense why wood chunks would be preferable for a long cook. I was adding more wood chips to the coals about every half hour or so. I should try using chunks for my next long cook.
Definitely, give it a whirl. They sell them in the charcoal aisle at some grocery stores, but you'd be less likely to find them in peach. You could always order online too: http://charcoalstore.com/c4500/Wood-Chunks
I generally buy my smoking wood at the Bass Pro Shop near my house because they have a pretty wide selection of wood varieties, including good selection of wood chunks. They had wood chunks in basically every commonly used smoking wood variety, including peach.

I am interested in ordering from some of those specialty charcoal websites online. It looks like they have some interesting rare varieties beyond what is available at Bass Pro. I really want to buy some pimento wood online to use next time I smoke some jerk chicken.
The problem with buying wood online is the cost of shipping, often it will cost as much if not more than the wood itself.

 
Not sure if it's been posted, but Sam's now has 20 lbs. of lump charcoal for $9.98.

Frontier brand. Picked up a bag, but haven't tried it yet, so I have no idea how good it is. But that's pretty cheap.
Let us know how well it does. Any time I stray from straight Kingsford or lump from my local grilling store I don't get nearly as much fuel.

 
Today, I smoked a pork shoulder for 12.5 hours using primarily peach wood chips. I think it may have been my favorite thing that I've ever smoked. Here are some pictures of the pork right off the grill and after I pulled it to serve:

https://imageshack.com/i/nb3jeaj

https://imageshack.com/i/ma9qzqj
Is there a reason you use chips to smoke a shoulder? I would never do that, I find large chunks work better because they don't burn up as fast. I'll keep some chips on hand if I want to stoke the fire, but I throw them in and they burn up quickly. You must have to constantly be tossing chips in there.
That's interesting. I have generally always used wood chips when smoking, but it makes sense why wood chunks would be preferable for a long cook. I was adding more wood chips to the coals about every half hour or so. I should try using chunks for my next long cook.
Definitely, give it a whirl. They sell them in the charcoal aisle at some grocery stores, but you'd be less likely to find them in peach. You could always order online too: http://charcoalstore.com/c4500/Wood-Chunks
While it can be debated, if you use chunks you really don't need to soak them in water (not sure if you were soaking your chips, but just pointing this out).

 
OK, I have an appetizer for the Super Bowl. My dad made it and it looked pretty good, but I finally made it last night for a live grilling podcast I did.

O M F G!

We call it Pull Apart, Cheesy Bacon Bread. It is so friggin good! I can't even tell you how amazing it was. I'm doing two for the Super Bowl, one for the first half and one for the second. And you can do it in the oven if you want. I just might depending on the weather. Been bitterly cold here for weeks...

 

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