Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

So, according to you, "the melting fat cap will not baste the meat", but the meat can absorb the rub? Because "science"? Not trying to burn you, but that makes absolutely zero sense. I will keep my fat cap on top, like I have for 30+ years. Best damn brisket you never ate. Peace out and smoke em if you got em.

 

neither, trim off all the fat!

 

eye sore?! Guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder . And I am knocking on the door of 60 I might have smoked meat a time or 3 in below zero weather without any gadgets LOL. The WSM excells at it IME although a windshield of some type helps when the wind picks up.

Lot of options available, that is why


All are good.

Last week I was kind of busy during the discussion of smoking and cooking wild birds.



And agree with pretty much all of it. Smoking dries most birds out even if you pluck them and who has time for that when your hunting? Even pheasants will dry out some if you smoke and pluck them. Grouse and phez if the breast isn't full of shot I normally use a light coat of a light batter to help keep moisture in. And cook in bacon grease of course. Ones that are shot up get made into a barley vegetable soup. 2 years ago went out on Thanksgiving day and shot this grouse for my Thanksgiving dinner a couple of hours later.



Woodcock can be really tricky to cook, and normally not a fan of eating something that eats worms and anything with cock in the name. However like most game the key is to not overcook it. And don't dry it out.



Sky carp, erh geese never have found a way that knocks my socks off and am fine with sausage or jerky out of it. Ducks broiled with fat trimmed can be damn good (with the right species) again if you don't overcook it.

Was about ready to say that haven't found a wild bird except wild turkey that is good smoked. This week and next week I would normally be in SD pheasant and waterfowl hunting with a few other retired Navy guys but work is interfering this year so can't go. Then last night the Captain sent me this.



Sandhill Crane. Ribeye of the Sky. They taste like Prime Rib as long as you don't over cook them. You can smoke them just like a brisket. Or lightly smoke them with a fruit glaze. They are awesome smoked.

 

The only thing I'll say about the quote on that website is that, while it is fair to suggest fat cap up as a method of cooking, it is a bit extreme to say that you will "ruin your brisket" and it will be a "waste of time and money" if you put it down. That doesn't seem fair. I think it'd be equally unfair to say that cooking fat side up is a mistake, too. Equipment, goals, comfort level, and other factors ought to make the decision for you. For whatever it is worth, fat cap down does the trick for me, but it is a factor that is only slightly more influential than what whiskey I plan to drink for the day with regards to my brisket results .

Or, I could just shut-up and let @Kanyon71 make the point better and more succinctly than I can .

@Jeppa63 , 30+ years of cooking brisket is a hell of a lot of process refinement! What's your experience led you to for a go-to brisket method?

 

Well put.

 

Only thing the meat is going to absorb from it's surface is salt. Everybody else is just along for the ride.

 

@Cold Iron , You have to admit then it sucks using conventional methods in bellow freezing weather. I thought about making a wood burning barrel type with a digi controller thing like yours but it adds up quick. I will some day make one. as the pellet pooper is nice and easy but its just not the same as real wood.

 

Ugly drum smoker!!! The sealed nature of a barrel and the big fire basket make it pretty stout in cold weather. Texas winters are certainly no Minnesota winter, but I've come out to a sheet of ice on my flat lid version in sub-freezing temps and cooked all day on a load. Burns a little more fuel, but once set, it's pretty dang stable.

 

But... what are the pellets made of?

 

And not all pellets are created equal. Traeger brand have very little flavor. Lumber Jack seems to be the consensus best.

 

Just wanted to report back that the little Akorn I picked up for $85 brand new killed it last weekend over my 5 day camp trip. Steaks, burgers, dogs, potatoes, pork butt, everything. I can see why kamados are a favorite as they do it all. I did miss the capacity of the WSM for smoking the butt but did get a 10 pounder on without issue.

Seriously considering a larger one...

 

O M G..........

I do miss grouse huntin' in West PA when I was a kid...........

Utah pine hens are D U M B .............(Blue Grouse)

 

Lol. I hunted them in CO. They are dumb, almost had to kick them to get them to fly.

 

have to just shoot em out of the trees here with a 22....

camp meat........

 

maybe just dumb luck, but Lumberjack is what I'm using. Local supplier $20 for 40#. Competition blend is what I have now, is there a better flavor?

 

That’s totally subjective.

 

Defrosting for mañana...

 

The molecular make up of fat is too large to get into the muscle. Fat is made of oil, muscle is made of water, which oil and water don't mix. Never mind the connective tissue that hangs out between the two, it is made up of water mainly too. Meat prior to cooking is full of water, and is expelled through cooking. I won't even try diving into what collagen does during cooking, don't want to stir up the purists. But what the fuck do I know I'm just some random dude on the internet.

 

I have been exploring a mini UDS for awhile now....

A year or so ago tried Sous Vide for steak when Best Buy had the Anova on major sale during a one day flash sale. I do a lot of steaks on the grill and had a lady friend over that I often cook for. Did a couple of prime Ribeye Sous Vide and finished on the grill with a great sear. Have cooked a lot of steaks for her and she said it was good, cooked consistent throughout, but was lacking something. And we both agreed it was missing the complex flavors that sear and slide or reverse sear gives it. Tried it a second time and she told me to please don't boil her meat anymore put it on the grill with charcoal through the whole cook like it was meant to be done. I almost corrected her to say I didn't boil it but stopped. She was right, there is something about the direct heat and close proximity to the burning charcoal that can't be reproduced by other methods. I know some swear by Sous Vide but my Anova is gathering dust.

I can't help stop thinking that the same might be true for smoking with the drippings burning directly under the meat. A lot of people with UDS are going hot and fast with good success too. 6 hours vs. 11 hours in the winter, hmmm...

My deck is already pretty crowded though so not ready to take up more real estate with a dedicated UDS. Am thinking of adding a Cajun Bandit 10" stacker to the 18" WSM in an attempt to make a mini UDS. Not sure that would give me enough height but think it will be close. Quite a few mention a hot center in a UDS so rotate meat every half hour or so. I don't want to have to do that in the dead of winter so think I could make a heat diffuser like some do. Small holes in the center and larger in the outer edges. Could use a water pan lid already have one and figure drill it up like Swiss cheese to allow drippings to fall through. Still not sure and cost does add up quickly. But have a feeling will try it this winter.

When I lived in Wa. State we used to call Dusky and Sooty grouse (blues) Limb Chickens. Shoot them sitting in the trees and if more than one start at the bottom and work your way up. You get far enough North into the Sunset Country of Northern Ontario the ruff grouse are similar.

Up until about 10 years ago used to take my youngest son back to North Central Pa. to hunt ruffs with his grandfather until his grandfather passed away. 3 Generations of us hunting together it was a special time in my life. My son at 14 was the Mn. State Trap runner up with a 193x200 and is a hell of a shot on pheasant and sporting clays. But still has not shot a ruff grouse. Never could get him to understand that you will not get a clear shot you have to be fast and shoot at the blur through the trees. Now he says that he doesn't understand why anyone would want to walk miles through brush and trees getting torn up to try and maybe only get a shot or two at something you can't see. Hopefully someday he will come back around to it.