Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

Yea. Gloves, wiped down everything when we got home, washed every fruit. Washed hands. Sucks but it’s what we all have to do right now. Wife and I are both in healthcare and in close contact with patients everyday so we have been extra careful. Yes this virus is a scary one. Y’all be safe also.

 

Might have told you this before but I am so old that after I retied from the Navy one of the owners of the company that I worked for in Asheville, NC was John Adams. 2 times President of PMI. At that time he was the only PhD in project management in the world at WNC. If you wanted a Masters or PhD in PM you had to go through him..

Was a whirlwind of change back then and computer changes from the main and mid frames to client server. And then John asked me to help him with a core change out on a contract that he won on a reactor. The only Engineer that really understood the full impact was in South Africa. It was the same time that Intel Net Meeting, Citrix and Microsoft were all fighting about licensing from Windows 3.51 to Windows 4.0 and which protocols to use. If you work from home today then it has an impact on you.

I helped make the core replacement happen with video conferencing with the Engineer in South Africa, I'm the kind of the guy they always have kept in the basement and open the door and throw a bone once in awhile and maybe a little sunlight LOL. Oh it can't be done? Hold my beer and watch this.. Although there are always limitations of technology and licensing etc.

Both our personal and technical Unit Heads retired in the last 2 months and the PM on our team who is half my age got the position of both of them. When we talk he always smiles and says Michael in a drawn out voice. We get along great and have a long history together a lot of me dong the impossible. I have nothing against PM's but would be wrong of me to not pick on them Now that Jesse is a Unit Head I would never do it in front of others however.

 

Have not told me that. Very cool!

 

I didn't even realize this was even a thread until today! I picked up a Pit Boss Copperhead 5 series in late January and have loved every second of it.

 

Same sitch here. I've worked from home for over a decade, and that means no two legged coworkers. That has changed...

 

You should change your avatar here to a head shot.

 

LOL. Excuse me I believe you have my stapler...

 

Looks like you crashed a buck bachelor party....with a rifle.

 

Has anyone found a good price on a campchef ftg600 recently?

 

Just some “boneless” ribs on the chimney.

 

Not sure about your background but found out recently that Camp Chef gives military veterans a 25% discount and free shipping. On a bird hunting forum of all places LOL. You call them and upload your DD214 to the link they provide after you contact them and then they can set you up for the discount. Outside of that no idea but it is enough that it made me go look at what they have to offer.

 

They have some stuff on GovX as well.

 

That's awesome

 

I made chili with some leftover brisket the other day. Not the best I have ever made, but mostly because it was just a quickie chili I threw together, but it was pretty damn good. I will definitely use brisket for my protein again.

Just get a pack of cheap cotton glove liners. That is all you need.

 

Fellas, long time no see. I've been busy with work and what have you and have just been skimming and checking in the last few months, hope everyone is surviving this quarantine the best they can. I need some help/advice/reassurance here:

On my last restock the supplies food run, Kroger had whole packer briskets for 1.99/lb so despite my hit or miss history with them I grabbed a 15 lber. I got it trimmed up and rubbed down (with On Point of course, thanks @bvbull200 ) and put it on the egg around 11 pm.



I had loaded the egg up with lump and a few chunks of hickory, and let it settle in around 230* or so for about 45 min to an hour. We've had a lump shortage around here due to Covid-19, so the only thing I could get my hands on was two big bags of the BGE branded lump, which I probably haven't used since I got the egg 8 years ago. I noticed it was taking a lot more air up top and down low to stay locked in at 230 than I am used to, but I chalked it up to different lump burning differently.

I stayed up sitting under the pavilion by the smoker and listening to Tyler Childers and imbibing in some beverages and what not until around 1 am (as I told the wife, just to make sure the temp stays locked in), relaxing from a long week of remote working (which seems to have me working more than normal unfortunately). Temp was holding steady on the egg around 225, dome temp read about the same. Still thought it was funny that it needed that much air but left it alone and went to bed. I took the remote for my maverick with me, but forgot to turn on alarms (I may not have heard it anyhow because the smoker is so far from the house I have to leave the remote in the kitchen by the window for it to connect).



Woke up around 7 am and checked the remote - meat probe read 201 (thick part of the flat) and ambient read 325. Dammit. I went out, choked it down, and probed a few places with my therma pop. probing from 190-201 in different spots, definitely not butter probes. Decided to knock it down to 215 dome temp and wait 30 min. Came back out, temps probing about the same, but a little softer probes. It had shortened up a bit too with the cook, so I took it off the rib rack I had it draped over (to keep it all indirect over the platesetter) and set it flat. Had a nice bendy feel to it when I moved it, not to wobbly yet though. Probed the point out of curiosity, not like butter, and around 195. Whole thing still had nice, moist bark, (I had refilled water pan at 7) so wasn't crispy or anything.

Decided instead of googling anything, I'd lean on my very limited brisket knowledge instead. I wrapped in HD foil, poured in some water and beef broth, and put it back on the smoker (foil torn around the probe so it didn't affect it). I waited 30 min, went back out and checked. Now the meat was only reading 190 (same damn spot in the flat). probed, still not done based on feel of probe. New plan, moved it to the oven still wrapped, left at 240. This way I can keep the remote with me down in my new home office in the basement and it will work.

Now, 9:23 am, and internal temp says 183. Checked with therma pop, confirms.

What the hell, and what should I do. Just keep probing for feel every 30 min or so? or let it ride back up to around 195 IT and then start checking again. I really don't want to be left with no usable flat and just the point. I was planning on separating when the flat was done and cubing all or most of the point.

 

Smoked some pork and brisket on my off day yesterday. Pork came out great as usual but the brisket was slightly undercooked. I could have gone another hour in the smoker but still has great flavor due to @bvbull200 and On Point!! Vacuumed sealed most of it to freeze for later.

 

Are those vacuum sealed containers? If so, how long does the pork stay good when sealed up?

 

If you vacuum seal it and keep it in the fridge it can last up to 2 weeks.. ( depends on the fridge temp etc) if you freeze it after vacuum sealing it it can last 3-6 months in the freezer..

I tend to package them in 1 pound packages and I can take one out of the freezer, into a pot and cover with water then bring to a boil and it thaws it out and heats it all up.. makes for quick meals especially on a work night. Once at a boil I let it simmer for a 5-10 minutes to make sure it's heated all the way through. The more uniform shape the better they reheat.. if it's a giant clump at one end then it tends to take more effort. Keep it simple!

 

Thanks!

 

Rural King has them for $299.99 I just sold one.