Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

Sharp long blades and big handles for leverage go a long ways, ie: having the right pair

When I was an apprentice meat cutter started out on chickens, everyone does. If you screw up a yard bird not much money lost compared to a primal cut of beef. I did thousands of chickens, or more LOL, with a knife and when I totally break down a bird still do. But when splatchcocking, halving or even quartering I grab the shears. But have degenerative arthritis in my wrists and hands now, so find shears quicker and easier in some situations. My youngest son likes breast meat best so I bone out birds sometimes too for him. In that case I have the boning knife in my hand already so just break down the rest of the bird with the knife.

 

Yeah - I'm not a huge fan of spatchcocking. My wife is vegan so I am the only one who eats meats in the house. So, if I cooked a whole bird I'd have to eat that for like a week straight. I prefer to quarter it and have some options - doing wings a different way than a leg quarter, slow cook and shred one breast and then bread and fry another in cheez its freezer bags are my friend, I usually end up doing the leg quarters and freezing some other bits. And then after enough bits, I'll do a stock. Problem is - I have no real use for stock, I don't make enough soup :|

 

Oh my damn.

 

Learned the paper roll truck a few months ago. Gets the charcoal going twice as fast. The air flow helps pull the heat straight through and by the time the roll catches, the other lumps are hot and ignite instantly. Just sharing for anyone that wants to try it!



edit: it’s a half roll. Fill the chimney halfway, place the roll, and fill around it!

 

12 minutes ago

 

damn. That’s smart.

I just put mine on my side burner and turn it on for a few minutes. Then let it run itself for a few minutes.

 

The wife powered through, said it was delicious, and asked me to never serve food with a head again. @Silverspool, I have some more in the freezer...

 

I guess a whole hog is not in our future cooks for her

 

Just give her a plate and keep her away from the cooking area

 

We chop it before she sees it

 

Or give her the head and say that’s all that’s left. She’s too stubborn to say no

 

We both get a azz whooping

 

She’d save it all until we got home. I’ll have to sign my last will and testament on your smoker table.

 

I see we both suffer from this affliction. But my boys will help me eat the meats.

 

I have a dog that will help.

 

Learn the Oklahoma Joe's Chimney's trick and be done with it...

 

You’re not referring to their halftime starter, are you?

 

Yep.

 

This is free and reduces waste

 

I’d guess a paper towel spool and a couple sheets of newspaper would leave a very similar waste amount.