Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

Here are the ribs........ they went from my stove to my dads house, where the party is going to be.



His house

 

Has anyone made a smoker out of an old gas grill. I have an old grill from camping/tailgateing that I hate to throw out.

 

Sounds like a busy day, toughtaco! Good job on doing so much BBQ. I'm doing 2 chickens tonight...will post pics later!

 

Haven't, but it surely would be doable. My smoker is made from a keg.

 

Ya I saw that very cool. I figure close all the holes but one or add a stack to the top like yours. Grate the inside one half for food the other for wood. Would there be more to it or is that all

 

That'd be about it. If I was doing one horizontally I'd add a stack on one side, add a thermometer in the lid in the middle and separate off a little firebox on the far side. Drill some holes next to the firebox. I'd start with maybe two 1/2" holes and see what temp it keeps. If the fire stays lit, then you're good. If it goes out, you need to drill another hole. I only have a couple small holes allowing air into my keg.

 

Cool thanks for the info

 

So my smoker will be getting it's inaugural use tomorrow, doing a pork shoulder. Should I put the rub on tonight and let I sit in the fridge like that overnight?

 

Absolutely.

 

we have a green egg. idk how old it is, but i can remember us having it when i was little. so i’d say 15+ years old. i love some home smoked pulled BBQ!

 

Totally up to you. Some people, like posted above, do. Others, like myself, subscribe to the theory that it does you no good to apply a rub beforehand, as it doesn't absorb into the meat at all. But it's definitely not going to hurt anything.

Same deal goes for smoke wood...some people soak it, others do not. Tests have shown that water doesn't absorb into the wood very deep anyways, so you're not gaining anything from doing it.

 

LOL

I usually fold up tin foil and wedge it between the top and the base on my Brinkman. I am in the market for another smoker. Probably a Weber.

 

Pork shoulder I have is about 6lbs. How long are you guys doing per pound? Leave it on the whole time or pull it off after several hours and throw in oven?

 

I usually smoke a ~9 lb shoulder and smoke it for at least 6 hours, 8 is better. For a 6 lb shoulder, I'd shoot for an hour a pound assuming you're smoking around 225 degrees. By that time you have pretty good bark usually, and it's not going to take in much more smoke. After 6 or 8 hours of smoke, the goal is simply to bring the meat up to 190 or so. An oven set at 220 is as good or better as a smoker for this part.

Just fight the urge to pull it during the stall - your shoulder will hit 165-170 degrees and stall out there for a couple hours at least. You will get the urge to stop cooking it. DO NOT STOP COOKING IT. After the stall it'll rise from 170 to 190 in about 2 hours. Then let it rest for at least an hour and then it'll pull like butter.

 

Sounds good, thanks.

 

Good luck man. Take pics if you get a chance!

 

The ribs were flowing over the edges, the top was just placed on the ribs. That is why I wrapped it in foil.

 

I am going to try to get the biggest pork shoulder I can get my hands on for next Sunday's party. I will probably make that on Friday though so I can have it pulled once it's done then move onto the next meat.

 

I've got the very same smoker, My brother-in-law also has the same one, I used his for a party before I bought mine.
The side box is great, I can tend to the coals/wood chunks without having to disturb the food under the other cover. I think I paid $170 for mine.

 

In a related subject, on my first outing using a smoker (so effing green) I tried doing beef brisket. Taste wasn't to shabby, texture was another thing. Very tough, of course I later found out beef brisket isn't for the faint of heart.

The question is, what do you guys do to get them tender? A lot of the BBQ shows the guys do all kinds of stuff, not the least of which is injecting the brisket.
what do you do and be honest is it tender after?