Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

I've done frog legs several time. A splash of soy sauce, fresh smashed garlic and a pad of butter wrapped in foil. Put packets on the grill for 20 minutes or so until the are done. You could grill them afterwards to get some char.

Frog legs are good eating but they REALLY do taste like chicken, well about $23per lb chicken. I haven't done them for a few years due to cost.

 

When using the BBQ Guru in conjunction with my BGE there is no fooling or adjusting. Set it and forget it until the fuel source is exhausted.

 

Unless it's crazy windy outside, the wsm holds that temp until the charcoal is gone.

 

Ive had them, just to say Ive ate them I wouldnt say they are anything special just something different

 

Agreed! That is why I haven't made them in a while. Just as soon save a bunch of $$$'s and make chicken.

 

30lbs of venison thing for this weekend's festivities

 

Mmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!

 

They are fishy chicken to me. We used to eat them a lot when I was younger, had them again a few years ago and I was man this is NOT what I remember. Haven't had them since.

 

need some help or some suggestions!

Trying to make a vertical rotisserie rod to hang in my drum smoker. I imagine that two pieces of rebar weldeid to a T to hang from the two rebar Rods on my smoker. Then have a steal circular base plate that is held on by a threaded bolt or cotter pin...idk.

Nothing local seems to meet my needs.

 

I can understand that I have rotisserie for my Genesis Gas grill, Kettle grill, Jumbo Joe and also my WSM. Couldn't\wouldn't want to live without them! Well except maybe the gasser still haven't gotten propane for it. After more than 6 months of being out

I don't think you would really gain anything in a PBC using a vertical rotisserie over their skewers. The only heat source is on the bottom so you would loose the effectiveness of the rotation on the main body mass. If you look at the pictures you posted the heat source is horizontal, not on the bottom. I have the PBC skewers including the turkey hanger and like them. But still are not as good as a rotisserie IMO.

You could go horizontal however and cook over direct coals. The 18" WSM and PBC are pretty darn close in size as is the gateway drum 18". I've used parts from the other 2 for my WSM to build what I want.

Cajun Bandit sells a rotisserie that fits the WSM and might fit the PBC not sure. Think the issue there might be the Weber lid is domed so you have more clearance. The PBC lid is flat so you may not be able to use it. Or maybe able to if you flipped the ring.





There are a lot of universal rotisseries out there you could build one yourself. Not sure I would want to drill holes in a PBC so would also need a stacking ring on top that would fit. Don't know how hard it would be to do that where your at. Assuming you would want to go horizontal.

If you have a reason to do the vertical think another issue your going to have is the heat will be rising on the electrical motor enclosed in the PBC. If your running uncovered then it wouldn't get as hot but still be plenty hot.

Know not much help just my thoughts. Good luck no matter what you decide to do!

 

I get what you’re saying, but the PBC kinda works in more of a convection heating style than direct heat from the bottom. I’ve watched a lot of videos on the al pastor PBC recipes. They all come out pretty awesome but they are using the turkey hanger. I wanna make my own. The recipes don’t get that perfect Turkish Kabab style mold a carmalization but comes pretty close.

 

Much appreciated for the insight though. BBQ is all about expierementing, gonna try and see what happens

 

I don't have much to offer in terms of helping build, but I do kind of share @Cold Iron 's thoughts, though it seems you've looked in to this way more than I have . Good luck with the build!

Turkish kababs....I absolutely love them. I lived in Spain for about 6 months and got really familiar with a couple of Turkish brothers that had a little kebab shop. We were in a small town that didn't have much to look at or visit, but if I ever get back to Spain, I'm driving out of my way to go back. So delicious.

 

Oh yeah very well versed, @Cold Iron is our own personal BBQ Jesus. Figured if I can make this for $10-$15, it’s a worthy risk

 

I'd also scrap the rebar idea. A piece of 3/8" SS rod or square stock would be a much better choice. Not only would it load better because they are smooth they would be easy to clean and sanitize unlike rebar.

I also agree with Cold Iron with your cooker setup there would really would be nothing to gain by simply hanging meat over the coals verses setting the meat on a rack over the coals.

 

Yeah they are good. Pulled into Turkey, Spain (Barcelona), Greece, etc. many times over the years and they all have some great bbq. One thing you do NOT want to do while in Greece is say something like hey how about those Turks? Or even worse that the Turkish kababs are better than the Greek ones. Doesn't matter if it is true or not LOL. The best I have ever had were in the Philippines though. Of all the places I've been to I often think of going back there just to eat some grilled street food. Damn it was fantastic. Hell of a long ways to go from here but...

You give me way too much credit! In any event waiting to see how it turns out and what you end up doing. No doubt that you'll come up with a way to do it vertically. And sure it will be worth it when you get it figured out.

 

Damn now I want a Gyro, that meat looks freakin awesome.

 

I'm started a faux Pastrami two days ago. Since top rounds were on sale that's what I'm using in lieu of brisket.

3.05# Top round (meat was 2" at the thickest point)
3 Tbls of Mortons tender Quick
2 Tbls of McCormick pickling spice
1 Tbls of of some additional spices (mustard seed, whole cloves, allspice berries, 1/2 cinnamon stick, pepper corns) Milled in mortar and pestle.
1/4 cup brown sugar

1. Meat rubbed down with spices and cure.

2. Into a zip top bag and squeeze out most of the air. Put fridge to cure for 10 or so days (flipping over every day or so)

Then:

3. Remove from cure and rinse very well with cold water
4. Cut a slice off and test fry. If too salty soak in cold water for 1 hours and do another test fry.
5. Once happy with saltiness into a vac bag and into a Sous Vide bath @ 135* for 12 to 18 hours
6. Remove from SV, coat with black pepper and onto the smoker for a hot smoke over apple wood.
7. When happy with color and smoke time in to fridge to cool overnight
8. Next day slice thin and pile high on rye bread smeared with spicy brown mustard and a slice of swiss cheese.

Notes:

1. I started out making my own spice blend but since I couldn't find juniper berries I supplemented with pre-packed pickling spice. So really use use spices at about a rate of 1 tbls per pound of meat homemade, sotre bought or a combo.
2. If you wanted to brine in lieu of a dry rub add 1 cup kosher salt to a gallon of water then add spices/sugar form above. Heat until the salt and sugar dissolve. Cover the brine and let the spices steep until brine is cooled to between 38 and 42*F. You can use 1/2 gallon of ice to speed up the cooling. Once the brine is cooled put the meat in a brine and put something nonreactive like a dinner plate on top of it to keep the meat submerged in the brine.
3. Plan on the dry rub or brine penetrating the meat at a rate of 1/4" per day. So a 2" thick piece of meat will take approximately 8 day to cure. I like to add in a couple extra days just to be sure.
4. Always use nonreactive dishes, bowls, buckets etc when curing meats. Salt and things like aluminium do not play well together.

Normally I'd take and post pics of the process but really for another couple of days there is not a whole lot to see other than a top round in a zip top bag.

 

Here’s where my intrigue came to make some al pastor. I think I can perfect on what this guy did. Fingers crossed.
https://youtu.be/Fh-Ifcsks0Y

 

Never a leg. I once did two whole lambs over a bed of coals. I hung them on metal crosses I fabbed, pulled them
Down over the coals about 2’ above. Refreshed the coals from a barrel I had going as needed, and cooked them for probably 3-4 hours. I was asked to do it in this manner for a friends wedding. We threw some plastic down on a flat bed 3/4 ton truck, put the whole cooked lambs on it, and just pulled, chopped, and cut the meat off to “order”. It was good. No leftovers from the two whole lambs with only 30 people in attendance.