Just got my first smoker

[*michaelsean*]

(05-27-2021, 10:09 AM)XenoMorph Wrote: Rural king is kinda like Super Country Walmart lol    minus the groceries..

I live in Lebanon

Well it will be something to do Saturday. Kind of looking forward to it.

[WeezyBengal]

(05-26-2021, 09:00 AM)Sled21 Wrote: I bought the Heath Riles Competition Rib Package.


I picked it up to try his rib recipe, but sold my smoker before I got a chance to do them. It'll be probably 4-5 more weeks until the new smoker gets picked up.  I did, however, use some of the stuff to make one of his meatloafs the day before the smoker got picked up, and it was off the hook good. I really like his stuff. 

Let me know how this is. I've been wanting to get Heath's rub (using meat church now, not a huge fan). 

[*Nate (formerly eliminate08)*]

Good stuff, was just down at the gun store yesterday and they were selling Green Mountain Grills but they wanted like 900 bucks
for one. I am waiting a bit and hope the price goes down. Love this thread, very informational. The Traeger's are just way out of
my price range now at 1,200 bucks plus.

[WeezyBengal]

(05-28-2021, 02:47 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: Good stuff, was just down at the gun store yesterday and they were selling Green Mountain Grills but they wanted like 900 bucks
for one. I am waiting a bit and hope the price goes down. Love this thread, very informational. The Traeger's are just way out of
my price range now at 1,200 bucks plus.

GMG just did a redesign of their grills. Think I picked up mine for around $700 from Watsons. See if they have them online. 

Just did a brisket flat tonight. It's in the cooler resting now. I'll post pics later if anyone gives a shit. 

[*Nate (formerly eliminate08)*]

(05-28-2021, 08:33 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: GMG just did a redesign of their grills. Think I picked up mine for around $700 from Watsons. See if they have them online. 

Just did a brisket flat tonight. It's in the cooler resting now. I'll post pics later if anyone gives a shit. 

Awesome Weezy, thanks and anyone with a brain gives a shit. Love the pics man.

[MileHighGrowler]

(05-28-2021, 08:33 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: GMG just did a redesign of their grills. Think I picked up mine for around $700 from Watsons. See if they have them online. 

Just did a brisket flat tonight. It's in the cooler resting now. I'll post pics later if anyone gives a shit. 

I'd go so far as to give two shits if I got a slice... 

I did some baby back ribs about a month ago.  Smoked them and glazed them with an Asian-style sauce I made.  They were super tasty, sticky and messy.  I haven't had a chance to smoke again since, because the weather seems to want to rain every single weekend here now which is putting a real damper on my plans.  I've got spare ribs, brisket and pork butts in my freezer just waiting for the weather to ease up! 

[*michaelsean*]

I have seen let alone been to a Rural King. What I pictured was like a big country store. Maybe a log cabin look with all sorts of country things for sale. A country Williams Sonoma. Then maybe a large covered outdoor area with all things livestock. What I got was like a giant truck stop on steroids. If giant truck stops had livestock feed and ten troughs of live chicks. I enjoyed wandering around and I did get what I went there for.

[WeezyBengal]

Here's a pic of the flat I did. It was the first time I did a flat only and not an entire brisket. I was actually disappointed with how it turned out. It was dry and not tender. I covered it in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, meat church holy cow, and then TX brisket rub from killer hogs. I cooked it unwrapped 250 degrees until it hit 160, wrapped it in butcher paper and beef broth and put it back in until it hit 200 degrees. Everything was great except again, it just wasn't tender and juicy. I'm not sure what happened. It was a choice cut so there wasn't a ton of fat marbled throughout it and it didnt have the fatty point attached to keep it moist. Maybe doing a flat alone is just a tough one to master. Maybe next time I will put a water pan in to add some humidity.

[*michaelsean*]

(05-31-2021, 09:34 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: Here's a pic of the flat I did. It was the first time I did a flat only and not an entire brisket. I was actually disappointed with how it turned out. It was dry and not tender. I covered it in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, meat church holy cow, and then TX brisket rub from killer hogs. I cooked it unwrapped 250 degrees until it hit 160, wrapped it in butcher paper and beef broth and put it back in until it hit 200 degrees. Everything was great except again, it just wasn't tender and juicy. I'm not sure what happened. It was a choice cut so there wasn't a ton of fat marbled throughout it and it didnt have the fatty point attached to keep it moist. Maybe doing a flat alone is just a tough one to master. Maybe next time I will put a water pan in to add some humidity.

From a beginner: Maybe needed to go higher in the temp. As for being dry, the flat is kinda dry.

[Sled21]

(05-31-2021, 09:34 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: Here's a pic of the flat I did. It was the first time I did a flat only and not an entire brisket. I was actually disappointed with how it turned out. It was dry and not tender. I covered it in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, meat church holy cow, and then TX brisket rub from killer hogs. I cooked it unwrapped 250 degrees until it hit 160, wrapped it in butcher paper and beef broth and put it back in until it hit 200 degrees. Everything was great except again, it just wasn't tender and juicy. I'm not sure what happened. It was a choice cut so there wasn't a ton of fat marbled throughout it and it didnt have the fatty point attached to keep it moist. Maybe doing a flat alone is just a tough one to master. Maybe next time I will put a water pan in to add some humidity.

I can't see the pics you posted, but I've cooked many flats without the point, and I'm going say if you pulled it at 200 internal, you probably did not get it done. Did it probe tender? All briskets are different, and you can't cook to temperature. I've pulled some off at 205, and have had many I've had to take to 212 to get tender. Also, how long did you let it rest before carving? 

[WeezyBengal]

(06-01-2021, 10:09 AM)Sled21 Wrote: I can't see the pics you posted, but I've cooked many flats without the point, and I'm going say if you pulled it at 200 internal, you probably did not get it done. Did it probe tender? All briskets are different, and you can't cook to temperature. I've pulled some off at 205, and have had many I've had to take to 212 to get tender. Also, how long did you let it rest before carving? 

I usually always probe but I wrapped this one pretty heavily and had trouble getting the probe in so I just said **** it. I let it rest in a cooler for about an hour and a half. 

This may be why it wasn't tender. But in theory wouldnt it still be dry the longer it goes? 

[*michaelsean*]

(06-01-2021, 11:20 AM)WeezyBengal Wrote: I usually always probe but I wrapped this one pretty heavily and had trouble getting the probe in so I just said **** it. I let it rest in a cooler for about an hour and a half. 

This may be why it wasn't tender. But in theory wouldnt it still be dry the longer it goes? 

Moisture isn’t water. It’s rendered fat and collagen. It has to get to a certain temp for that to happen. Something like that.

[Sled21]

(06-01-2021, 11:39 AM)michaelsean Wrote: Moisture isn’t water. It’s rendered fat and collagen. It has to get to a certain temp for that to happen. Something like that.

Rght. I don't think you got it rendered all the way and let the meat loosen up. That leads to a brisket that instinct would tell you was tough and dry because it was overcooked when in reality it isn't cooked long enough. Try it again and let it stay on until it probes tender, no matter what the thermometer says, rest it a couple of hours, and I think your results will be much better.

[*michaelsean*]

My wife has been on me to make pulled chicken, so I broke down and bought a couple of chickens, watched a couple of videos and smoked and pulled them. And wtf? As useless if not moreso than I imagined. What a stupid dumb useless endeavor. It might have been a little better, but I think the skin was overcooked so I couldn't include that to add some flavor, but still.

[MileHighGrowler]

(06-28-2021, 10:32 AM)michaelsean Wrote: My wife has been on me to make pulled chicken, so I broke down and bought a couple of chickens, watched a couple of videos and smoked and pulled them.  And wtf?  As useless if not moreso than I imagined.  What a stupid dumb useless endeavor.  It might have been a little better, but I think the skin was overcooked so I couldn't include that to add some flavor, but still.

Was it because she was curious or was it a healthier choice?  I've never done smoked pulled chicken, but I've had it when people have made it in a crockpot and it's always soooo dry, even cooking in sauce.  There's just so little fat in there. 

Did you brine the birds (wet or dry) before smoking? 

[*michaelsean*]

(06-28-2021, 11:52 AM)MileHighGrowler Wrote: Was it because she was curious or was it a healthier choice?  I've never done smoked pulled chicken, but I've had it when people have made it in a crockpot and it's always soooo dry, even cooking in sauce.  There's just so little fat in there. 

Did you brine the birds (wet or dry) before smoking? 

I have no idea why she wanted it. I didn’t brine, but it was plenty juicy. Just bland. I sauced it up in the pan which I don’t do with pork. Plus chicken like that always make me nervous because there’s always little gobbets of something unknown in there. Probably would have been decent eating it like a chicken, but still not all that exciting.

[fredtoast]

(06-28-2021, 10:32 AM)michaelsean Wrote:  It might have been a little better, but I think the skin was overcooked so I couldn't include that to add some flavor, but still.

Seems like all the flavor would be in the skin.

is it possible to smoke skinless chicken?

[*michaelsean*]

(06-28-2021, 12:14 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Seems like all the flavor would be in the skin.

is it possible to smoke skinless chicken?

That’s pretty much the problem, and I’m sure some people are good enough to cook it perfectly so it maybe crumbles or something, but I’m sure not.

[*michaelsean*]

Yeah I suppose you could smoke skinless breasts. That might actually be smarter for pulled chicken flavor wise as the rub would now be mixed in. Might be dry, but at least it would have flavor.

[fredtoast]

(06-28-2021, 12:44 PM)michaelsean Wrote: That’s pretty much the problem, and I’m sure some people are good enough to cook it perfectly so it maybe crumbles or something, but I’m sure not.

Maybe if you had just pulled it harder and faster it would have been "jerked" chicken.