BBQ

[ChicagoTroy]

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This is kind of a lame quesion, how scientific are you with everything? usually when I bbq, I just light a fire, check the temp once in awhile of the meat, and thats about it. do you write down recipes, figure out all your cooking times, do everything the same everytime you cook, etc.

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I don't always log everything, and it [censored] me up sometimes. Logging makes things easier if you don't cook a specific thing very often.

I have a remote thermometer I can check that tells me where the pit and food temps are. Otherwise I'd have to go out and keep checking the smoker, which isn't fun.

Beyond that, Q doesn't lend itself that well to scientific cooking. As the connective tissues render in shoulder and brisket, you can hit temperature plateaus that can last an hour before the meat temp goes up any higher. Typically that means you time butt and brisket to be ready at least three hours early, then wrap it in foil, a towel, and stick it in a cooler.

As far as rubs, I tend to use specific recipe ones before I start changing things around. Paul Kirk has a book full of them. OTOH, my brother's a chef and I live with him. We were putting a turkey on and he mixed up a rub on the fly and it was good.

I do try to predict cooking times simply because with something that takes 12-16 hrs. you have to be home when it's done and if you need to turn or baste it.

Only other thing I tend to stand by is I don't cook brisket or butt much over 225, and I never cook poultry under 260, because the skin gets tough and rubbery (unless I'm making pulled chicken, and then it doesn't matter), and lean meats can dry out if you slow cook them without brining.

On that WSM page, the Renowned Mr. Brown is an excellent butt recipe, and very forgiving. It would be a good choice for your first long cook.

[ChicagoTroy]

We should have a Two Plus Que party.

[guids]

Im getting BBQ for dinner tonight. I hope you are all happy with yourselves.


http://www.bandanasbbq.com/PDF/BandanasCarryoutMenu.pdf

[Colt McCoy]

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Im getting BBQ for dinner tonight. I hope you are all happy with yourselves.


http://www.bandanasbbq.com/PDF/BandanasCarryoutMenu.pdf

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Please find something better than Bandanas, quids. That place is rank.

[guids]

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[ QUOTE ]
Im getting BBQ for dinner tonight. I hope you are all happy with yourselves.


http://www.bandanasbbq.com/PDF/BandanasCarryoutMenu.pdf

[/ QUOTE ]

Please find something better than Bandanas, quids. That place is rank.

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Ive actually never been there, in fact, wow, I dont think Ive ever had any take out BBQ. Anyone have any suggestions, Im in st. louis, in the city.

[AquaSwing]

[ QUOTE ]
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[ QUOTE ]
Im getting BBQ for dinner tonight. I hope you are all happy with yourselves.


http://www.bandanasbbq.com/PDF/BandanasCarryoutMenu.pdf

[/ QUOTE ]

Please find something better than Bandanas, quids. That place is rank.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ive actually never been there, in fact, wow, I dont think Ive ever had any take out BBQ. Anyone have any suggestions, Im in st. louis, in the city.

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It's tough now that Bandanas is the only big player in town. I used to love Super Smokers but they folded shop a year ago and one of the three partners recently reopened up the Eureka store but as they say, it's not the same.

I do have a source for the SuperSmokers dry rub for ribs, butt, and brisket and it's fantastic.

When I do pulled pork I follow Alton Brown's basic recipe but substitue my own dry rub. I think the brining is key. I use the Brinkmann bullet smoker and kingsford with apple, cherry, or peach wood that has been soaked. I use lump for all of my grilling but I feel it's much easier to control the heat with the kingsford. I try to keep the temp around 225 and let it cook to 165 which is the better part of 12 hours. Getting up at 5am to fire up the smoker is always so fun. Once it's done I let the thing sit for 30-60 minutes.

[RunDownHouse]

KKF,

There's plenty of sauce recipes listed all over the web, including those sites linked in this thread. Making a good BBQ sauce is really not that hard. Making one so good that people will buy it - in addition to the dedication to cooking, etc - is what earns the money.

[guids]

Aqua

I went to smoking Al's, its on hampton near 40, it was actualyl pretty damb good, I got some brisket, and some pulled chicken, ate half of each, chicken could have been a little better, but the brisket was v good.

[Golden_Rhino]

My family is from Argentina, so I try to have asado on a regular basis. Asado is basically short ribs grilled on a wood flame. As far as seasoning goes, we only put a lot of salt on the meat (but it's not that bad because the bone soaks most of it up). You have the option of adding a chimichurri sauce at the table once the meat is served. I try to have asado every week in the summer, and as soon as I'm done, I look forward to the next week.