Brisket & Ribs

[scout3dave]

Hey Ten, I got my shipment of Harleys and tried it out on some chicken this weekend. Good stuff, looking forward to cooking a couple briskets over the 4th.

[cctxfan]

Originally Posted by T-Horn

Now that you mentioned it, I do remember hearing that Salt Lick uses a mustard based sauce. Whatever they use is pretty damn good. Do you make the sauce yourself? I'm in need of a good sauce recipe.

Yes, I make it. But I eyeball everything. I start with dicing up about 1/2 a small yellow onion and sweating it down in a little bit of oil. Then I dump that into a blender and add somewhere around:

6 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2-3 tablespoons brown sugar or molasses
salt and pepper to taste

Then blend it all up. You will need to adjust the amount of oil, mustard, and vinegar to get the amount of 'tang' you want. That goes for the sugar/molasses as well.

[T-Horn]

Thanks, cctxfan! I prefer the recipes that require the eyeball amounts, it allows me to get things to my taste satisfaction. I am going to give this a try this weekend. Thanks again!

[cctxfan]

Originally Posted by T-Horn

Thanks, cctxfan! I prefer the recipes that require the eyeball amounts, it allows me to get things to my taste satisfaction. I am going to give this a try this weekend. Thanks again!

Start with about 4 tablespoons of oil - you can adjust all the amounts to get the tang and thickness you want.

[DuvalCountyHorn]

Ten...remember the brisket we made at the ranch before we headed up to the Kansas a$$ whippin? I think I left the remnants of it in my truck for a week under the seat. My summer project is to construct a good sized smoker out there. It's been too windy to fish offshore so I should have plenty of time to finish it before dove season. You need to drive your caddy convertible down here and help me cook!

[TENHORN]

Originally Posted by DuvalCountyHorn

Ten...remember the brisket we made at the ranch before we headed up to the Kansas a$$ whippin? I think I left the remnants of it in my truck for a week under the seat. My summer project is to construct a good sized smoker out there. It's been too windy to fish offshore so I should have plenty of time to finish it before dove season. You need to drive your caddy convertible down here and help me cook!

It is an MB, Duval and it's too hot right now to be driving a convertible in South Texas. Now quail season is another story. Build that smoker and I'll show you some tricks on it.

Hey I remember that brisket well. It was cooked entirely with mesquite. I have to use charcoal and chunks of mesquite. I remember your buddies sending me for mesquite over by the fake rattlesnake also.

[Diverdog]

Originally Posted by TENHORN

Catfish, I use mesquite for brisket and hickory for pork.

Ten:

For pork I like a combination of applewood and pecan. Brisket I like mesquite or oak.

We use mustard on butts and sometimes ribs. I never tin foil unless it is absolutely necessary and that is usually when we are catering. We are in the fire so much that the heat is lost and to speed up the process we will foil (Texas cheat) the meat.

Last week I had the best damn chicken of my life. They brined a half of chicken in salt and sugar for 36 hours. Then they put sea salt on the skin and roasted it. The skin was crisp, salty and the meat was sweet and moist.

One really nice marinade is the Mesquite Marinade from Eastman Outdoors. You can get it at a local Lowe's store.

A great way to cook a pork shoulder is to layer the bottom of a dutch oven with onions, add the butt and a half can of dark beer. Let it cook for 6-8 hours with a third of the coals on the bottom and the other two thirds on top.

DD

[utee94]

I figured there would be a BBQ thread, but I can't believe I had to search back to page 3 for it.

Yesterday for the Cowboys game (ugh) I smoked two racks of pork spare ribs, and four pork tenderloins. My family ate it before the end of the first half (Dallas fans needed SOMETHING good to counter what was happening on the field).

I've done ribs a bunch of ways, but have finally settled on this as the absolute best method. I can't take credit for it, I ripped it off from hornian over on Hornfans.

Here we go

1) Prepare the ribs as you would normally. For me, this means removing the membrane, removing the extra "vertical flap" of meat, and them removing the top triangular chunk of meat that has no bones in it. It will all get cooked, but I prefer to separate those bits from the rib bones.

2) Apply a thin layer of plain yellow mustard to the outside of the rib racks, front and back.

3) In a bowl, mix 1/2 Montreal steak seasoning, and 1/2 Bolner's Fiesta pork rub. Rub it on on top of the mustard. Yes, your hands will get dirty.

4) Let all that sit for 30-45 minutes, long enough for the ribs (which were presumably in the refrigerator) to come up to room temperature.

5) In the meantime, start your charcoal with a chimney starter, and when the coals are ready, dump them into the firebox (I have an offset smoker) with several 3-4 large chunks, or 2-3 small logs, of wood. I usually use oak because it's cheap and plentiful, but when I have it handy, I'll use hickory/pecan, or fruit woods like apple and cherry. I don't use mesquite for smoking, it tends to burn hotter and shorter, which makes it perfect for grilling but not my favorite for smoking.

6) Once the fire in the firebox is going well, I'm looking for 225 in the smoking chamber.

7) Put the ribs into the smoking chamber a good distance away from the fire-- I don't want any variations in the fire itself to affect the cooking process, so more air and more steel between the fire and the food can help even out any potential variations.

8) Cook the ribs at 225 in the smoker for 3 hours. Do not peek. They are still there.

9) In the final 15 minutes of the above cook time, turn your oven on to 225. Also, prepare some heavy foil.

10) At 3 hours, pull the ribs off the smoker, wrap them in foil, and thrown then in the oven for 2 hours.

11) At this point, when you pull them from the oven, they will be EXTREMELY tender. In fact they're very fiddicult to handle without them sliding off the bones. Some people love them this way, and if you're one of those people, then just let them rest 10-15 minutes, and then slice and serve.

12) I like mine a little firmer, so after the 2 hours in the oven, I throw them back on the smoker for another 20 - 40 minutes. Open up the foil so that air can get in all around the ribs, and they will firm up. Since I usually have something else cooking at the last minute, like sausage or chickens or pork tenderloins, it's easy to throw them back on the smoker. If I don't have anything going, then I just leave them in the oven for another 20-30 minutes with the foil open.

The above method is generally known as the 3-2-1 method ( 3 hours on the smoke, 2 hours in the oven, and 1 hour back on the smoke). Obviously, I abbreviate that last hour, because I don't want the ribs to firm up TOO much.

Anyway, if anyone tries out the above recipe, let me know how you like them. I've made ribs a lot of different ways, and they've usually been pretty good, but since I started doing them THIS way, my family can't get enough of them and they beg me to make them far more often than I actually do.

I'll do another post on my brisket and pork tenderloin in the near future.

[TENHORN]

Utee, this method sounds good. I didn't know that the ribs would firm up if placed back in the smoker. One thing, I have read several places that meat won't take smoke over 2 hours so that is as long as I smoke any meat unless I just want to leave it in there for awhile cause I am doing something else. That works for me on brisket, ribs, wings, pork chops, and tenderloin. Because of cold weather, I finish all of them wrapped in foil in the oven.

[utee94]

There's definitely a certain time beyond which the meat won't take smoke, but for brisket I'd say it's well beyond 2 hours. Probably closer to 5 or 6 hours in my experience. I sometimes finish them in the oven as well, although usually I have it timed so I'm cooking several other things toward the end of the brisket's cooking time, so it's no trouble simply to leave the brisket on the smoke the entire time as well.

For thinner meats like ribs, two hours might be about right.

[texhorns98]

Originally Posted by TENHORN

Utee, this method sounds good. I didn't know that the ribs would firm up if placed back in the smoker. One thing, I have read several places that meat won't take smoke over 2 hours so that is as long as I smoke any meat unless I just want to leave it in there for awhile cause I am doing something else. That works for me on brisket, ribs, wings, pork chops, and tenderloin. Because of cold weather, I finish all of them wrapped in foil in the oven.

The amount of time meat takes smoke depends on the temperature to start with. If you want a good smoke ring (the pink part around the edges), you need to start smoking your meat right out of the fridge. This is counter to what you would normally do with a steak when letting it come up to room temp before placing it on the grill. I'm about to try the trifecta this weekend and smoke brisket, pork butt, and turkey all at the same time. I'm using oak with mesquite chips in the firebox. Wish me luck!

[OldestHorn]

Originally Posted by texhorns98

The amount of time meat takes smoke depends on the temperature to start with. If you want a good smoke ring (the pink part around the edges), you need to start smoking your meat right out of the fridge. This is counter to what you would normally do with a steak when letting it come up to room temp before placing it on the grill. I'm about to try the trifecta this weekend and smoke brisket, pork butt, and turkey all at the same time. I'm using oak with mesquite chips in the firebox. Wish me luck!

That will be really tricky with the turkey. Poultry soaks up smoke, so I use very little wood chunks/chips and still get a good taste. Beef and pork need far more wood to smoke well. If fact, I wouldn't use mesquite or oak on pork. Pork and poultry do much better with a good fruit wood.

To get enough smoke for a butt or brisket smoke ring you may have your turkey ending up tasting like an ash tray, especially with mesquite and oak. Be careful.

[utee94]

Originally Posted by OldestHorn

That will be really tricky with the turkey. Poultry soaks up smoke, so I use very little wood chunks/chips and still get a good taste. Beef and pork need far more wood to smoke well. If fact, I wouldn't use mesquite or oak on pork. Pork and poultry do much better with a good fruit wood.

To get enough smoke for a butt or brisket smoke ring you may have your turkey ending up tasting like an ash tray, especially with mesquite and oak. Be careful.

I use oak on pork all the time, turns out great. The fruit woods are very nice for ANY BBQ, but I have to make special trips to get it, when oak is plentiful and cheap. I also like to use hickory/pecan for smoking, it turns out nicely as well.

I do not use mesquite for slow-smoking, it tends to burn too hot and too fast making it more difficult to control the firebox. But, I do like to use mesquite for direct grilling, for pretty much the same reasons-- it burns hotter and faster.

[texhorns98]

Oldest, I've never smoked a turkey, so I appreciate the input. Perhaps I should do a little more research online first. I would think I could pull the turkey and finish it off in the oven though. I've used oak on pork with great success, but I've never tried the mesquite with it. My plan was to use primarily oak, with some mesquite chips for a little extra zing. Living in Atlanta, I would have no idea where to get fruit woods. i think they sell the chips at the local big box though.

[OldestHorn]

Originally Posted by texhorns98

Oldest, I've never smoked a turkey, so I appreciate the input. Perhaps I should do a little more research online first. I would think I could pull the turkey and finish it off in the oven though. I've used oak on pork with great success, but I've never tried the mesquite with it. My plan was to use primarily oak, with some mesquite chips for a little extra zing. Living in Atlanta, I would have no idea where to get fruit woods. i think they sell the chips at the local big box though.

If you've never smoked a turkey, doing it with a brisket and butt is looking like a disaster. For one, briskets and butts are very high fat and respond well to long (1-1.5 hours/lb), low temp cooks at 225-250 with hours of smoke. Turkey, very lean, does not. It's best to use your grill more as a roaster, cooking at 325-350 with minimal smoke (usually your charcoal provides plenty) and 15-20 mins/lb.

[texhorns98]

And I cancel my turkey plans!!

[OldestHorn]

Actually you could knock out your brisket and butt early (start the night before), wrap then in foil, then some towels and keep them on a cooler for 3-5 hours. That's plenty of time to crank up the heat and roast the bird.

[texhorns98]

Just fired up the smoker, actually! I'll smoke the brisket and butt until I'm ready for bed (6 hours or so) then I'll finish it off in the oven wrapped in foil. That should work, I'm guessing, no? I've never attempted to smoke overnight. How do you keep the temp consistent?

[OldestHorn]

Originally Posted by texhorns98

Just fired up the smoker, actually! I'll smoke the brisket and butt until I'm ready for bed (6 hours or so) then I'll finish it off in the oven wrapped in foil. That should work, I'm guessing, no? I've never attempted to smoke overnight. How do you keep the temp consistent?

Three words: Big Green Egg

Best smoker I've ever used. I have a full gas/charcoal grill with an offset box as well. It works fine but I continually refill it. I can go six hours between loads if I do it just right.

With the Egg, I can slow cook up to 24 hours with one load of charcoal at a constant temp. In fact, I've cooked a brisket low for about 15 hours, then opened the vents up and grilled steaks at 700. The thing is amazing.

I'll always keep my big charcoal grill busy with traditional grilling and some smoking, especially large jobs, but the Egg is really special.

www.biggreenegg.com

[texhorns98]

The egg is something I am sure to buy soon. However, that thing is essspainsive, main! If I had one, I'd probably do alot more smoking and would have even more success grilling. 700!? Wow!!