Hello from Sugar Land

htrisna · Aug 17, 2012

Hello from Sugar Land,

I'm a first year bbq smoker owner (been grilling for years but finally wifey lets me buy the stickburner that I want). I chose to wait to get what I want and not litter my patio with hundreds of intermediary smokers. I wanted something that has the capacity to handle my 40-50 ppl get togethers, as well as cooking for my own family's weekend foods.

Here's a pic of the smoker grill I went with. It's s Lone Star Grillz 48x24

I haven't done any competitions yet, but may in the future when I feel I have enough chops. Maybe even try vending. All my friends and family keeps telling me to go for it, but I want to really be prepared.

Looking forward to learn and contribute in this forum!

s2k9k · Aug 17, 2012

to SMF!!! We're happy you found us! You've come to the right place, we have over 40,000 members and over 800,000 posts so you should be able to find almost anything you want to know. Remember the search bar at the top can be your best friend for finding answers fast!

Would you do us a favor and update your profile to include your location, Thanks!

You might want to check out Jeff's Free 5 day E-course it will teach you all the basics and a whole lot more!

jrod62 · Aug 17, 2012

Welcome to SMF :welcome1:

schmedleyp · Aug 17, 2012

Welcome to the Forum, I'm new too. Nice grill

tennsmoker · Aug 17, 2012

Welcome to a great forum htrisna,

Sugar Land, down around Houston I believe, that sure is a nice grill there & ribs, is that the firebox on the bottom? Have you done any brisket's yet? Tex tradition you know. I've done a few "lived in Ft Worth 43yrs"

Welcome again and don't be shy about asking questions about whatever meat you're preparing,

Al

htrisna · Aug 17, 2012

Hi Al,

Yes, the firebox is underneath the main chamber. I like it because it's much more efficient than traditional offsets due to no loss of radiant heat from top and sides of firebox, and even left to right temperature. It also has 2 charcoal grate boxes inside main chamber that I can use to direct grill or do a smaller cook with ring of fire minion charcoal.

I've done 4 cooks with it since it came in June and here are a few pics:

Brisket: pic of the rubbed brisket with garlic and basil infused evoo and SPG rub:

Spares:

Prime Rib Roast:

Beef Chuck Short Ribs:

Ribeyes and spatchcock chickens:

s2k9k · Aug 17, 2012

Tell us more about those Beef Chuck Short Ribs, They look Awesome as does everything else!!!

bama bbq · Aug 17, 2012

Welcome aboard my friend. Cooks look awesome!

htrisna · Aug 17, 2012

S2K9K:
I talked to the meat dept guy from HEB during a weekday morning when he's not busy, and he found these meaty chuck short ribs still in Cryovac. I got 4 racks (4 bones to each rack, so they're not as long as pork spares cut). I kept the other three in freezer for another day since this is a first experiment.

Trim all the hard fat caps down to about 1/8" unless you got prime beef, in which I'll take em all off to get more rub penetration.

Inspired by John Mueller style, I kept the rub simple, Kosher salt, fresh ground Tellichery black pepper, and added Garlic powder as an extra twist.

When the middle grate gets up to 275F, I put the rack on with beef broth in cast iron pan underneath to catch drippings and make Au Jus (totally optional).

Start probing every 30 minutes once it hits 190F internal until 'hot monkey love' tender

I personally like this better than most briskets.

s2k9k · Aug 17, 2012

Thanks! I'm going to keep an eye out for those, looks like a burnt end on a stick!

htrisna · Aug 17, 2012

It sure is heavenly, cause it's basically the spinalis cap of a ribeye with the flavor of the bone.

The best cut on the beef.

S2K9K said:
Thanks! I'm going to keep an eye out for those, looks like a burnt end on a stick!

scarbelly · Aug 18, 2012

Hello and

to SMF - glad to have you here

looks like you are off to a great start

smokinhusker · Aug 20, 2012

Hello and welcome to SMF!

pgsmoker64 · Sep 28, 2012

Way to rock the beef!! I am doing my first beef ribs this weekend.

Being from Virginia, we are big fans of pork, but the wife said I need to add some variations to my menu...

So, be on the look out for my beef rib Q-view this weekend. (The wife also thinks I'm weird for taking pictures of food, but what does she know)

Edit....

Here is the link to my beef rib q-view. Please visit and check it out!

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/128271/first-beef-ribs-w-q-view

Regards,

Bill

diggingdogfarm · Oct 22, 2012

Welcome to SMF htrisna!
Great looking food!

~Martin

phrogs4ever · Jun 22, 2013

htrisna, any updates on the square smoker? I was wondering how well it holds temps for longer smokes, and your overall satisfaction with it using as a grill and as a smoker. I'm looking at getting one, any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

htrisna · Jun 23, 2013

It holds temps just fine. I love the efficiency even though its a stick burner because of the firebox underneath instead of an offset. As a smoker, I love it. As a grill, I find that using the charcoal pans inside the main compartment I need to keep the lid open, otherwise the fire goes out. So that tells you that the main compartment seals pretty well. However, since it's a gasaketed lid and not flanged like a pipe design, I do get a little smoke leaks around the edges, which while it doesn't impact temp, it does create more work in cleaning and keeping the stainless steel polished every 2-3 cooks.

If I get another one, I'll get a round pipe design, and black so I don't have to polish :)

That said, I'll definitely buy another smoker from them. Maybe a trailer.

htrisna · Jun 23, 2013

I also added a second level grate inside the firebox so I can sear steaks right above the burning logs while not impacting the big meats cooking inside the main compartment.

htrisna · Jun 23, 2013

phrogs4ever · Jun 24, 2013

htrisna, that's all good information and I appreciate the effort in your response. I'm over in League City and figure there's enough options for locally made smokers that I shouldn't have to pay for shipping to get what I want. Since this will be a true patio smoker for me, I thought the center mounted fire box would be nice for space and keeping the hot section away from dogs and kids. I would primarily use it for smoking, but knowing the grilling limitations is good to know ahead of time. Thanks again.

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