Greeting Everybody. I've been lurking for a number of weeks, gleaning what I can before I did my first slow BBQ the other day. I live in the country in central Oregon, on a high plain on a hay farm. My interest in BBQ and smoking is new, and came about because we moved into a cabin with no oven...I could only eat so much boiled, braised, fried, and steamed food...
I inexplicably carved bbq and smoked food with an intensity I've never had...but, operating on a fixed income of sorts, buying a smoker seems out of the question for now. So, I dug a bbq pit! Picked up a used charcoal grill (a char-boil 22 inch CB model) which I've been using for some smokey slow BBQ, which I love. Hard to maintain heat though, I live in a cold and windy place.
My plan for the bbq pit is to do some smoking! I dug three holes: one is a hole that matches the length and width of the top of my charboil grill, with some stones to support the grate. Another is a two foot deep, one foot by one foot square, and at the top a tunnel goes into the big hole. I made a similar, but larger hole on the other side, it is a little larger and deeper. The idea: an in-ground offset smoker! It will have it's first fire soon. I've not yet figured a way to put tuning plates in, but I don't know if it is needed yet.
I'm mostly interested in Hot Smoking, Cold Smoking, and Slow bbq, but I grew up in Michigan, where direct grilling is king! So, I still love that flavor...particularly on chicken. I'm also interested in learning to preserve and cure meats, but that may be a little down the road yet.
So, I am a noob, even to charcoal grilling, I've only fired up the grill three times now, I'm loving every second of it!
Thanks for all the tips.
Pete
I inexplicably carved bbq and smoked food with an intensity I've never had...but, operating on a fixed income of sorts, buying a smoker seems out of the question for now. So, I dug a bbq pit! Picked up a used charcoal grill (a char-boil 22 inch CB model) which I've been using for some smokey slow BBQ, which I love. Hard to maintain heat though, I live in a cold and windy place.
My plan for the bbq pit is to do some smoking! I dug three holes: one is a hole that matches the length and width of the top of my charboil grill, with some stones to support the grate. Another is a two foot deep, one foot by one foot square, and at the top a tunnel goes into the big hole. I made a similar, but larger hole on the other side, it is a little larger and deeper. The idea: an in-ground offset smoker! It will have it's first fire soon. I've not yet figured a way to put tuning plates in, but I don't know if it is needed yet.
I'm mostly interested in Hot Smoking, Cold Smoking, and Slow bbq, but I grew up in Michigan, where direct grilling is king! So, I still love that flavor...particularly on chicken. I'm also interested in learning to preserve and cure meats, but that may be a little down the road yet.
So, I am a noob, even to charcoal grilling, I've only fired up the grill three times now, I'm loving every second of it!
Thanks for all the tips.
Pete
