- Aug 27, 2008
- 5,170
- 409
I've been busy with a project this month, and I've finally been able to make some time to post the results, which are aptly called dinner(s). Pork Spare Ribs, Beef Back Ribs, Chix Thighs, and New York Steaks, spread out over the last few days off work, including Mother's Day weekend.
I'm running with no water in the pan for all of these smokes, using washed pea-gravel for a thermal sink, instead of water for controlling high chamber temps...among other mods, of course.
05-07-12 Spare Ribs & Beef Backs
Here's the goods...Pork Spares with garlic, onion, salt, a bit of parsley flake and some ground pepper, and Beef Backs with broiled steak seasoning (fine ground blend of savories and sweets)...playing with a simple seasoned meat, and going for the smoke today.
90 minutes into the smoke...Beef Backs are below...no peeking just yet:
3 hours into the smoke...looking for pull-back:
Here ya go...not real meaty, just a typical mechanically separated beef back rib, and even these were spendy @ $4.49/lb::
They'll still make for some tasty eats:
4-hr smoke and into steam table pans to tent with foil and head into the Smoke Vault to finish for a soft bark and relatively tender rib:
1 hour @ 275* in the Smoke Vault 24:
Beef Back with pork flap meat and thin-end of the slab of Spares I trimmed off to fit onto the Gourmets 15.5" grates:
Just a nice chew with a good tug on the spares and beef backs...nice change of pace and simple to cook. Best of all, they were mighty tasty! The beef backs were a great treat!
05-12-12 Bone-in Skin-on Chicken Thighs
Thighs got a good rinse, and then I shook a nice dose of Lawry's Perfect Blend Seasoning and Rub (for poultry) on 'em, per wifey's request for something simple...had to agree with her and roll with it, ya know...LOL!!! Besides, I want to taste the meat and smoke here...KISS method again. Oh, and my oldest daughter is coming home from college for the weekend and met the wife and younger kids for shopping, so she'll be happy to see me smoking again, too...she's one of my biggest fans...pulled chicken is one of her favorites.
A nice and small, loose fitting load, even for the Gourmet...only 5lbs here with 10 bone-in thighs:
170* in most with a couple just under and over my target...nice grate temps from top to bottom, though they are only 4" apart with the current mods:
I didn't get cut-open pics on the plate, but these were juicy and had a nice smoke flavor. Tough skin though, as I wasn't trying to do any tricks to crisp it up here, just working out mods to the smoker.
05-13-12 Mother's Day with New York Steaks, Taters and whole ear Corn
I did the double-stacker mod for this smoke, with an extra smoke chamber barrel from my Smoke n Grill. I still have grate temp variances from bottom to top with digital probes through the side of the barrel between grate positions and under the lowest grate (240* bot/205* mid/185* top), so there were med-well on bottom, med to med-rare on the middle grate, and rare on top. Popped the rare on bottom of a pre-warmed oval crock-pot, followed by med, then med-well, all in layers. So, we had some for everyone's taste (as I've said a few times before, not everything that appears to be bad actually is) and they went over great, as well as the taters and whole ear corn from the Vault. There was a ton of food there that everyone else brought as well, spread out on a 12ft buffet table, then out came the desserts...OMG what a feed!!!...6 or 7 families at the host's home, if I recall. A good day for a smoke, a gathering and feast to celebrate our dear wive's day of recognition (one of not enough, IMHO), meeting a new friend who is young to smoking (<1yr) and eager to learn and keep trying, and another mod test for the Gourmet...a mighty fine day indeed!
Just about to hit a crock-pot here...close to rare on the top grate:
Top of the heap were med-well at the most, and actually had the juices of a medium beef steak, even after a 3-1/2 hr smoke @ ~230* average grate temps...no water in the pan may have had some effect on this, but I have no theory as to how it could...usually reduced humidity cooking chambers result in faster cooking:
I did find out with this smoke that 12lbs of New York Steaks will not fit in our oval crock pot...they were resting about 2-1/2 above the rim and the lid obviously was useless at that point...foil to the rescue!!!
Russets and corn are almost ready to load for the road as well:
:
I didn't take the digi-cam along for the ride to our friends house and I was very busy socializing and munching on a lot of grindage, but believe me, there was a huge variety of entree items, sides and desserts...you can't help but to love pot-luck dinners!
Until next time...
Great smokes to all, and to all a good night!
Eric
I'm running with no water in the pan for all of these smokes, using washed pea-gravel for a thermal sink, instead of water for controlling high chamber temps...among other mods, of course.
05-07-12 Spare Ribs & Beef Backs
Here's the goods...Pork Spares with garlic, onion, salt, a bit of parsley flake and some ground pepper, and Beef Backs with broiled steak seasoning (fine ground blend of savories and sweets)...playing with a simple seasoned meat, and going for the smoke today.
90 minutes into the smoke...Beef Backs are below...no peeking just yet:
3 hours into the smoke...looking for pull-back:
Here ya go...not real meaty, just a typical mechanically separated beef back rib, and even these were spendy @ $4.49/lb::
They'll still make for some tasty eats:
4-hr smoke and into steam table pans to tent with foil and head into the Smoke Vault to finish for a soft bark and relatively tender rib:
1 hour @ 275* in the Smoke Vault 24:
Beef Back with pork flap meat and thin-end of the slab of Spares I trimmed off to fit onto the Gourmets 15.5" grates:
Just a nice chew with a good tug on the spares and beef backs...nice change of pace and simple to cook. Best of all, they were mighty tasty! The beef backs were a great treat!
05-12-12 Bone-in Skin-on Chicken Thighs
Thighs got a good rinse, and then I shook a nice dose of Lawry's Perfect Blend Seasoning and Rub (for poultry) on 'em, per wifey's request for something simple...had to agree with her and roll with it, ya know...LOL!!! Besides, I want to taste the meat and smoke here...KISS method again. Oh, and my oldest daughter is coming home from college for the weekend and met the wife and younger kids for shopping, so she'll be happy to see me smoking again, too...she's one of my biggest fans...pulled chicken is one of her favorites.
A nice and small, loose fitting load, even for the Gourmet...only 5lbs here with 10 bone-in thighs:
170* in most with a couple just under and over my target...nice grate temps from top to bottom, though they are only 4" apart with the current mods:
I didn't get cut-open pics on the plate, but these were juicy and had a nice smoke flavor. Tough skin though, as I wasn't trying to do any tricks to crisp it up here, just working out mods to the smoker.
05-13-12 Mother's Day with New York Steaks, Taters and whole ear Corn
I did the double-stacker mod for this smoke, with an extra smoke chamber barrel from my Smoke n Grill. I still have grate temp variances from bottom to top with digital probes through the side of the barrel between grate positions and under the lowest grate (240* bot/205* mid/185* top), so there were med-well on bottom, med to med-rare on the middle grate, and rare on top. Popped the rare on bottom of a pre-warmed oval crock-pot, followed by med, then med-well, all in layers. So, we had some for everyone's taste (as I've said a few times before, not everything that appears to be bad actually is) and they went over great, as well as the taters and whole ear corn from the Vault. There was a ton of food there that everyone else brought as well, spread out on a 12ft buffet table, then out came the desserts...OMG what a feed!!!...6 or 7 families at the host's home, if I recall. A good day for a smoke, a gathering and feast to celebrate our dear wive's day of recognition (one of not enough, IMHO), meeting a new friend who is young to smoking (<1yr) and eager to learn and keep trying, and another mod test for the Gourmet...a mighty fine day indeed!
Just about to hit a crock-pot here...close to rare on the top grate:
Top of the heap were med-well at the most, and actually had the juices of a medium beef steak, even after a 3-1/2 hr smoke @ ~230* average grate temps...no water in the pan may have had some effect on this, but I have no theory as to how it could...usually reduced humidity cooking chambers result in faster cooking:
I did find out with this smoke that 12lbs of New York Steaks will not fit in our oval crock pot...they were resting about 2-1/2 above the rim and the lid obviously was useless at that point...foil to the rescue!!!
Russets and corn are almost ready to load for the road as well:
:
I didn't take the digi-cam along for the ride to our friends house and I was very busy socializing and munching on a lot of grindage, but believe me, there was a huge variety of entree items, sides and desserts...you can't help but to love pot-luck dinners!
Until next time...
Great smokes to all, and to all a good night!
Eric
