My eyes are fine. And I know enough about smoke rings, amongst that being, for example, that a smoke ring cannot be tasted.
My point was that "visually appealing'" goes a long way when it comes to the adjective; "appetizing".
I don't eat cutting boards and so how much fat is left on a cutting board, doesn't matter to me either. It''s how much juiciness I can actually see within the meat itself.
But all of that said, as long as he's happy with the way it turned out, great.
Hot and fast is not for me though, for exactly the reasons I see in the pics, although I appreciate his post.
To large extent, the adage; “we eat with our eyes” rings true.
Chefs know it, food photographers know it, those who do advertising and marketing for restaurants, resorts, even fast food restaurants know it.
Hot and fast may result in food that tastes ok, but I don't eat with a blindfold on and so from a visual standpoint, the pot roast look, that I typically see in “hot and fast” results, and which the poster actually alludes to with regard to the flat in his “pro” vs “con” breakdown, that pot roast look, just doesn’t do it for me.
Each to his own.
I think you need to get your eyes checked and learn a bit more about smoke rings.
My eyes tell me that the cutting board doesn't lie, not with all that juicy goodness all over it, and the sliced pic honestly doesn't look dry to me either.
You can have great smoked meat without a smoke ring, a smoke ring is just an aesthetic plus, nothing to do with overall flavor/smokiness.
Just a secondary chemical reaction.
Low-n-Slow is indeed tried and true.
But so is Hot-n-Fast and Extreme Hot-n-Fast.
I know, I've mastered the methods and will never again have to baby sit a long 20-24 hour brisket smoke.
Perfect briskets, juicy with nice smoke flavor, smoke ring and done in about 6-7 hours.
