HELP - I am currently making leather

[Negativity Scene]

Hey All,

I have a Masterbuilt 30 inch electric smoker that I have used only a handful of times.
I have never produced anything even close to what could be called "tender", but rather have produced a series of foods that more closely resemble shoe leather.

Ribs
Brisket
London Broil

It doesn't seem to matter...they all come out virtually inedible.

Last night, I thought I would try a London Broil again, since it was on sale.
1.5 pounds
215 degrees
1:15 run time
Hickory/oak blend

Horrible results.

I am landing on either too much time in the smoke, or inaccurate temp gauge.

Any help pointing me in a right direction would be appreciated.

 

[SmokinAl]

Well if it is tough, usually that means it was not cooked long enough.
One hour & 15 minutes at 215 may not be long enough.
Are you going by what the MES controller says the temp is?
They are very inaccurate, you could be smoking at 175 & not know it.
Do you have a thermometer monitoring the grate temp?
Do you have a meat thermometer that has been checked in boiling water & ice water to see if it is correct?
If so what temp did you take the meat to?
What process are you using on the meats you are smoking?
With a little more info I think we can get you up & running!
Al

 

[chilerelleno]

Well the method on the London Broil was all wrong.
Need details on each cook to critique and suggest better methods.

Number one, go out and get yourself a handheld instant read digital meat thermometer for both checking internal temp and probing for tenderness.
Number two, go out and get yourself a dual probe thermometer, that way you can get a true reading of cooking temp and the meat's internal temp.
Number three, start reading some tutorials in here, go into each cook with a proven game plan.

 

[bregent]

OK, first of all, London broil is a cooking method, not a cut. It's used on tough cuts of beef like top round, and butchers will often labels these as 'London broil'. In my humble opinion, they are not a good choice for smoking unless you first take steps to marinate or tenderize them another way.

A few questions:
What was the internal temp it reached?
Have you checked the pit temp with another thermometer?
How long did you run the smoke for, and how much chips are you using?

 

[Negativity Scene]

Gentlemen,

Thank you...I will do exactly that in terms of the thermometer(s) and checking the actual temps (yes, I trust what the digital readout said, but wondered with this most recent failing) and the proven recipes/gameplans.

Maybe I start with chicken and work my way up.

Many thanks

 

[Steve H]

To the OP's defense. A lot of stores call these cuts London Broil. Easy to misunderstand unless you've been doing this for awhile. But, very true, this cut of meat needs to be marinated first. Or cut and made for jerky. Or dried beef. Which is what I did and it was fantastic.

 

[chilerelleno]

Research your London Broil, it really isn't as much the name of the cut of meat as it is a cooking/slicing method to make the cut come out juicy, tender and not tough as shoe leather.

 

[TomKnollRFV]

I'd start with Jeff's 5 days E-course, then start reading over Step by Step's by Bear and Al. Curious how you turned ribs to jerky though..lol.

 

[chilerelleno]

London Broil
Is best seared to med rare/med then slice in thin strips across the grain.
You can tenderize it many way if you wish or just season and grill.
A marinade made for tenderizing is my favorite way to both season and tenderize.
Here is a good one of mine,
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/london-broil-three-stepping-its-way-on-to-my-plate.261015/

 

[Negativity Scene]

And I signed up for the ecourse.

I just finished building a massive pergola, 16 wide by 42 long, and have my grills, air fryer, oil fryer and my long dormant smoker on one end, and I said I am going to be come proficient in smoking after repeated failures (and a year long project to build a house for my mother-in-law)

That London Broil (top round) was my first hopeful step back!

 

[pops6927]

The term: "London Broil" is not a cut of meat, it is a form of cookery - to broil a cut of meat to a medium rare to rare doneness to improve its tenderness. It originally started with flank steak, which, when overcooked, was tough and chewy because of the long, fibrous meat fibers. But, when broiled quickly to brown the surface but leaving the inner fibers rare and undercooked, the overall effect was to improve the tenderness of the cut. Likewise, the method of cookery spread to other lean cuts such as thick-cut top round, bottom round, beef arm shoulder, shoulder clod and eye round split lengthwise, etc.,, the London Broil method of cookery applied as well, to take a less tender cut of meat, broil it rare to medium rare over high heat, slice it across the grain in thin slices and serve with its own juice.

 

[Bearcarver]

Gentlemen,

Thank you...I will do exactly that in terms of the thermometer(s) and checking the actual temps (yes, I trust what the digital readout said, but wondered with this most recent failing) and the proven recipes/gameplans.

Maybe I start with chicken and work my way up.

Many thanks

Check this out. It might help you---All the Smoking is done in an Masterbuilt Electric.
Just click on "Bear's Step by Steps".


Bear

 

[Negativity Scene]

Thanks for the tips, advice and links.

3 days into the e-course and reading the links you all have given me.

It's all appreciated.

 

[Mmattox929]

Thanks for the tips, advice and links.

3 days into the e-course and reading the links you all have given me.

It's all appreciated.

Just remember internal temp is what really matters low and slow for tough cut and just because it says 12-14 hours doesn’t mean it won’t take 16-18 hours

 

[tallbm]

Hi there and welcome!

The MES is notorious for having smoker and meat probes that are just plain off and off by a bit.
I usually recommend a wireless dual probe (or more probes) thermometer like the ThermoPro TP-20. Use 1 probe to accurately measure the smoker temp at meat level and the other probe in the meat to know what the internal temp (IT) of the meat is.

When smoking you mainly cook by the IT of the meat. A number of cuts are done not by IT but when the meat tells you it is tender enough, HOWEVER the IT of the meat is the indicator to start checking for tenderness and to come back every increased degree or 2 until the meat is tender. Tenderness is often determined by stabbing these cuts of meat all over with a toothpic and when it goes in like butter then it is tender.

If you decide to start with chicken I highly highly recommend you start with Boneless Skinless Chicken THIGHS (not breast). Take them to an IT of 165-172F degrees or so. This cut of the chicken is super flavorful an is basically as easy as it gets.
When doing chicken in an MES the skin will very likely come out like leather because the max temp is 275F of the smoker. Chicken skin doesn't behave very well unless you are smoking at a temp around 325F or higher. A few guys have luck at 275F, while myself and others have no such luck at 275F.

I'm sure that once you get a little research under your belt and a win with those skinless chicken thighs you will know you can continue to grow and improve. Heck, we haven't even gotten to the subject of the A-MazeN-Pellet Smoker tray (AMNPS). Besides having a dual thermometer the AMNPS is basically the next thing that almost all of us MES owners have to make life easy!

Best of luck! :)