My Wife is having Co-Workers Over

[afunari]

So here's the scenario: my wife is having co-workers over this coming Saturday for a cookout and has asked me to smoke some meat for them. Now we current live in Kansas City, although I am a recent transplant from the East Coast. So there is a bit of pressure to prove myself to some of these MidWesterners!

Given that we have about 25 people coming, I plan on smoking ribs, brisket, chicken/ Cornish game hen, and a brisket. (I have smoked ribs, chicken and turkey breast before with some success. I am having a friend come over to give me some help with the brisket.) I already have a Brinkman gas/charcoal grill with a smoking box attached but am also planning on buying a bullet smoker. (I had already decided to buy one, so this is my excuse.) Here are the different woods I am going to use with the various meats:

Chicken/Cornish Game Hen (Pecan or Cherry)

Turkey Breast (Peach or Apple)

Ribs (Hickory)

Brisket (Hickory or Mesquite)

I am going to brine the poultry overnight on Thursday and smoke it on Friday. Then an hour or so before serving, wrap all of it in foil and finish it on the grill. Early Saturday I am going to begin smoking the brisket, which I will have placed a rub on, along with the ribs, the night before. For the ribs, I am going to follow the 3-2-1 method. 

I do have two questions:

1) Will plan of smoking the poultry the day before and then finishing it on the grill Saturday work?

2) Any suggestions on the wood pairings?

Thanks!

 

[whistlepig]

For me poultry is the most unforgiving meat to smoke. It seems to go from just perfect to dry if the internal temp is off by a small amount. I would think the poultry would be better right out of the smoker.

For turkey breast I like cherry wood.

For ribs and chicken a 50/50 mix of apple and hickory.

I use hickory for all my beef. Hickory smoked beef is awful good.  

 

[forluvofsmoke]

So here's the scenario: my wife is having co-workers over this coming Saturday for a cookout and has asked me to smoke some meat for them. Now we current live in Kansas City, although I am a recent transplant from the East Coast. So there is a bit of pressure to prove myself to some of these MidWesterners!

Given that we have about 25 people coming, I plan on smoking ribs, brisket, chicken/ Cornish game hen, and a brisket. (I have smoked ribs, chicken and turkey breast before with some success. I am having a friend come over to give me some help with the brisket.) I already have a Brinkman gas/charcoal grill with a smoking box attached but am also planning on buying a bullet smoker. (I had already decided to buy one, so this is my excuse.) Here are the different woods I am going to use with the various meats:

Chicken/Cornish Game Hen (Pecan or Cherry) Cherry alone can be heavy for domestic birds, suggest blending both, as pecan has a lighter, more pungent aroma and flavor that smooths over heavier smokes quite well.

Turkey Breast (Peach or Apple) Either or both should be great

Ribs (Hickory) If pork spares, will be OK, if Baby Backs/Loin Backs, go a bit more sparingly

Brisket (Hickory or Mesquite) Hickory is sharp, Mesquite is earthy/heavy, and both go well for stronger flavors of brisket, so use solo or combo...I have used either, and blended...very good. Also have used cherry/hickory blend...very good as well.

I am going to brine the poultry overnight on Thursday and smoke it on Friday. Then an hour or so before serving, wrap all of it in foil and finish it on the grill. Early Saturday I am going to begin smoking the brisket, which I will have placed a rub on, along with the ribs, the night before. For the ribs, I am going to follow the 3-2-1 method. 

You need to fully cook all poultry once you start cooking it. If reheated, it may dry out. Dry poultry or meats are generally caused by being over-cooked, so I would try serve them straight from the smoker.

If that's a packer brisket, you better start it the night before (1.5-2.0-hrs/lb for no-foil, all open grate cooking), then, wrap in foil/towels and rest in cooler a few hours before serving. If it's just a center-cut brisket (trimmed flat) you start the morning of the feed, early (1.25-1.5-hrs/lb).

I do have two questions:

1) Will plan of smoking the poultry the day before and then finishing it on the grill Saturday work?

2) Any suggestions on the wood pairings?

Thanks!

You're welcome!

Eric

 

[afunari]

Thanks so much, Eric, for such a detailed answer. Everytime I come to this site for advice I am always glad that I did.

I am going to follow your suggestions for the wood and meat pairings. Regarding the brisket, I will go with the center cut, starting it at around 8:00 am.  For the ribs, I was thinking of pork spare ribs but will wait to see what the butcher has on hand.

My concern still is space on the smokers. I would prefer to have all the meat fresh off the smoker to serve but logistically am not sure that I can pull it off. Of what I am serving, is there anything that could be prepared the day before?

 

[afunari]

Thanks for the heads-up. Would you suggest doing the ribs the day before?

 

[forluvofsmoke]

Ribs or brisket are good when smoked in advance. For ribs, you can do a straight smoke, then foil after you see about 3/8" pull-back from the bone, rest to cool, then chill. If you want some bark on them, you can reheat beginning in foil (low and slow) then out to open smoke grates or a medium/low temp grill to firm-up the bark for 30 minutes or so. Brisket can be sliced (flat and point cuts) or pulled (point, typically) after resting, then chilled. Reheat low and slow in foil, or in a crock-pot/slow-cooker with the juices from foiling.

Ribs and brisket would be your most likely candidates for a reheat with the menu items you have, and still have a decent finished product to serve.

Have a great smoke!

Eric

 

[cdldriver]

 

[smokinhusker]

You might try spatching the chicken/cornish hens, smoke for a bit and finish on the grill. We do that all the time with game hens and once on the grill, we add some bbq sauce.

If you get the chance with the brisket, you might want to make Chef Jimmy's Au Jus. I made it with my brisket and then slowly reheated the slices in it. Yummy!

Good luck and keep us posted!

 

[afunari]

Expect some on Sunday!

 

[oldschoolbbq]

 

[siletzspey]

Brisket can be sliced (flat and point cuts) or pulled (point, typically) after resting, then chilled. Reheat low and slow in foil, or in a crock-pot/slow-cooker with the juices from foiling.

Timely discussion. I may be doing brisket and pulled-pork for a large group, and was hoping to smoke the meats the weekend prior.

For brisket, can I fridge and then slow-reheat the meat in the original crutch foil and juices? Or should I fridge the meat and juices separately? I'm also wondering the merits of slicing before fridging vs. after slow-reheating. Thoughts?

For pork, can I fridge in foil and slow-reheat in same? Should I pull/shred the pork before or after fridging?

For what its worth, I usually vacuum pack 12oz portions of sliced brisket or pulled pork, and boiling the vacuum pack pouch works great.

--SiletzSpey