new to smoking....need some good advice

[jason lebo]

Goodmorning all.. my name is jason and I am from york springs pa. I am an avid hunter and outdoors man. To me the true trophy of the hunt is the meat!! I love to cook and see what I can do with everything I harvest. I have done some small smoking in the past but have gone about it blind with no real advice. I guess you can say that is why I am here. I just but the bradly digital upright smoker and am going to attem a 9lb boston butt and a 6lb eye roast this weekend. Any advice???

 

[jrod62]

Welcome to SMF

 

[jason lebo]

Thank you. I see you smoke cheese too. Any good advice on that? I watched a utube video and tried it and the results were not so good lol

 

[s2k9k]

Hi Jason! 

to SMF!!! We're happy you found us! You've come to the right place, we have over 40,000 members and over 800,000 posts so you should be able to find almost anything you want to know. Remember the search bar at the top can be your best friend for finding answers fast!

You might want to check out Jeff's Free 5 day E-course it will teach you all the basics and a whole lot more!

 

[scarbelly]

Hello Jason   and 

to SMF - glad to have you here

Here is a link to lots of cheese threads

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/f/2166/cheese

 

[jason lebo]

Hey thank you all for the welcome and the links

 

[chef jimmyj]

Welcome to the SMF Family...Pulled pork is one of the easiest meats to smoke. If you can get you smoker to a steady 225-250*F you will have it licked. The night before shmear the Butt with Yellow Mustard and your favorite Rub, I will add a basic one you can try, don't worry about the mustard flavor after the cook it is barely perceptable but it make the rub stick well. Wrap it up and rest over night in the fridge. Fire up your smoker getting it heated and rolling some TBS, Thin Blue Smoke. Place in the meat and figure on 2 hours per pound plus a 1-2 hours of Pad/rest time. You have a choice to make. You can smoke to 165* and wrap in foil with some apple juice or other favorite liquid then place it back in the smoker or oven to finish cooking...OR...You can smoke it the whole time no foiling to the finished temp. Foiling usually knocks off some cook time but you sacrafice that crunchy Bark that forms on the exterior smoking the whole time. You are looking to take the meat to an internal temp of 205*F before you try to pull it. You must either let it Rest on the counter, tented in foil, 30 minutes before pulling or you can wrap in foil and some old towels and stuff the pork in a cooler to rest and hold temp for up to 5 hours or so while you get everything else ready to go. After pulling add a finishing sauce to keep the meat moist and add some flavor and serve with your sides and BBQ Sauce. I'm partial to Coleslaw or Greens and Mac 'n Cheese with a KC Style sauce...

This Rub is a good start if you have never made one. Adding more Blk Pepper and/or Cayenne will turn up the heat. Anything else just ask...JJ

Mild Bubba Q Rub

1/2C Sugar in the Raw (Turbinado)

2T Sweet Paprika (Hungarian)

1T Kosher Salt

1T Chili Powder (contains some Cumin and Oregano) Ancho Chile is same without cumin, oregano etc.

1T Granulated Garlic

1T Granulated Onion

1tsp Black Pepper, more if you like

1/2tsp Grnd Allspice

Cayenne or Chipotle Pwd to taste, start with 1/2tsp and go from there.

JJ's Finishing Sauce

2C Apple Cider Vinegar

2T Worcestershire Sauce or more to taste

1/4C Brown Sugar

1T Smoked Paprika

2 tsp Granulated Garlic

2 tsp Granulated Onion

2 tsp Fine Grind Black Pepper

1 tsp Celery Salt

1 tsp Cayenne Pepper or Chipotle powder. Add more if you like Heat.

1/2 tsp Grnd Allspice

Combine all and whisk well. Let rest, at room temp, 30 minutes for the flavors to meld together.

 

[chef jimmyj]

Jason the Eye Roast is a different story. It will go a lot faster. May 3 to 4 hours at 225*F. You are going to want to measure Internal Temp (IT) and take the Beef to 120* for Rare, 130*M/R, 140*Med and 150* for Med/Well. It is too lean to go beyond 150*F. The Rub above will work or the Recipes below are really Popular. Good Luck...JJ

I mixed this up for Pastrami but had left over and used it on Roast Beef, it was Great. You will need to add 1-2T Salt for use on the Beef. I never do beef without the Au Jus...

Pastrami / Beef Rub

2T Turbinado Sugar

2T Black Peppercorns

1T Coriander Seed

1T Dry Minced Onion

1T Dry Minced Garlic

1tsp Allspice Berries

1tsp Mustard Seed

1tsp Dry Thyme Leaves

3 Bay Leaves, crumbled

1tsp Juniper Berries ( I was out )

All Spices are Whole and were toasted in a dry pan over Medium heat until fragrant.

Let the Spices cool then Grind in a cheapo Coffee Grinder until slightly less than Coarse.

Add Sugar and Salt, if using, and Rub on Meat...

Smokey Au Jus

1- Lg Onion,

4-5 Carrots,

3-4 Ribs Celery

3-4 Peeled Cloves of Garlic

Toss them in a pan under the Beef, and let the whole deal Smoke for one hour,

THEN add 4-6 Cups Beef Broth,

2 Tbs Tomato Paste,

1/2tsp Dry Thyme (4-5 sprigs Fresh)

1-2 ea Bayleaf

Finish the Smoking process to the IT you want.

While the Roast is resting, dump the pan juices veggies and all into a 2-3Qt Sauce pot and add 1Cup Red Wine, something you like to drink, and bring the Jus to a boil, lower the heat and simmer 20-30 minutes. Strain out the veggies and let the Jus rest a minute or so for the Fat to rise. Skim off the bulk of the fat then using strips of paper towel laid on top of the Jus then quickly removed, take off the last little bit of fat.

The purpose of Smoking the Vegetable for 1 hour before adding the Broth and Herbs is...The Smoked vegetables Roast in the Dry heat concentrating their Flavors and Sweetness giving the finished Jus a Richer, Deeper, Full Flavor.

Serve the sliced Beef Au Jus or thicken the Jus to make Gravy.

 

[schmedleyp]

Welcome to the Forum!

 

[jason lebo]

hey thanks for all the help and the reciepes!! got it all dressed up and sitting in the fridge. i will be starting them about midnitght for a b-day party tomarrow for my son. hope i dont screw it up or i will be making a pizz run!!! thanks again i will let ya know how it all turns out. have a great holiday weekend.