Newbie in the Nati

[goaliewars]

Hello all. Tim here.  I'm in Ohio just north of Cincinnati.  I am very new to the smoking world so to speak. I worked for a rib joint who smoked their own ribs on site in a massive smoker and I always loved them compared to the competitors. I began playing with smoke on my gas grill using a smoker box and was really happy with the results I was getting, but I always knew that  needed to take the leap and get a smoker if I ever hoped to reach the level of a true smoke master.  Plus I have already went through 5 tanks of propane this summer and 7 in 7 months.  I know the purists are gonna give me slack, but I bought a dual fuel (propane/charcoal) box yest.  I know more propane, but the option to fall back in my comfort zone if needed made me feel all warm inside.   Anyway, I could not wait to try it out.  I seasoned it and put on some chx breasts and bacon wrapped asparagus yest.  using a mixture of mesquite and apple.  Both cooked a little long.  Chx was a little dry on the outside and asparagus was a little too soft for me, but hey it was my first try.  I did not use a mop sauce which was part of my issue and just not knowing my box yet was another.  And yes, I know, being a newbie was my bigest hurdle, but that is why I am joining you all here.  I bought a remote dual thermometer today to manage my smoker temp mainly since i am not really sure I will ever actually need the food temp, but better safe than sorry I suppose.  So I just rubbed 3 racks of spare ribs and put them in the fridge for the night.  Tomorrow I am going for the gold and smoking ribs, lobster tails and ABT.  Making some other sides as well.  Hope all goes well.  Setting smoker for 220.  Gonna use the 2-2-1 method for the ribs. figuring 3 hours for the ABT and 1 hour for the tails.  Go big or go home right. Wish me luck.

 

[noboundaries]

Hey Tim, welcome to SMF!  Sounds like a great plan and fun times with the new smoker.  Everyone has to learn how their equipment cooks and we all have our share of edible experiments.  Figuring out how you get the perfect taste profile for your taste buds for everything you can throw on the smoker is all the fun!  If you have the opportunity to post pics of your smoke, please do so.  We love those Q-views!

Happy smoking!

Ray  

 

[gary s]

Hello Tim, welcome from East Texas, how did those ribs turn out ?

Gary S

 

[goaliewars]

Omg.Here is a pic of the pile of meat.

The ribs were incredible. They were done a little earlier than expected. About 4 hours on 225 and I was at temp. So I took them off let them rest and then sparked them on the grill where I had other stuff going with a mother sauce. Everyone raved.

The ABTs were amazing. I have attempted them in the past on the grill and they did not turn out. This time they were perfect. Again done earlier than expected. About1.5 hours. I had some non spice eaters so I used the sprite tip for a few of them. But all in all didn't find them that spicy. Will definitely kick them up next time.

Turkey Italian sausage was good, but just paled compared to everything else.

But the star of the show was the lobster tale in my opinion. Others maintain it was the ribs, but I thought the lobster was orgasmic. Slit the top. Smoked for an hour. Half way I put a tablespoon of a butter mixture with butter, lemon and a little old bay in the slit. Out of this world.

Complimented these with grilled potatoes, asparagus, and corn all in the grill.

My smoking was all done around 225 since I'm still working on maintaining heat correctly with all the vents. Used a mixture of 1/4 mesquite and 3/4 Apple. I used a basic mop sauce on the ribs. I used water Apple juice and beer in my water pan.

I am so excited for next weekend.

20140718_191929.jpg

• goaliewars
• Jul 18, 2014

 

[noboundaries]

Fantastic looking smoke!  Mouth watering.

 

[gary s]

Looks Great !!!  only one suggestion, next time you do ribs and lobster tails --------- ( INVITE ME )       Good job 

Gary S

 

[goaliewars]

Gary if you can make it to Ohio. It is a deal