I missed your post earlier. We just finished up the last of the frozen portions from the late fall, I will throw it it many dishes I cook, yummy.
Didn't do any soups this winter, usually we will make up some different bases and freeze portions for making different soups and stews. It is getting harder and harder for me to find bone in shoulders, I will have to look harder.
I don't care much for frozen brisket except for mixing it in to other dishes but if anybody does pick up a Kobe brisket save all the fat trimmed portion and freeze it, it is almost pure white and makes great greasy potatoes or anything else that requires fat, very rich stuff.
I also have a backyard firepit I put together with cinder blocks. We frequently rotisserie 10 lbs. chicken leg quarters on it (using ronco rectanglar baskets). Before cooking we rub a mixture of mashed fresh garlic, EVOO, and a cajun seasoning we mix up and let it soak in about 2 days. Cooking it generally takes about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, and I baste it every now an then with just water and the leftover juice from the pan the chicken marinated in. I use oak and maple in the pit. We save about 1/2 of the chicken to eat off the bones; the rest we make chicken soup with. The flavor from the pit roasting makes for a great deep taste.
Len
"Coffee leads men to trifle away their time, scald their chops, and spend their money, all for a little base, black, thick, nasty, bitter, stinking nauseous puddle water." ~The Women's Petition Against Coffee, 1674
I also have a backyard firepit I put together with cinder blocks. We frequently rotisserie 10 lbs. chicken leg quarters on it (using ronco rectanglar baskets). Before cooking we rub a mixture of mashed fresh garlic, EVOO, and a cajun seasoning we mix up and let it soak in about 2 days. Cooking it generally takes about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, and I baste it every now an then with just water and the leftover juice from the pan the chicken marinated in. I use oak and maple in the pit. We save about 1/2 of the chicken to eat off the bones; the rest we make chicken soup with. The flavor from the pit roasting makes for a great deep taste.
Yum! Do you have open season for visitors? I have so much to learn, lol. My daughter is a pleasure, my son is a whirlwind of destruction, and I am a combination of the two of them except they are both better looking and smarter thanks to their mom.
Yum! Do you have open season for visitors? I have so much to learn, lol. My daughter is a pleasure, my son is a whirlwind of destruction, and I am a combination of the two of them except they are both better looking and smarter thanks to their mom.
It was fun making the pit. Got the cinder blocks from home depot, made the pit openning about 2 feet wide by about 3 1/2 feet. Stands about 2 1/2 feet high. Opennings in the very bottom front and back (narrow ends) for draft control; I block them with bricks for dampening. I have a stainless grate on the bottom propped up about 3 inches from the bottom. To light I just put twigs in the pitt, and rolled up newspaper through the bottom dampers. (by the way the seams in the blocks are sealed with fireplace mortar). Doesn't take too much trouble to start. Once going I put the bigger logs in. Once of these days I want to rotisserie a little pig on it.
The picture below is of the pit; rotissering bone in pork loin on it if I can recall.
Len
(Click for larger image)
"Coffee leads men to trifle away their time, scald their chops, and spend their money, all for a little base, black, thick, nasty, bitter, stinking nauseous puddle water." ~The Women's Petition Against Coffee, 1674
It was fun making the pit. Got the cinder blocks from home depot, made the pit openning about 2 feet wide by about 3 1/2 feet. Stands about 2 1/2 feet high. Opennings in the very bottom front and back (narrow ends) for draft control; I block them with bricks for dampening. I have a stainless grate on the bottom propped up about 3 inches from the bottom. To light I just put twigs in the pitt, and rolled up newspaper through the bottom dampers. (by the way the seams in the blocks are sealed with fireplace mortar). Doesn't take too much trouble to start. Once going I put the bigger logs in. Once of these days I want to rotisserie a little pig on it.
The picture below is of the pit; rotissering bone in pork loin on it if I can recall.
I have some outdoor plans this summer that will take my time and money but by the next year I plan to build a full outdoor kitchen, really my dream kitchen just outside.
BTW my cook a few weeks ago with the butt and brisket I thought only came out ok. I was challenged with sub 30f temps through the night and not much higher the next day with winds, I was not particularly happy with the results. However my better half pointed out I cooked enough for 35 people and only 20 came and there was no left overs, so it turned out better then normal people's expectations but it still fell short of mine. Still the better half made me feel a whole lot better.
Anyone else feel like that those that know us are going to loose a digit while we slice our meats? My brother at Christamas never even got a plate, my perfect world of eating while i prepare is getting crowded with fingers and grabbers, maybe someone does need to loose a finger so I can slice, pull, eat in peace! LOL
It is time for me to do my first beef short ribs for diner tonight. Just got prepping them, they are huge and meaty, I can eat 1.5 racks of spare ribs, not sure I will be able to eat three Ribs of these suckers.
It is time for me to do my first beef short ribs for diner tonight. Just got prepping them, they are huge and meaty, I can eat 1.5 racks of spare ribs, not sure I will be able to eat three Ribs of these suckers.
I've never had much luck doing beef in the smoker. The cuts I have done were sirloin roast and brisket. Always came out dry. Your ribs will probably be moist due to the higher fat content. Did you use a rub? On TV I watched a BBQ show where the owner of the establishment only used salt and pepper on his beef as the rub; said that is all that was needed.
Len
"Coffee leads men to trifle away their time, scald their chops, and spend their money, all for a little base, black, thick, nasty, bitter, stinking nauseous puddle water." ~The Women's Petition Against Coffee, 1674
The next time anybody here does a pork shoulder, may I suggest giving this recipe a try. It is fantastic! And if a smoking neanderthal like myself can pull it off, it should be a piece of cake for rest of you guys who are obviously more experienced.
The next time anybody here does a pork shoulder, may I suggest giving this recipe a try. It is fantastic! And if a smoking neanderthal like myself can pull it off, it should be a piece of cake for rest of you guys who are obviously more experienced.
I checked out the recipe. Thanks. Looks like it kicks butt ...
Ouch.
Len
"Coffee leads men to trifle away their time, scald their chops, and spend their money, all for a little base, black, thick, nasty, bitter, stinking nauseous puddle water." ~The Women's Petition Against Coffee, 1674
I've never had much luck doing beef in the smoker. The cuts I have done were sirloin roast and brisket. Always came out dry. Your ribs will probably be moist due to the higher fat content. Did you use a rub? On TV I watched a BBQ show where the owner of the establishment only used salt and pepper on his beef as the rub; said that is all that was needed.
I have done pretty well with beef, knock on wood, lean cuts like sirloin roasts I rap in bacon. Brisket I find 1 out of 4 comes out perfect 2 others come out ok and 1 is always dry unless I use Kobi (Waygu) they always come out perfect. Chuck is also pretty fool proof and is a beef version of pork butt. Beef tenderloin done on the smoker with sweet mesquite is out of this world using temps of 275f-300f get it done in 2.5 hrs or less. Tri tip, a sirloin cut, can be done at 225f or 275-300f and either way come out flavorful and juicy with just salt and pepper and oak smoke.
The short ribs came out a little underdone so they are back on the smoker in some foil. They are very tasty but the collagen is not melted all the way, a man has to eat when he has to eat, the wife and I will finish them off in another hour of cooking. I did a simple rub of pepper, salt, and chili powder, no mop. Next cook I will have my timing better and will go with paprika or old bay instead of chili powder.
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