Richtee Posted April 18, 2009 Author Posted April 18, 2009 Well here it is folks... the Smoker Bag! http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/SBag1.jpg First pict... pretty impressive, eh? Now a side view- http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/SBag2.jpg No, that's not another tree in the background. I tell ya why buy a Lang? Crap, I can put a dozen of these things in an 8X10 envelope! Hmmm directions... Woah Pork ribs...70 Min! LOL BEEF BRISKET! 2 hours! Crap! Never mind how in the HELL would you get a brisket in here. OK..I'm gonna sacrifice a hunk of salmon. Prolly 6 bux. Plus the $11 for the bag. Being a betting man..anyone wanna wager on the outcome? I got "crap" for $20. Sigh. But...we'll see.
Richtee Posted April 19, 2009 Author Posted April 19, 2009 Allright... the results are in. Don't buy this if you are looking for smoked food. SMOKE your food. Upon autopsy of the bag, it's just as I surmised earlier...little micro-perferations between the sawdust chamber and the food chamber. Appeared to be a mix of preburnt and fresh sawdust, as I had some ash and some still "woody" looking particles. Apparently, they expect some of the fresh wood to smoke a bit...at the 450° recommended temps, and the preburnt to add additional flavor. There was some smoked taste. Not all that pleasant, but some. But then again, the masses have not much clue on what it SHOULD taste like. I'll eat the stuff, it's not horrible, but it's way below some of the most marginal salmon I have ever smoked. Might as well use liquid smoke. Oh and don't expect that brisket in 2 hours no matter what, eh.
Richtee Posted April 26, 2009 Author Posted April 26, 2009 (edited) Went to a semi-local BBQ contest this weekend. Honestly I expected to do better, but no complaints... half of the 13 teams travel the U.S. as pros. No shame in a 2nd in Brisket. Trying to get the complete results for the entries, just for my information. I was damned proud of those chicken thighs...ah well... a few pix here...Eagle, MI BBQ comp Edited April 26, 2009 by Richtee
TheSidewinder Posted April 26, 2009 Posted April 26, 2009 *drool* Damnation, those pictures made me HUNGRY. Congrats on the results. 2nd place is nothing to be ashamed of! So, are you the ugly mofo on the left, or the ugly mofo on the right?
Mumbles Posted April 26, 2009 Posted April 26, 2009 Rich, if I ever end up living in Michigan, I am taking biweekly trips over and pillaging your meat supply.
Richtee Posted April 26, 2009 Author Posted April 26, 2009 (edited) *drool* Damnation, those pictures made me HUNGRY. Congrats on the results. 2nd place is nothing to be ashamed of! So, are you the ugly mofo on the left, or the ugly mofo on the right? The ugly small guy ;{) Usually with a bourbon bottle. These things are fun-- mostly. Except during turn in time and judging. Some of these teams show up in custom busses and full blown comp equipment. I slept in a chair under a popup awning. Well, for 2 hours anyway. Brisket and pork butt are difficult mistresses ;{) Edited April 26, 2009 by Richtee
crazyboy25 Posted May 4, 2009 Posted May 4, 2009 So Rich, I love good BBQ slow smoked tender ribs and all but I don't have a smoker and don't want to buy one. Is there any way you have tried to make really good ribs/BBQ without buying a gargantuan smoker?
Richtee Posted May 5, 2009 Author Posted May 5, 2009 (edited) So Rich, I love good BBQ slow smoked tender ribs and all but I don't have a smoker and don't want to buy one. Is there any way you have tried to make really good ribs/BBQ without buying a gargantuan smoker? Really... for about $40- The "El Cheapo Brinkmann" (ECB) does a good job. There is a bit of a learning curve, but it's not a bad smoker. You can get prolly 3 slabs (cut in half) in one. It's a charcoal based smoker. ECB smoker Home Despot carries them. Other than that... you could try a small fire in a charcoal grill on one side, meat on the other... adding a small bit of smoking wood every once in a while for about 2 hours. Then foil them at first sign of pullback of meat from the bones and into a 250° oven. Keep an eye on them after about an hour..looking for the end bone to pull out easily. At that point back onto the grill and medium heat to sear and firm them back up. If desired, add sauce in the last 10-15 min of this stage. KEY in either case is a good dry rub. Lysander's pork rub is good.... or I'll give ya a basic recipe- all in "parts" be it a tablespoon or cup- 2 good paprika (I like the Sezged Hungarian)1 onion POWDER1 garlic POWDER1 Brown sugar1.5 Kosher salt1 Cracked Black Pepper Also a mop sauce is a good thing during the first part. Apply after the rub has "set" on the meat... I use1/3 cup cider vinegar1/3 water1/3 bourbon2 tablespoons brown sugar1 tablespoon butter Simmer all ingredients EXCEPT bourbon for a couple min. cool, and add boutbon. Brush on gently so as not to wash off rub. Edited May 5, 2009 by Richtee
Richtee Posted June 30, 2009 Author Posted June 30, 2009 (edited) A little culinary fireworks- The Triple H (Hotter'n the Hinges of Hell) Fatty A fatty is a flattened hunk of sausage, filled and smoked. The filling:Jalapenos, halved and deseeded. HOT Hungarian paprika paste smeared inside. A hunk of Fontina cheese plaed inside, and wrapped in a strip of bacon. Grilled till golden brown. The "fatty" was half beef half uncased hot Italian sausage mixed and rolled out. The Japs.. referred to as ABT's on their own (Atomic Buffalo Turds) were placed inside and rolled up. The fatty was finished with a bacon weave on the outside and smoked to 170° internal over a light pecan smoke. PHEW! Sparky! http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/100_8598.jpg Edited June 30, 2009 by Richtee
TheSidewinder Posted June 30, 2009 Posted June 30, 2009 Oh my god, I can feel the ulcers and "rimfire" already...... Looks GREAT, Rich! Hope you entered that in some contest......
Richtee Posted July 1, 2009 Author Posted July 1, 2009 Oh my god, I can feel the ulcers and "rimfire" already...... Looks GREAT, Rich! Hope you entered that in some contest......Actually..yes...and I'm running a distant 7th..I think... it's tough competition in the smoking world...http://www.smoked-meat.com/forum/showthrea...p?threadid=2958 You may have to sign up to view, but it's free and informative :{)
TheSidewinder Posted July 1, 2009 Posted July 1, 2009 Yah, you have to register and I'll have to pass on that. I have WAY too many forums subscribed already. But good luck!
qwezxc12 Posted July 27, 2009 Posted July 27, 2009 Made a couple of pizzas on the BBQ grill last night: Margharitta with fresh basil (from my garden) and fresh mozzarellaRoasted tomato and artichoke hearts with prosciutto...yum. Making pizzas on the grill is awesome...
Richtee Posted July 27, 2009 Author Posted July 27, 2009 (edited) Made a couple of pizzas on the BBQ grill last night: Margharitta with fresh basil (from my garden) and fresh mozzarellaRoasted tomato and artichoke hearts with prosciutto...yum. Making pizzas on the grill is awesome... Oh MY! Those look fantastic man! PERFECT crust/doneness... (BOW) You mind posting your procedure? I notice grill marks on the TOP? Edited July 27, 2009 by Richtee
qwezxc12 Posted July 27, 2009 Posted July 27, 2009 Oh MY! Those look fantastic man! PERFECT crust/doneness... (BOW)You mind posting your procedure? I notice grill marks on the TOP? Rich, Thanks for the compliment sir. Yup, grill marks on the top... I have to flip it on my grill to get it to cook right without burning. I roll out the dough and put it on the bottom grate in a very hot grill for ~1-2min, lifting and moving it once so it doesn't stick, until the bottom is just looking cooked with those tasty grill marks. The top of the dough is firmed up and all bubbly at this point. I take it off the grill and flip in over onto a pizza pan so the cooked side is now the top. I crank the grill up with the top closed so it gets real hot while I'm topping the pizza. When it's ready to go back on, I turn down the burner to med, and only open the grill up long enough to throw the pizza in on the top grate (trying to conserve all the heat I can). The pizza cooks for 5-6min until done - the lower flame keeps the bottom from burning, but the grill is hot enough to give the pie that wood oven crust. I had to cheat a little on the two in the picture - it was raining so the grill top cooled down a bit too much. I put those in the oven broiler for 30 sec to crisp up the tops before serving.
TheSidewinder Posted July 28, 2009 Posted July 28, 2009 My GOD that looks good, qwezxc! Especially the one with all that fresh mozarella. Mmmm, mmmmm!!! Good job!
NightHawkInLight Posted July 28, 2009 Posted July 28, 2009 WOW! You totally owe me money for all the ingredients I'll go through trying unsuccessfully to make pizza that looks as good as that as a result of your post...! Haha well done. I didn't realize how hungry I was until just now...
flying fish Posted July 28, 2009 Posted July 28, 2009 (edited) My brother makes some decent pizza (though I doubt it is as good a qwezxc12's...that looks really damn good). We call my brother's pizza "Calvin's Really Awesome Pizza." You can see what the acronym for that is... He makes his dough and cooks it on a stone in the oven...trying to simulate a "brick oven". It's good, but I'd think the grilled version would be more rich and flavorful. I don't know...to me anything on the grille is awesome. Edited July 28, 2009 by flying fish
Richtee Posted July 28, 2009 Author Posted July 28, 2009 mmm..well it would make a great pizza topping but a good thick sliced lean bacon... Not you usual belly bacon...this is made from a "pork butt". Kinda a misnomer as it actually comes from the front shoulder. Hey..I din't name it. Anyway...Was cured with Mortons Tenderquick, and lots of onion and garlic powder, and a goodly amount of fresh cracked black pepper. Here it is just out of the cure: http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/100_8647.jpg A new method to keep my smoker temps low... A "sterno can" heat source- worked VERY well. Never topped 145° for the 9 hours it was in. BTW got 6 hours out of a can! Here it is half way: http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/100_8650.jpg And going into a wrap for a few days aging in the fridge. Man...what a peppery "nose"! I musta sneezed taking that blurry pict! Will update with sliced pix in a couple days. http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/100_8652.jpg
TheSidewinder Posted July 29, 2009 Posted July 29, 2009 Oh, thanks pal! I wasn't hungry until I saw those. Kidding aside, those look delicious. Mmmm... fry up a few slices for a BLT sandwich.
Richtee Posted July 29, 2009 Author Posted July 29, 2009 Oh, thanks pal! I wasn't hungry until I saw those. Kidding aside, those look delicious. Mmmm... fry up a few slices for a BLT sandwich. Well, I had a job fall thru this AM so I figgered I'd just git-R-done. Here's a study in peppered buckboard- http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/100_8654.jpg And the chopped ends frying out a bit for use in beans and I think I'm gonna do a batch of the Hunky bacon bisquits or PIZZA TOPPING!...mmm http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr72/esalink/100_8657.jpg
qwezxc12 Posted July 29, 2009 Posted July 29, 2009 Awesome... never thought you could make bacon from a shoulder. Salivating all over my keyboard...
Ventsi Posted August 4, 2009 Posted August 4, 2009 Lickin' fingers! Me and a buddy decided that we'd smoke something yesterday so I brought over 3lbs of "Porky shoulder country style ribs." and some fish. Getting there; Fish with lemon and basil, wrapped in foil and toasted; The result:Some damn good smoked pork, and some ok fish.
TheSidewinder Posted August 4, 2009 Posted August 4, 2009 That looks delicious! Nice job on the smoking and cooking.
TheEskimo Posted August 4, 2009 Posted August 4, 2009 Mmmm...I made ricotta fritters for breakfast yesterday. Vegetable oil 1 cup (8 ounces) ricotta cheese or large-curd cottage cheese3/4 cup unbleached pastry flour or unbleached all-purpose flour 2-1/2 Tablespoons granulated sugar 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder 2 extra-large eggs1-1/2tsp vanilla1 tablespoon lemon zestMix all ingredients together; it should form a pale yellow, thick batter. Heat half an inch of vegtable oit in a pan to 365degrees Farenheit. Drop in spoonfuls of the batter, cook until golden brown. Remove, and serve with a dusting of powdered sugar, or with a pot of hot honey, to be dipped into.Enjoy. I got this off a friend who has spent several summers in Italy, this is a REAL Italian recipe.
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