Great forum, just my place! I'm not a newbie to smoked foods but rather to smoking food. I've been reading this forum for about 3 weeks (signed up for the newsletter and 5 step book) and basically, it's frickin awesome! After endless disappointments trying to find the right smoked food in my hometown, my wife and I decided we were going to have to take things into our (my) own hands to finally be able to feast on properly smoked food that taste good to us.
With that said, a couple weeks ago i ran out and purchased an inexpensive charcoal grill (Aussie $45.00). In addition, i picked up briquettes, a chimney starter, hickory chunks and an oven-safe thermometer. The way is see it is, if i can make good Q with this set up, i will run out and invest into high-quality equipment.
Here's my $45 grill. Pretty sure i will bump out of this within the next month once i decide what to purchase.
So far I've smoked 2 slabs of ribs, 2 pork shoulders (not sure what cut they were) and one brisket (flat only):
Ribs- OK, smokey, but need a better rub. I also didn't foil them at all. I think next time I will nail them. Will continue to research the "right" rub for my liking. Will also maybe try a foil wrap next time. I did mop them with a vinegar/apple juice mix.
Pork Shoulder- Fantastic! This was my second smoke ever. It was a 3.5lbs shoulder so it was small but boy did it turn out good; so good in fact, that the very next day we went out an bought another one and smoked that...back to back baby. The second one was a 4.5 lb'er. Both had awesome flavor and smoke ring and both were foil wrapped.
Brisket- Not very good. Dry and not too flavorfull and tough. I only purchased a 5.5 lb flat. Wasn't a total failure but so much that i'm right now trying to make burnt ends from the flat for practice.
Here's a couple pictures of the brisket
Not a very deep smoke ring. Cooked for 7 hrs and finally put into the oven until temp hit 190.
Here's my practice burnt ends about a 1/3 of the way through - little rub and bbq sauce
Here they are finished. In the grill for 5 hrs. First 2 hrs they smoked, then i had to leave and they just sat there for 3 hrs.
Next time i will get pictures of the other meats. I just didnt get the shoulder and ribs this time. Also. i'm here to learn and appreciate feedback. Until i get a quality grill, i'm pretty limited.
Thanks,
Bryce
With that said, a couple weeks ago i ran out and purchased an inexpensive charcoal grill (Aussie $45.00). In addition, i picked up briquettes, a chimney starter, hickory chunks and an oven-safe thermometer. The way is see it is, if i can make good Q with this set up, i will run out and invest into high-quality equipment.
Here's my $45 grill. Pretty sure i will bump out of this within the next month once i decide what to purchase.
So far I've smoked 2 slabs of ribs, 2 pork shoulders (not sure what cut they were) and one brisket (flat only):
Ribs- OK, smokey, but need a better rub. I also didn't foil them at all. I think next time I will nail them. Will continue to research the "right" rub for my liking. Will also maybe try a foil wrap next time. I did mop them with a vinegar/apple juice mix.
Pork Shoulder- Fantastic! This was my second smoke ever. It was a 3.5lbs shoulder so it was small but boy did it turn out good; so good in fact, that the very next day we went out an bought another one and smoked that...back to back baby. The second one was a 4.5 lb'er. Both had awesome flavor and smoke ring and both were foil wrapped.
Brisket- Not very good. Dry and not too flavorfull and tough. I only purchased a 5.5 lb flat. Wasn't a total failure but so much that i'm right now trying to make burnt ends from the flat for practice.
Here's a couple pictures of the brisket
Not a very deep smoke ring. Cooked for 7 hrs and finally put into the oven until temp hit 190.
Here's my practice burnt ends about a 1/3 of the way through - little rub and bbq sauce
Here they are finished. In the grill for 5 hrs. First 2 hrs they smoked, then i had to leave and they just sat there for 3 hrs.
Next time i will get pictures of the other meats. I just didnt get the shoulder and ribs this time. Also. i'm here to learn and appreciate feedback. Until i get a quality grill, i'm pretty limited.
Thanks,
Bryce
