Foil boat...maybe? Spritz?

[babydocsmoke]

Two questions --

What do you guys do for beef that isn't super high fat content?

We have two beefs that we butchered last summer. Tons of meat but not a lot of fat. Both were male holstein cows. The beef tastes great, but when I smoke it it turns out dry. I know I can inject it...which I haven't tried yet. I tend to wrap in butcher paper or foil...but I'm wondering about the foil boat method.

Never used it before...and wonder if some people like that better than complete wrapping.

Also, what do you guys use to spritz with? I've used a combination apple cider vinegar diluted 50/50 with water and a shot of bourbon. I seemed to get great flavor / bark amplification, but now wonder if I'm over spritzing...because sometimes I really don't get good bark development.

 

[tallbm]

When I do beef that needs help in situations like you mention, I smoke it unwrapped to 180-190F depending on how it is behaving.
I then foil with about 1-2 oz of water and the foil is air tight. That does the trick for me providing all the flavor and the tenderness without drying out.

Smoke long enough before wrapping and your bark should be ok. If you wrap too early you end up with roast beef flavor and no bark instead of BBQ beef flavor. Running into this situation is super disappointing after all the time and effort put in to make the food, so I always urge people to wait longer to wrap rather than wrapping at 160-165F'ish. That is WAY too early for me.

 

[Astralogics]

I'm still very new, but thought I'd chime in.

I like the foil boat, but really depends on if I'm feeling a crunchy or softer bark. I typically like to throw in some tallow, maybe a tablespoon or so when I wrap. I'll also foil boat when I'm lazy LOL. I find that the tallow does enough to help the meat not dry out by the end of the cook.

As far as spritzing, I just use 50/50 ACV/water. Note though that I hardly do spritz, only choosing to do so if part of the meat is getting slammed with heat and is looking crispier or cooking faster than the rest of it. I also "mist" it very lightly, rather than full spraying it to ensure the seasoning stays on. Remember with your bark, you are trying to dry out the surface, by over spritzing, you either wash off the bark, or the meat stays too moist to form one by the time it is done cooking.

I agree with tallbm about waiting it out to wrap. I usually just wrap when I'm happy with the color, and that my bark doesn't fall off with a light scratch. Push just past the stall, then wrap; My barks set around 172-180F.

But when in doubt, if I have an ultra lean meat, I'll just do some pulled beef.

 

[JIMSMOKES]

I use acv and cider for pork and rye whiskey and water for beef.
Not uncommon for me to have to refill my beef bottle several times. LoL

 

[chopsaw]

What do you guys do for beef that isn't super high fat content?

Cook it to the style of the cut . Some need to be lower temps and thin sliced .
I just had some strip loin that was really lean . I chose to grind it . Made great burgers and chili .

 

[pc farmer]

I don't really have a opinion but you hit a nerve that I correct almost everyone that's not farm oriented. A male is either a bull or steer. Steer was castrated. A female is a heifer, never had a calf. After a heifer has a calf it is a cow. Could be very different meat tenderness and fat content, old bull compared to a steer. Same as old cow to a heifer. I have ate many dairy steers and they are very good. I would never eat a old bull or cow. I apologize for the rant but you could get better answers to your question

 

[JLinza]

If I need to add to beef it's water and/or tallow. If I ever spritz ACV and such, I do it with pork only. That's a personal preference, I just like my beef to taste like beef. Also pc farmer made a great point. It does depend on what you got. Old bull will be alot different from young steer.

 

[912smoker]

I spritz with only water for beef in the last couple of yrs and depend on the rub for flavor. For leaner cuts, I prefer the boat method and add beef broth or lately a good dose of The W Sauce after the bark and color have developed.

Keith

 

[babydocsmoke]

I don't really have a opinion but you hit a nerve that I correct almost everyone that's not farm oriented. A male is either a bull or steer. Steer was castrated. A female is a heifer, never had a calf. After a heifer has a calf it is a cow. Could be very different meat tenderness and fat content, old bull compared to a steer. Same as old cow to a heifer. I have ate many dairy steers and they are very good. I would never eat a old bull or cow. I apologize for the rant but you could get better answers to your question

Male holstein bovine. Young (raised since birth and butchered at 2 years). Calves maybe? Calves are male and female? When does a calf become a bull?

Not exactly sure what the testicle status is but they were raised for beef (since not for milk or breeding) so I'm thinking they probably lost the boys early on?

Raised rural but not on the farm....