goEMAW.com bbq, smoking, grilling, etc. thread!

[asava]

AbeFroman how is the pork belly coming along

have a vision of pinto beans with onions, jalapenos and charred ribeye in my head as a bring the house side for my Q or smoked meat or whatever you want to call it

will be testing on Sunday and hopefully my neighborhood will not burn down

maybe try pickling the onions? would give it another dimension and probably enhance the ribeye?

[AST]

maybe try pickling the onions? would give it another dimension and probably enhance the ribeye?

I might give that a try at some point but passed over it at this time

The beans turned out bomb diggity

Soaked for 24 hours, rinsed and then cooked (turns out cooking them in beef broth instead of water was a great idea)
Fried bacon in cast iron skillet and then sauteed onions, jalapeños and garlic in the bacon grease and olive oil
Charred ribeye, diced and then added it all together (don't forget to crumble whatever bacon you haven't already eaten and add it as well)

Will be making these again and again and again

[Institutional Control]

Alexader, what part of DFW do you live? I'm about one more pic of BBQ away from inviting myself and my family over to dinner.

[AST]

Alexader, what part of DFW do you live? I'm about one more pic of BBQ away from inviting myself and my family over to dinner.

White rock/lake highlands

[Institutional Control]

Alexader, what part of DFW do you live? I'm about one more pic of BBQ away from inviting myself and my family over to dinner.

White rock/lake highlands

White Rock? Nice.

Are you Clark Hunt?

[AST]

Alexader, what part of DFW do you live? I'm about one more pic of BBQ away from inviting myself and my family over to dinner.

White rock/lake highlands

White Rock? Nice.

Are you Clark Hunt?

No but I do know his mother.  She is an extremely beautiful and nice gal and it is no wonder Lamar was as successful as he was with her alongside him.

[CNS]

AST, I am about to pull the trigger on a smoker this weekend.  The OK Joes is one that I am looking at.  Question:  Do you have to baby sit the temp much?  I mean, my weekends are usually somewhat busy and if it is something you have to check on every 2-3 hrs, fine.  If it is something I have to look at every 30 min, then Traeger.

Thoughts?

As for how I would like to use my eventual smoker?  I am basically going to rip off your recipes and make them for my own sweet sweet enjoyment.

[AST]

AST, I am about to pull the trigger on a smoker this weekend.  The OK Joes is one that I am looking at.  Question:  Do you have to baby sit the temp much?  I mean, my weekends are usually somewhat busy and if it is something you have to check on every 2-3 hrs, fine.  If it is something I have to look at every 30 min, then Traeger.

Thoughts?

As for how I would like to use my eventual smoker?  I am basically going to rip off your recipes and make them for my own sweet sweet enjoyment.

every 2-3 hours is about when I stoak my coals and add wood/lump so you should be fine if you can work within that

your plan is flawless

[pissclams]

there's different ok joes on the market, I think.  varying levels of quality and = how much you'd need to play with temps

[AST]

this might come across as a look at me post but it is not, I am just super excited

I am going to go check out this model of rig Friday, unfortunately if I get it, it won't be finished until mid October

that means I will have to rent a smoker that I have never used for the potential gig at the end of September 

this bad boy is a beast

[steve dave]

what do you keep in the front cage? like, chickens or something?

[Mr Bread]

wood

[Mr Bread]

or party babes

[Shacks]

That's where the kegerator goes

[AST]

what do you keep in the front cage? like, chickens or something?

coolers, wood, other stuff

[AST]

alright so I checked out the smoker last night, it was everything I hoped it would be

I've even decided to to ahead and get the model that has an additional 3.5' of smoking or grilling space on the front end

it is and additional chamber welded onto the front end and has a damper to the main smoking chamber so it can be either used as additional smoker space or a grill



Now I am busy preparing for the sampling tomorrow evening, wine and farts to follow

[CNS]

ok guys, here are the two I am deciding between after reading on them:

1. The Longhorn, which is what AST uses iirc.  http://www.homedepot.com/p/Char-Broil-Longhorn-Offset-Smoker-12201747/203340456#.UdiZ7Tu1HTp

Or

2. The Weber Smokey Mountain:
http://www.lowes.com/pd_108467-505-731001_0__?productId=3006399&Ntt=smoker&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Dsmoker&facetInfo=

Both have great reviews and I think both would be easy enough to use, but they seem hard to compare.  I have a weber grill and it is the best grill I have ever owned and no one I have ever spoken to has ever said anything negative about the Smokey Mountain.  That said, AST is obvsly kicking ass with his Longhorn and it sounds really great as well.

Anyone have experience with both?


I guess for me, this will probably come down to which requires the least babysitting while cooking.  I think the longhorn is a heavier duty steel body so I would think that it would hold heat better and would probably require less messing with the heat, but a few smoking forums rave about the weber being super solid at holding temp for a long time.

I haven't found any reviews that compare the two.

I am slightly leaning toward the Weber right now. 

Thoughts?

[CNS]

Also, some of the forums I have looked into on the Longhorn make notes about some slight modifications to make the grill more consistent from one side to the other as far as temp goes. 

Anyone  use this thing without modifying it?  Ppl on the forums say that the longhorn can easily burn or under cook meat because of this inconsistency. This is the primary reason I am leaning toward the WSM.

[AST]

i say longhorn for cooking space and versatility

I'm gonna tell you a couple secrets about not burning

a.  put a piece of foil hanging down from the far right of the smoking grate (blocking direct heat from the firebox as the only thing that separates your meat from direct heat on a WSM is a drip pan)

b.  remember you are not cooking in an oven and pay attention to the smoker (not hourly attention but learning from one run to the next)

it is really that simple

[AST]

had brisket on since 4:30, will pull around 6:00

just dropped some yardbird on

[pissclams]

i'd go longhorn. 

[Mikeyis4dcats]

I've got a bullet smoker, and want to go to an offset.  The WSM is a great bullet, but bullets are such a pain in the ass to load and replenish.

[Cire]

my offset is basically the same, it's good, but I"m jealous of WSM's.  It's solid though.  has held up really well.

[CNS]

i'd go longhorn.

Clams, please elaborate.  Tia.

One thing I have been reading about the WSM is that ppl close the vents after cooking and can put the firebout thus saving the fuel for another smoking session.  Also, there is a firing methid called the minion method that sounds like it makes it so that you don't have to reload it for smokes up to like 12-14 hrs long as long as you get control of the vents well. 

As for the longhorn most every forum I have read talks about 4 or 5 modifications that they say are needed to get a consistent temp across the grill(seals, door latches, additional vent, heat damper at fire box, and some ppl even lower the stack. 

From reading a bunch on it the last two days, it sounds like both are very good, but that the longhorn uses a bunch more fuel and takes a lot more initial work to get to the same level of control that you get from the WSM out of the box. 

I don't think I can go wrong with either, but am leaning to WSM right now.

[pissclams]

neither would be v efficient.
the WSM will be easier for a rookie to use.

I change my recommendo to WSM