Started some pork butt this morning. Got a late start son had a football scrimage. About noon got the butts on only up to 148 right now gonna be along night. Threw some of the $.99 Chix quarters in about 1:30 and threw some taters in at 3:30 taters weren’t quite done at 6, but tasted great with a nice smoke flavor, Oh my god the Chix was awesome. The chix was a test for the WSU game. Going to have that for our protein at the tailgate.
Made some cole slaw with Blue Berries that turned out great, and went great with the BB BBQ sauce.
This is my smoker. Used a rub of paprika, cayenne, Chipotle pepper, black pepper, onion and garlic powder over a mustard glaze. With a spritz of 3 parts apple juice to one part Captain’s spiced rum mixture
Fantastic smoker! Love the size. I looked at this one last week at Wallyworld but not seriously; I was in hurry. Can you smoke stuff but keep the heat way down? So the meat is really smoked, not slo-roasted? Will it make cold-smoke so to speak. Not actually cold, but I think you get the idea.
We use it for tailgating mostly. Kind of a mobile oven, but smoking in it is a pure pleasure set temp and no worries every hour or so check and spray. I have been smoking at 220 most of the day.
Easiest smoker I have used, but I can’t afford a lang. The log ones are nice though, but I smoke about 3 times a year and use it for 12 games for tailgating.
My wife picked up a propane fired Great Outdoors Smokey Mountain Smoker (GOSM) smoker at BassPro for me in June. It’s the version referred to as the Big Block (16" x 24" x 48"). While my experience with this unit is limited I’d think it would be a challenge, but not an impossibility, to get a good cold smoke from it. It does however make some dandy ribs and smoked butts!
The bad news is the company that makes these units is out of business. The model that seems to be replacing them is called the Smoke Vault. I believe Gander Mountain is carrying these (as well as a number of other retails, Sears has been mentioned too).
Here’s a view of some of the finished products from my smoker:
My unit will hold up to eight racks of ribs at one go. I’m currently doing six for a end of the summer lunch for the staff at work. I’m two hours into a six hour session for these ribs.
Here’s a pork butt from the other week that was well received by the family.
Temps are really easy to control in these units. I’ve typically been doing the pork products at 220* to 240*. I’d think you could get as low as 165* with this unit as is. I’ve seen some mods folks have made that allows finer temp control.
Good luck, happy smoking and my apologies for taking this thread to Cuba.
Here’s a picture of the unit. The angle isn’t the best for getting great prespective. But it’s pleanty big for the average family.
One of the other tasty treat that I’ve been making are called ABT’s, short for Atomic Buffalo Turds. In a nut shell you simple cut jalapino pepper in half, add a filling of choice ( I like onion and chive cream cheese, crab meat and a sprinkle of sharp cheddar) and wrap them in bacon. YUM!
To be completely honest and above board I did not originate this recipe. If you want to know much more about smoking meat (and just about anything else that you can think of) go to this web site and explore the post threads.
Here’s a picture of the unit. The angle isn’t the best for getting great perspective. But it’s plenty big for the average family.
One of the other tasty treats that I’ve been making are called ABT’s, short for Atomic Buffalo Turds. In a nut shell you simple cut jalapeno pepper in half (remove the seeds and veins!), add a filling of choice ( I like onion and chive cream cheese mixed with crab meat and a sprinkle of sharp cheddar cheese!) and wrap them in bacon. YUM!
To be completely honest and above board I did not originate this recipe. If you want to know much more about smoking meat (and just about anything else that you can think of) go to this web site and explore the post threads.
Good luck with that trip to BassPro. They still list both the wide body and the big box versions of the smoker as availble through the catalog, with luck you can still lay hands upon one. This is one of the least expensive propane smokers available. It’s worked really well for me and if you’re into smoked meats this is about the easiest way to “feed” the habit.
Couple of “tips” if you get one, check the door thermometer (just hold it in a small pot of boiling water) if it doesn’t read 212* you can adjust it buy turning the nut on the back. It’s a system of trial and error to get the setting right but knowing the internal temp of your smoker is critical. For most things the optimal temp in the smoker should be 220* - 250*.
Another highly desireable item is a digital meat thermometer. Usually you can find these at Home Depot, Lowes, Walmart, probably even BassPro. Since it’s the end of the BBQ season many of these items are on sale. Look for the ones with the thin metal probe with a woven wire that connects to the actual unit. It’s best to pass these through either one of the smoke vents or on mine I left one screw out of a handle and run the probe through that hole. I’m getting ready to modify mine and put in a couple of 1/2" water proof electrical contectors to run the probes through. The potential modifications are endless (and most are not really necessary, some folks just have to play with their toys!).
You’ll also want to season the smoker befor your first usage. Once you get the assembly complete give it a light coating of Pam or other non-stick vegetable spray, add your wood chips or chunks and fire up the smoker. This will insure any stuff that shouldn’t be there is baked off and you’re ready to rock and roll. Think of it as seasoning a cast iron skillet.
As far as wood to use for the smoker my preference for pork is a 50/50 mix of apple and hickory. I’ve heard others speak very highly of using cherry in place of the apple. Straight hickory is fine too. Beef likes mesquite and can stand the stronger flavor it imparts. Don’t be afraid to experiment. Lots of folks recommend maple, alder and pecan. As long as it’s not toxic, you can smoke with it! The only other tip is keep the smoke light. You’re going for thin blue smoke, not billowing clouds of white smoke. You should just barely see smoke coming form the smoker. If you can smell smoke your smoking. Too much smoke results in a very bitter, nasty tasting product as a result of creosote formation on the meat.
I made a really good smoker from plans I got watching the Food Network show called “Good Eats.” The show’s host, Alton Brown, made a smoker from a large clay pot and hot plate and smoked a nice pork butt on that episode.
I went to Menards and bought the biggest pot they had, a lid (which is actually the bottom tray that the pot sits in), a hot plate, round cake pan, thermometer and grate. All for about $50.
Drill a hole in the bottom to run the cord through and a hole in the lid for the thermometer and it is ready to go. The clay pot really holds in the heat and temperature control is easy.
Next spring I am going to buy a bigger pot and make a larger smoker.
This is really odd that this subject seems to be popping up all over the place. I just got one of these Smoky Mountain Smokers at a yard sale recently and just cooked up my first batch of stuff yesterday. I did a whole pork loin , 10 chicken quarters, and two fattys and some smoked baked beans, and had that thing running at about 250 degrees from about 10 AM until 5:30 PM. Every thing that I read says to watch the internal temps of the food rather than go by time, so I ran the loins to 140 degrees and then wrapped them in foil and continued up to a little over 160. All I did to prep them was rub with a little yellow mustard and sprinkle rib rub all over them and left in the fridge for about an hour while I prepped other things. When I wrapped them I picked a couple of fresh apples and sliced them and lay ed them on top of the loins. One important thing is when you take them off the heat let them rest for 30 minutes to an hour before cutting them, this allows all the juices to redistribute in the meat to make it very moist and tender. My wife was gone all day but when she got home she said things smelled great. I sliced a couple of pieces of loin for her and her first words after her first bite were “oh my God that is wonderful. Buddy you got a new job around here”. It looks like there could be a lot of exploring and experimenting with this smoking thing, almost as much as fly fishing and fly tying. Maybe after I get the smoker started I can set up the vice and cook and tie at the same time. My next trip to Bennett Springs could mean trying some smoked rainbows. I will have to research that a little.
WOW it looks like we have a bunch smoke nuts here at FAOL. I to enjoy the art of smoking, as a matter of fact I am doing a Boneless Pork Shoulder For a party I am having on Sunday.
I will edit this post with the recipe and pictures over the weekend.
Going to use some of the pulled pork from last weekend for some killer barbeque nachos at the tailgate tomorrow. Chips, pulled pork on top, some BBQ sauce, then Queso over the top.
Smoker? Wood? Pictures?
