raymondzachary
New member
DivotMaker suggested the following be posted here:
My name is Raymond Zachary and this is my story---
I have been smoking meats for about five years but only in a Little Chief. Generally that was successful although it required reloading the chip pan at least once to allow for very slow cooking to get to 165 degrees for chicken parts. Other meats were always cooked well enough and were succulent. When I moved from California to Austin I brought my antiquated Jennair Grill and refurbished it but eventually paid a fellow to come get it for recycle. I now have a new BroilKing from Canada and tried using a smokebox to smoke while cooking but found that to be unworkable and decided to use the BroilKing for grilling/barbecue only.
After weeks of research I bought a Smokin-It #1 and mounted it to a rolling butcher-block table. I downloaded and printed the cooking, temps, times, and woods chart from the Smokin-It forum. I measured out appropriate ounces of chips. I purchased and tested out a Maverick probe, transmitter, and receiver set. I lined the bottom of the chamber with Aluminum foil as well as the top of the smoke box. I read a number of websites and downloaded various rubs for beef, pork, and chicken. I mixed and stored containers of the rubs.
So now I think I am ready! I buy the meats and deal with them in the following order.
1. 2 lb. brisket smoked until internal temp of 190 was reached------dried out and tough as jerky. Baxter, the dog, is much less discriminating.
2. Whole chicken smoked until internal of 165 was reached-----excellent taste, tender, and juicy
3. 1.5 lb. pork tenderloin until internal temp of 150 was reached----excellent taste, reasonably tender, but a little too dry (my expert son thought it was just fine)
4. 2 lb. brisket smoked until internal temp of 145 was reached---- excellent taste but tough as boot leather. Placed boot leather into crock pot with ample water and beef bouillon and cooked for two more hours with some improvement to tenderness.
So now I have some observations:
1. I do not understand why the brisket should be driven to 190 when steaks can be grilled to only 140. I have read that somehow the fat breaks down over time but what happens to the meat fiber (mummification?) during that lengthy process?
2. I know that if I buy Prime beef I get much better results than with Choice but I am not sure that is a panacea for all problems. I do not believe all the famous barbecue houses around Austin whose wares I have sampled got there by buying Prime brisket.
3. It has been suggested that I parboil brisket before smoking it to tenderize it. Alternatively I could cook it in the crock-pot for a few hours to get the same effect.
4. It is possible I do not have a clue what I am doing and those who do it well may have had to do some experimenting to get to their lofty status. Education is not quick or cheap.
Comments and criticism are welcome. Thanks for the opportunity to whine.
PS: I think it would be better to pay a little more to get a better rheostat for the heater as it varies a lot and is hard to maintain oven temperature closely.
RZ
My name is Raymond Zachary and this is my story---
I have been smoking meats for about five years but only in a Little Chief. Generally that was successful although it required reloading the chip pan at least once to allow for very slow cooking to get to 165 degrees for chicken parts. Other meats were always cooked well enough and were succulent. When I moved from California to Austin I brought my antiquated Jennair Grill and refurbished it but eventually paid a fellow to come get it for recycle. I now have a new BroilKing from Canada and tried using a smokebox to smoke while cooking but found that to be unworkable and decided to use the BroilKing for grilling/barbecue only.
After weeks of research I bought a Smokin-It #1 and mounted it to a rolling butcher-block table. I downloaded and printed the cooking, temps, times, and woods chart from the Smokin-It forum. I measured out appropriate ounces of chips. I purchased and tested out a Maverick probe, transmitter, and receiver set. I lined the bottom of the chamber with Aluminum foil as well as the top of the smoke box. I read a number of websites and downloaded various rubs for beef, pork, and chicken. I mixed and stored containers of the rubs.
So now I think I am ready! I buy the meats and deal with them in the following order.
1. 2 lb. brisket smoked until internal temp of 190 was reached------dried out and tough as jerky. Baxter, the dog, is much less discriminating.
2. Whole chicken smoked until internal of 165 was reached-----excellent taste, tender, and juicy
3. 1.5 lb. pork tenderloin until internal temp of 150 was reached----excellent taste, reasonably tender, but a little too dry (my expert son thought it was just fine)
4. 2 lb. brisket smoked until internal temp of 145 was reached---- excellent taste but tough as boot leather. Placed boot leather into crock pot with ample water and beef bouillon and cooked for two more hours with some improvement to tenderness.
So now I have some observations:
1. I do not understand why the brisket should be driven to 190 when steaks can be grilled to only 140. I have read that somehow the fat breaks down over time but what happens to the meat fiber (mummification?) during that lengthy process?
2. I know that if I buy Prime beef I get much better results than with Choice but I am not sure that is a panacea for all problems. I do not believe all the famous barbecue houses around Austin whose wares I have sampled got there by buying Prime brisket.
3. It has been suggested that I parboil brisket before smoking it to tenderize it. Alternatively I could cook it in the crock-pot for a few hours to get the same effect.
4. It is possible I do not have a clue what I am doing and those who do it well may have had to do some experimenting to get to their lofty status. Education is not quick or cheap.
Comments and criticism are welcome. Thanks for the opportunity to whine.
PS: I think it would be better to pay a little more to get a better rheostat for the heater as it varies a lot and is hard to maintain oven temperature closely.
RZ
