# Any (Meat) Smokers Out There?



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

Two years later, the hubs finally tried out the wood smoker I bought him. He's hooked! Me too! We did up a pig we butchered this weekend and oh, the culinary bliss. By the way, we just got started in Kunekune pigs, a breed that can fatten with ZERO grain out on pasture, and they are 1,000% worth the hype.

His birthday is coming up and I thought I might try to encourage this new hobby. Here's his smoker, a wee thing, but so picturesque, don't you think? What would be good stuff to buy to go along with it? Alternately, what's a good inexpensive electric one? He thought he might like to try that, too.


----------



## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

Yup check out the smoking with the griz thread. Been smoking stuff for decades.

http://www.prepperforums.net/forum/recipes/18259-smoking-griz-aka-hawgrider.html

Also check out my stump smoker

http://www.prepperforums.net/forum/recipes/18259-smoking-griz-aka-hawgrider-6.html#post749594


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

hawgrider said:


> Yup check out the smoking with the griz thread. Been smoking stuff for decades.
> 
> http://www.prepperforums.net/forum/recipes/18259-smoking-griz-aka-hawgrider.html
> 
> ...


Sweet, thanks! Got the tube smoker on the list of possible gifts. I really, really want him to get more into this idea.


----------



## Moonshinedave (Mar 28, 2013)

I do some smokin, generally a bed of charcoal, and then put hickory on it. Oklahoma Joe is the brand smoker I got just a couple months ago.


----------



## Ragnarök (Aug 4, 2014)

Current residence does not allow smokers or charcoal grills on balconies. So I am stuck with propane... I have a bit of experience on a smoker though from when we lived in Texas. Done a couple briskets, tons of ribs, pork chops, chicken.


----------



## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

@indie,

Aside from the double entrende regarding the title of this thread :vs_lol: BBQ is one of my (former) passions!

Bar B Que, or simply Que, is a form of cooking that involves indirect heat, smoke, food...and of course, adult beverages! @hawgrider and his family as well as many others on this forum @bigwheel, @Inor etc are master Que-Men.

BBQ is only limited by your mind. In other words, be creative when firing up the smoker. Be creative with your choice of fuel, be creative with your choice of food and seasonings, marinades and smoker grills. BUT there are some staples that you should build around.

Not in any particular order;

Heat/Fuel--Direct Heat is GRILLING, Indirect Heat is BBQue'ing or Smokin'. Hardwoods are the staple of fuel; Hickory, Oak, Mesquite, Pecan, Apple etc. Do not be afraid to mix woods and use them with different types of meat. Taste buds are different for many people; Some only like Pork with Hickory, some Beef with Mesquite, others mixing Oak and Pecan with Chicken...regardless, be creative and try different meats with different hardwoods.

But regardless of the wood, remember that BBQ is synonymous with LOW AND SLOW. In other words, Low Temp, Slow Cooking. 225-250 degrees F is a good starting point for many recipes. For some meats like a Pork Shoulder or Boston Butt, 1.5 hours per pound is a good starting point. But remember to buy a good meat thermometer to check ALL of your Que. Getting sick is not cool, so check your meat temp before serving. That's the ONLY way to know if its done.

Rubs, Seasonings and Marinades are all part of the smoking process. Again, be creative. On marinades, once I used Kool-Aid (what flavor of Kool-Aid did you use Slip? Well RED of course!) on smoked Chicken and my family was hooked on Kool-Aid Smoked Yard Bird. Whooda thunk it?

Coke, Dr Pepper, Beer, Sprite, Vinegars/Sugar, lemonaid, apple juice, etc are all great simple marinades for various meats. Soy Sauces, Hot Sauces, Worcesershire Sauces, italian dressings, etc etc etc.

Rubs and Seasonings; Salts, peppers, (black, red, white) paprika, garlic, onion powder, chili powder, crushed red pepper flakes, brown sugars, white sugars, all spice, coffees etc etc etc are all good seasonings for various meats. Experiment but for heaven's sake, WRITE YOUR RECIPES DOWN! God knows how many great recipes I've forgotten due to a marathon 14 hour smoke session drunkfrest because I forgot to jot down the recipe! :sad2:

Sauces; Some think sauces are not necessary in real Que and others rely heavily on the sauce. Regardless where you fall, some meats need sauce, some don't. Experiment. Carolina Mustard/Vinegar, Texas Tomato, Kansas City Style, Georgia Style, Alabama White Sauce, etc etc...I could go on and on. I've used lots of different things in sauces and cheated using store bought sauces and spicing them up, so again, be creative.

Anyway, I could talk all day about BBQ but alas, I lost the passion to cook like I used to...don't know why, but I did. But, every now and again, I fire up the smoker and get down to bidness...Slippy-Style! :vs_wave:


----------



## 8301 (Nov 29, 2014)

Absolutely excellent response above!!!


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

John Galt said:


> Absolutely excellent response above!!!


Yes, thank you! I want to reply more but I'm sitting right next to said husband and don't want to spoil the goods. I think I've got a good handle on what to get now though, will run it by you all in the mañana.


----------



## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

indie said:


> Sweet, thanks! Got the tube smoker on the list of possible gifts. I really, really want him to get more into this idea.


The smoke tubes are excellent I use the 18" I make some awesome smoked cheese and lots of other goodies with it using the cold smoking technique.


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

hawgrider said:


> The smoke tubes are excellent I use the 18" I make some awesome smoked cheese and lots of other goodies with it using the cold smoking technique.


One of our favorite cheeses is a particular applewood smoked cheddar. Now that we know we can do it at home...woohoo! That costs about $8 for a teeny tiny block. Do you use regular cheese to smoke, like Tillamook? I was figuring we could cut it down and smoke it.

And @Slippy, thanks for taking the time to write such a well thought out response! Your emphasis on rubs makes me wonder if I should find a book on that, but I think, judging by the success of the pork rub I've been using for our pulled pork, we can probably research those online.

Here's what I'm thinking of getting:

-The River Cottage Curing and Smoking Handbook (https://www.amazon.com/River-Cottage-Curing-Smoking-Handbook/dp/1607747871) *any other book recommendations?*
-A digital probe thermometer
-This cool little reference magnet with temps and wood info: https://www.amazon.com/Bear-Paws-Smoking-Guide-Magnet/dp/B00L2Q80U8
-The tube smoker (and accompanying pellets?)
-A gift pack of 4 different wood chips

We are superbly blessed with 9 big old apple trees, so that's what he is using now. Eventually I thought it'd be cool to get him a chipper so he could make his own, right now he's just using small limbs and bits.

I'm just really excited to see him excited about something. He never gets excited about anything, so you can bet I'm going to do whatever I can to encourage it.


----------



## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

indie said:


> One of our favorite cheeses is a particular applewood smoked cheddar. Now that we know we can do it at home...woohoo! That costs about $8 for a teeny tiny block. Do you use regular cheese to smoke, like Tillamook? I was figuring we could cut it down and smoke it.
> 
> And @Slippy, thanks for taking the time to write such a well thought out response! Your emphasis on rubs makes me wonder if I should find a book on that, but I think, judging by the success of the pork rub I've been using for our pulled pork, we can probably research those online.
> 
> ...


You can use almost any cheese including cream cheese, Colby and other soft cheese. But it must be done in much cooler weather like during the winter or late fall /early spring. All cheese you must keep well under 80 degrees or the oils in the cheese will surface and change the texture of the cheese. I do most of my cheese smoking from fall thru out winter to early spring with the smoke tube in my old refrigerator smoker or my Oklahoma Joes off set fire box smoker.
For cheese smoking I highly recommend cherry pellets or apple pellets cherry is my favorite for cheese but apple is very close to the cherry and just as good.

Make your blocks of cheese approx 1 to 2 inches thick by 6 to 8 inches long so if you have big blocks of cheese cut them down like the ones you see in my thread here- http://www.prepperforums.net/forum/recipes/18259-smoking-griz-aka-hawgrider-5.html#post370300


----------



## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

You guys are making me hungry.


----------



## Redneck (Oct 6, 2016)

Slippy said:


> Anyway, I could talk all day about BBQ but alas, I lost the passion to cook like I used to...don't know why, but I did. But, every now and again, I fire up the smoker and get down to bidness...Slippy-Style! :vs_wave:


Same here so thank God my youngest son is a BBQ master. He makes a science of doing it properly and understands rubs & sauces should add just another layer of flavor... and not overpower. A proper bark is just critical. Now Mississippi BBQ is mostly about pork but my favorite by far is beef ribs... followed closely by brisket. Hate to say it, but this is one area Texans get it right.


----------



## Knotacare (Sep 21, 2016)

I purchased the Masterbuilt 20075315 electric smoker 2 yrs ago & have enjoyed smoking everything that's smokeable which is just about everything. Mine uses wood pellets which I purchased in a 40 lb bag. They burn for a long time & I also purchased a pellet container on amazon that allows me to smoke for up to 16 hrs straight without reloading. This model has blue tooth so it's truly a remote operation. I've been an avid BBQ'er for 50 yrs now & this is the easiest smoker I've ever used. Also enjoy using my Weber 6 burner Summit & I cook outdoors all yr & even use my chefs hat sometimes.


----------



## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

Knotacare said:


> I purchased the Masterbuilt 20075315 electric smoker 2 yrs ago & have enjoyed smoking everything that's smokeable which is just about everything. Mine uses wood pellets which I purchased in a 40 lb bag. They burn for a long time & I also purchased a pellet container on amazon that allows me to smoke for up to 16 hrs straight without reloading. This model has blue tooth so it's truly a remote operation. I've been an avid BBQ'er for 50 yrs now & this is the easiest smoker I've ever used. Also enjoy using my Weber 6 burner Summit & I cook outdoors all yr & even use my chefs hat sometimes.


My equipment is mostly old school except these days I use a digital meat probe with remote. 
But the masterbuilts with all the goodies and gadgets would be nice for those loooooong 14 hour over night smokes for when you would rather be sleeping instead of tending the fire.

Other wise sitting around the smoker and tending the fire while consuming large amounts of adult beverages is fun and it takes a little skill to keep things all in check.


----------



## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

@indie,

Here is my go to Rub for Boston Butts; (Disclaimer, I 've been known to modify this rub from time to time but this version is a staple)

"The Gen-U-Wine Slippy-Made Spice O-Rama Yum Yum Butt-Rub"

1 cup of Brown Sugar

Equal parts of each below. If you like spicy, use 3 tablespoons of each, if you like it mild try 1 tablespoon each;

Crushed Red Pepper
Black Pepper
Red Cayenne Pepper
White Pepper
(Why so many peppers, Slip? Well, for most people's palate each spicy pepper hits the taste buds at different points of the chew. For me, I get the Black Pepper first, the Red Pepper next then I finish off with the White Pepper.)
Garlic Salt
Kosher or Sea Salt
Lemon-Pepper Seasoning
Lawry's Seasoning

And finally, just a dash of All Spice.

Coat the Boston Butt in yellow mustard and refrigerate for 3 hours.

Apply the Rub liberally over the Butt making sure you get in all the crevices.

Smoke with Hickory,Oak and Pecan over low heat for 1.5 hours per pound. Once or twice during the smoke process, I lightly spray the meat with Apple-Cider Vinegar. Then, the last hour I crank up the heat to 350 F and wrap the Butt in foil adding just a little bit of liquid (1/2 a beer or some apple juice etc.)

Using the foil for the last hour has been called the "Crutch" or The Texas Crutch. I like how it keeps the Butt moist. I also use the Crutch technique on briskets.

I usually let the Butt rest for a while then chop it up with a butcher knife. I do not have the patience to pull the pork, so I chop the hell out of it, treating it like I would a socialist democrat!:vs_laugh:

Enjoy


----------



## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

Slippy said:


> @indie,
> 
> Here is my go to Rub for Boston Butts; (Disclaimer, I 've been known to modify this rub from time to time but this version is a staple)
> 
> ...


Mustard rub is the bomb. I abuse it and im really not a mustard guy. I use it on corned venison, corned beef, hog butts and even ribs and more. Yes I need help I am addicted to mustard rub.


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

Slippy said:


> @indie,
> 
> Here is my go to Rub for Boston Butts; (Disclaimer, I 've been known to modify this rub from time to time but this version is a staple)
> 
> ...


I'm sorry but this is sounding a little more like porn than cooking. :vs_lol:

When I come back to grown up land though, that sounds delicious!


----------



## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

indie said:


> I'm sorry but this is sounding a little more like porn than cooking. :vs_lol:
> 
> When I come back to grown up land though, that sounds delicious!


It is....

Food porn.


----------



## Inor (Mar 22, 2013)

Slippy said:


> @indie,
> 
> Here is my go to Rub for Boston Butts; (Disclaimer, I 've been known to modify this rub from time to time but this version is a staple)
> 
> ...


I have made this exact recipe courtesy of Slippy a while back. It is outstanding! Using REALLY strong coffee for the liquid is really good too, as is Pepsi.


----------

