Using a smoker… plus grilling and cooking

[CheezWizHed]

I was all ready to stow the smoker away for the winter, but today it was 60 degrees and maybe it'll be warm again this week to keep piddling around with it.

 

*FACEPALM* I'm feeling wimpy because I didn't grill this weekend. I still need to shovel off my grill and deck and my patio door froze shut on Sunday. Ok, I do cut if off in negative temps, but no need to stop otherwise.

[logan82]

I girilled stuffed pork chops, steak, and chicken breast over the weekend. I still have no idea what those stupid Johnsonville commercials were referring to when thy said times when you can go outside to grill.

[Baldkin]

Spatchcocked (Butterflyed) a chicken for the first time over the weekend.

 

Came out great. Super easy to grill that way.

[CheezWizHed]

Spatchcocked (Butterflyed) a chicken for the first time over the weekend.

 

Came out great. Super easy to grill that way.

 

Is there any real benefit to doing this over cutting it up completely and grilling the pieces? I've thought about this with a turkey but it seems like it would take up much more room.

 

Also, my wife buzzed me last weekend with a "are you back to grilling this weekend?" With temps below 0 and a foot of snow on the grill, I hadn't used it in a couple weeks. So steak/burgers Friday night and pulled pork on Saturday night.

[logan82]

Whole butterflied chicken is a good thing to grill in winter. You can put it on for half an hour per side and not worry too much. Very little time spent outside.

 

Butterflying is less work than cutting up the whole thing. If you cook it long enough without burning it, it will fall off the bone.

[GAME05]

Doing the chicken whole instead of in pieces and you don't have to worry about some parts being done sooner than others. Plus you'll have more of the skin exposed to the direct heat in order to get crisper.

[CheezWizHed]

Turning a pork loin into char sui this weekend. Ribs are too expensive, but loin (basically the same meat) is cheaper. So boneless char sui "ribs" it will be!

[GAME05]

Anyone tried smoking salt before?

 

I'm tempted to try some cold smoking this winter but I can't really think of anything else to do.

[CheezWizHed]

Char sui was a bit blah. Very tender and juicy, but not a strong flavor. My wife and one daughter really liked it. Myself and another daughter thought it was a little underpowered. I think I'll keep using pork loin for "boneless ribs", but go back to BBQ sauces.

 

I've not tried smoking salt. But I'm tempted to try Canadian bacon. There are a lot of warnings to cold smoking, however so read up closely if you attempt it. With the lower temperatures, you have a higher chance of getting someone sick (well for meat... I can't imagine getting someone sick by smoking salt.

[RobDeer 45]

Wanted to do something fun for the Packer game this weekend. Didn't search the whole thread but has anyone done anything with chicken wings? I usually just grill them and then add the sauces after but I was wondering if I should smoke them first, then grill..... Sounds tasty.

[GAME05]

You certainly could. Smoked chicken is awesome. Although if you're going to put a sauce on them, it may just be easier to put some liquid smoke in the sauce and it should taste roughly the same.

[rwa12]

I've smoked wings in the past, turned out really good. Very tender. After smoking, I lightly battered and fried them. Then tossed in sauce. I may do that this weekend now that you've mentioned it.

[nate82]

I made a chicken for Xmas which was very similar to this. Kept the brine and used some of it for juice in the slow cooker to keep it warm turned out very nice. Also smoked chicken in chicken noodle soup is the best!

[Thurston Fluff]

Anyone tried smoking salt before?

 

I'm tempted to try some cold smoking this winter but I can't really think of anything else to do.

 

Smoked cheese is very good if you're looking to try cold smoking something.

[GAME05]

Well, nearly burnt my house down this morning. Another five minutes and I wouldn't have been able to control it. About four or five dumb things contributed to it, myself being the primary dumb offender.

 

Kept spent ashes in a bin located too near the house.

Meant for spent next-day ashes, but one of them clearly was still burning.

Burnt through the spent ashes during the night.

Ash bin was plastic.

Caught a lawn chair on fire.

Lawn chair caught the house siding.

I have a larger-size home fire extinguisher that got it.

Spent the next hour soaking everything and making sure there was no residual heat anywhere.

The Lord was kind enough to let me be home at the time.

[FVBrewerFan]

So how did your cook turn out??

 

Seriously though, wow, close call! I'm the other way, crazy carefull with ashes. I only put them in the trash on garbage day when my can is down by the road.

 

Also, a good reminder why we all should have a fire extinguisher handy, and know how to use it!

[GAME05]

The cook turned out great, actually. Did three roasts and 15# (pre-cook) of jerky. The fire didn't happen until early morning. The small burning coal made its way through 18" (or so) of spent ash, some which would have still been wet, before it all ignited.

 

We actually got fire extinguisher training in police academy. It was all one motion without looking at it.

 

I'm just gonna take it off the porch entirely. Don't really have to but it's that extra bit of penance. I'll either go the lazy way and just put down four or five grill pads somewhere in the yard, or I could make a bed with some 2x4s and fill it with gravel, which I can get from work, and put some of those concrete walkway things on top of it.

[NeedMoreFans]

I'll start off by saying that I love burgers on the grill, as I'm sure most of us do. However, my wife does not because they tend to get a bit more dried out than if they are cooked in a skillet. So I tried a new method of burger cooking today; I put a cast iron skillet right on the grate, put a little bacon grease in the skillet, and went to town. They were fantastic! They got a bit of the smoky flavor from the grill and were very juicy. I said next time I'll finish them on the grate just to get the char, but I'll do this method again.

[homer]

I replace the burner in my gas grill today. I feel like a man.

[GAME05]

In-house maintenance saying they don't have time to do the work (they do). I'm saying I don't need the work done tomorrow. Haven't yet, but I'm going to the boss on Monday to have the bill sent to me instead of being paid by the State. It'd be one thing if it were mechanical error or one of those things which everybody does and it just got away, but my problem was entirely my fault, and I feel like I should pay for it, regardless if the State is willing to pay or not. In-house the rough quote is $1000, but contracting it out is $5000. I want to pay because its my fault, but I also want it done in-house.

[logan82]

However, my wife does not because they tend to get a bit more dried out than if they are cooked in a skillet.

That has never been my experience unless you are cooking them directly in flame or way overcook them. In fact I just did burgers yesterday and they were nice and juicy.

[RobDeer 45]

I replace the burner in my gas grill today. I feel like a man.

 

Totally get that same feeling when I do something manly! Although, what you did probably seems a little too manly for me to tackle!

[homer]

So the apartment we are in comes with a gas grill. Nothing fancy, one of those Aussie models. When we moved in the burner was all rusty and the flame was really uneven. So landlord said he'd pay for parts if I did the work. Not a problem. Replaced the burner, works great but as I looked at it I thought "What a weird design....all the juice is going to drip right on the burner. That can't be good." So after a little research I see they have these "heat shield" things that you put over the burner. I can't recall ever seeing one of these. Anyone have any experience with them? Looks like this:

 

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTEwMFgxNTAw/z/50wAAOSwZ8ZW9DWm/$_58.JPG

[nate82]

So the apartment we are in comes with a gas grill. Nothing fancy, one of those Aussie models. When we moved in the burner was all rusty and the flame was really uneven. So landlord said he'd pay for parts if I did the work. Not a problem. Replaced the burner, works great but as I looked at it I thought "What a weird design....all the juice is going to drip right on the burner. That can't be good." So after a little research I see they have these "heat shield" things that you put over the burner. I can't recall ever seeing one of these. Anyone have any experience with them? Looks like this:

 

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTEwMFgxNTAw/z/50wAAOSwZ8ZW9DWm/$_58.JPG

 

I have those on my grill and I have heard them called flavor bars also. They should just lay right over your burners if you have a slot just above the burners to rest them on. It basically lets the juice drip away from the burners. It can cause some weird flare ups from time to time especially if you don't clean them. The ones I have are a solid and don't have the vents in the picture that you have.

 

Mine look more like this but are a little bit more obtuse:

[CheezWizHed]

I've had to curtail my grilling/smoking efforts greatly the last couple months since I've been in the midst of a move. Next week I move into a new house (and the movers give my weber back).

 

But I'm also thinking about buying a Pit Barrel Cooker.

 

Anyone use one of them? If not, what do you use (no need to respond if it doesn't burn charcoal or wood)?