Are there any BBQ people here?

[Fat Cat]

I love cooking for my family and am pretty good at a variety of things, but one thing I have no experience of, other than Hawaiian style kalua cooking in the underground imu (think Oaxacan barbacoa), is real BBQ. I know that some people get VERY into it, but I'd just like to cook for my family and enjoy the vibe. Do any of you have any experience or recommendations as I read up?

[newguy]

I love cooking for my family and am pretty good at a variety of things, but one thing I have no experience of, other than Hawaiian style kalua cooking in the underground imu (think Oaxacan barbacoa), is real BBQ. I know that some people get VERY into it, but I'd just like to cook for my family and enjoy the vibe. Do any of you have any experience or recommendations as I read up?

It depends on what you are looking to do.

Grilling up some hamburgers and hot dogs on a nice summer evening is one thing.

Doing an all day slow smoke is another.
---
Adding some more thoughts.....

I love cooking as well. I thought I was going to really enjoy grilling. So I got myself one of the weber charcoal dome things with the thought of grilling up hamburgers, etc. on nice evenings.

Hated it. Never felt the effort was worth the results. Effort mainly being cleaning the fucking thing.

Maybe I would have been happier with a propane set up? I don't know.

But I gave up on it after one summer and ended up giving the thing away.

[Fat Cat]

I'm thinking more along the lines of a true smoker, or something that can do both like a kamado.

[newguy]

Is it time to go old school and get the big green egg???

[Fat Cat]

It may be, but that's why I'm asking around here.

[Grandpa's Spells]

I do it less lately, but still BBQ a fair amount and was a KCBS judge briefly a long time back. For consistency's sake, grilling is direct high heat cooking of quick-cooking food like burgers measured in minutes, barbecuing is indirect, lower heat for longer cooks.

My (chef) brother smokes on a Kamado from CostCo, which I would probably recommend as it's still an excellent grill if you decide barbecuing isn't for you. I have a Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker that's about 15 years old and works great with very good capacity. If I'm grilling I use a gas grill.

I would say to start try cooking something pretty simple, like a pork shoulder with salt, pepper, Kingsford charcoal, and nothing else. It's very forgiving on temperature, there's a waiting game as the connective tissue renders into gelatin, and the result will be superior to what you're used to getting from a BBQ joint outside of some pretty specific examples. Here's Aaron Franklin (arguably best BBQ restaurant in the world) with a good example lesson:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbzEa_juegs

It is possible to do this on a Weber kettle grill set up for indirect heat. It might be a bit of a pain to set up, but could be worthwhile if the alternative shipping stuff from the mainland.

If you decide this is for you, consider a BBQ thermostat, which makes things a lot more hands off.
http://irongarmx.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.p ... at#p889816

As with many things, the Internet has cleared up some misconceptions that resulted IMO in extra unnecessary effort and complexity:
1. Complicated rubs pretty much have that complexity washed out by long cooks and smoke. Salt & Pepper go a long way, maybe paprika for color.
2. Don't fetishize tools or methods. People used to think you had to go low temp and foiling was cheating. My best brisket was cooked at 375. Foiling or wrapping tough cuts of meat can take hours off the cook. The ability to put something on at noon and have it ready for dinner is so much easier than starting a cook at midnight.

[Fat Cat]

^^^This is the knowledge I need.

[syaigh]

I've been fooling around with my regular black weber charcoal grill for the past several months and have been able to smoke some things on there that have turned out wonderful. I usually put a pan of water on one half of the bottom and a small pile of charcoal (lit) on the other and cover it. I have the meat over the water side and I've done some chicken breasts that absolutely melt in your mouth. I've done a turkey, some pork shoulder, and brisket. And I agree with Spells, sometimes the time and temp don't matter so much, neither does the seasoning, but brining makes a huge difference. If I want to cook chicken breasts quickly and have them be moist, I basically butterfly them and pound them out flat and just rub them with oil and salt and cook over hot coals. If I want to cook them long and get them tender and smoky, I brine them for a few hours and then cook as previously described.

So blah blah blah, that's all boring and stuff, but my main point is that if you figure out a couple of basics, ie, moisture, location of heat, intensity of heat, and figure out how to vent it properly, you can control the conditions inside the grill pretty well. And you'll learn as you go. Its kind of fun and I haven't screwed up anything so bad that it was inedible. I've pineapple and sweet potatos as well that are out of this world.

I use this guy's brine for my chicken, but honestly, it comes out so flavorful you don't need the rub or anything else: https://meateatingmilitaryman.com/smoke ... en-breast/

[syaigh]

Also, I just made my own yakatori grill. Didnt find nesting containers so I built the outside out of wood. I got the pokpok thaan fruit charcoal and this works very well.

https://youtu.be/BLBPXYQVses

[Fat Cat]

Thanks guys, keep it coming!

[aussie luke]

I fucked around with things a bit when I moved back to Aus a decade ago. Had a few bigger gas grills etc but got rid of them all and settled, very happily on:

-Standard Weber kettle
-Weber BabyQ gas bbq

The babyq is the best and easiest way to cook a few steaks, but can also be used for roasting. I use mine several times a week. Often get it warmed up and throw some steaks on while doing a workout.

The kettle is so easy to use for long roasts and can do a big joint of pork, a joint of beef and a whole chicken at the same time. Use the bog standard Indirect cook setup from the user book and it will always taste amazing and only take about 3 hours.

With the kettle you can also fuck around with making a basic smoker setup for long slow cooks, or just ad smoking chips to your normal cook, plus rubs on the meat etc.

Favourite thing I’d do is get it going in the morning and stick a few big joints of meat on, and have friends over in the afternoon. When the meat is done, take it off and rest it while grilling any burgers and sausages for the kids directly over the hot coals. Then after that chuck a big bag of chicken wings on away from the direct heat, and forget about them.

By late evening after a load of beers and there’s a few of you left going into the night, remember that there is a couple of dozen absolutely fuckin amazing wings ready to serve.

I also had a Weber Smokey Joe mini kettle. It was great and when it was just me and my wife I’d use it most nights to do a couple of steaks or even as a mini smoker to do some smoked sausages. But after kids I never used it much so sold it on before it got too old.

Best thing is the charcoal chimney starter - unload a bag of charcoal into it and light three firelighters under it and within 10 mins you have glowing coals ready to pour into the kettle and get going.


Also, I don’t work for Weber, but can’t recommend their customer service highly enough. Many parts have a lifetime warranty and they just ship you new parts for free. They even sent me a new starter for a grill I bought second hand that was about 10 years old.

[aussie luke]

Also I meant to add that my first Weber kettle I got used for $20 looked like shit but I bought a new grill for it and found an ash collector from one someone had left out on their verge. It lasted me and worked perfectly for about 8 years until I found a new condition one going cheap.

[seeahill]

My double grill solution.

Because I can't seem to get the right temp on charcoal grill much less on a Big Green Egg like Shape got for father's day, I have gone with a Weber three-burner propane grill with a sear station. And I have a Camp Chef pellet grill. If you are unfamiliar with pellet grills, they burn food grade wood pellets. Cherry wood, applewood, mesquite, pecan, hickory. Or mix you own. The wood will smoke the meat. The grills are electric and you can set the temp and the grill will hold it. It's as easy to use as an oven.

So I can do a pork shoulder at 220 for 18 hours. No fussing, no fiddling. Just check the temp. Is it as heavily smoked as a stick burner or Spells' Smoky Mountain? Or even a BGE? No. But it will have a smoke ring and you know you're eating real BBQ. (Spells is seething in Chicago.)

You can do a turkey on the pellet grill. Cook it about 325/350 it will be great. Will you taste a lot of smoke? No. But it will be a part of the flavor profile. The lower you set the heat, the heavier the smoke.

So,what I might do is buy a 2 inch thick boneless ribeye. I put it on the pellet grill at 220 until the temp gets to about 115. Then I slap it on the Weber, which has been going full blast for a while and sear that sucker at 700 degrees. About 90 seconds a side. That and short rest will bring the temp up to 125, which is rare and the way I like it.

[Grandpa's Spells]

So I can do a pork shoulder at 220 for 18 hours. No fussing, no fiddling. Just check the temp. Is it as heavily smoked as a stick burner or Spells' Smoky Mountain? Or even a BGE? No. But it will have a smoke ring and you know you're eating real BBQ. (Spells is seething in Chicago.)

Honestly the all-wood users turn their nose up at charcoal, I really try to avoid worrying about method too much. There is a difference between how the heat gets there, for sure. If I cook a chicken or turkey and add cherry wood, I get a great mahogany color to the skin. But if I have the thermostat/fan to manage temp, with everything else completely the same, the color doesn't appear. No idea why, but it definitely happens.

[Hanglow Joe]

I have a Weber Spirit and a Kettle Grill. I use the Kettle Grill for 75% of my grilling. Reverse sear steaks, brisket, ribs.

It's easy to control the temperature, you just have to barely leave the bottom and top vents open.

Use gas grill for burgers, or the weather is lousy.

[seeahill]

Use gas grill for burgers, or the weather is lousy.

My solution for cold weather BBQ or grilling is to simply throw a welding mat over the grill.

[Luke]

-Weber BabyQ gas bbq

The babyq is the best and easiest way to cook a few steaks, but can also be used for roasting. I use mine several times a week. Often get it warmed up and throw some steaks on while doing a workout.

Hey, I have a Babyq as well - do you do briskets? I'm told it's a real balancing act with temperatures and how to handle it, Weber admit this themselves.

[aussie luke]

-Weber BabyQ gas bbq

The babyq is the best and easiest way to cook a few steaks, but can also be used for roasting. I use mine several times a week. Often get it warmed up and throw some steaks on while doing a workout.

Hey, I have a Babyq as well - do you do briskets? I'm told it's a real balancing act with temperatures and how to handle it, Weber admit this themselves.

I’ve never really bothered doing anything other than grilling on the babyQ. Think I roasted a chook once but I have the charcoal kettle right there so never bothered.

[Fat Cat]

LOL wtf is a chook?

[Alfred_E._Neuman]

I think chook is Aussie for chicken

[seeahill]

LOL wtf is a chook?

A Chinese spy.

[nafod]

My pizza oven is warming up as I type. Going to sit outside and stare into its nuclear fire with a glass of cheap box wine in my hand. Be jealous!

[aussie luke]

LOL wtf is a chook?

Chook = chicken

Bush Chook = emu

[Fat Cat]

My pizza oven is warming up as I type. Going to sit outside and stare into its nuclear fire with a glass of cheap box wine in my hand. Be jealous!

I am! That sounds so awesome and I bet the pies are insane.

[Grandpa's Spells]

This looks like a pretty good primer on pellet smokers:
https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-pellet-grill/