Buying a smoker today....

[Clgy_Dave2.0]

With all the hunting and wild game in this forum, I'm surprised we don't have a dedicated "Meat locker" type category. Complete with recipes, types of bbq's, smokers etc. All in one place.
I love my beef. BBQ'd porterhouse, rib eye, standing rib among my favorite. But I can't cook wild game...at least to make it taste good. I was doing some work at a friends place who is a HUUUUGE hunter. He cooked up a deer roast and made loose-meat sandwiches out of them and they were delicious. I tried it....tasted like crap. But I've always been a high-heat type of bbq'er. Love my beef rare!!

So I'm going to move-up and buy a smoker and learn some new techniques. Going to Bass Pro this aft and pick up a cheap charcoal smoker. I want to try ribs tomorrow night. Does anyone have suggestions as to which type (pork vs beef) and what 'cut' I should get? Also a good dry rub and/or mop sauce.
Down the road I'd like to try smoking a brisket as well.

[bluther2]

I just bought a Weber smokey mountain from barbeques galore last week. Have smoked chicken legs, both kinds of ribs(beef was best I have ever had), 2 pork shoulders and a brisket since then......mmmmmmm meat. There seems like lots of sites depending on the model you buy, for mods and recipes. I would check them, but the essential seem to be garlic, onion, paprika, salt and pepper. With that as a base you won't go wrong. I had a hard time finding a store in s calgary that had the old briquettes at this time of year. Rona on Macleod x Southland had a few up in the storage shelves. Be prepared for 6hour + cooks for the meat and even without smoke cooking a 200-225 be prepared for fine tender meat. Maybe i will have to do a turkey for american t-giving hmmmmmmmmmmmm

[Piker]

Go to www.bradleys forum.com and you will find everything you want to know about smoking,recipes,sausages,jerky and on and on. Excellent site. I learned a lot on it Piker

[TheClash]

smoking some ribs on my bbq as we speak...mm applewood smoke.

[dcutter]

So I'm going to move-up and buy a smoker and learn some new techniques. Going to Bass Pro this aft and pick up a cheap charcoal smoker.

If you are going to spend the money Dave, I would strongly suggest going with the Great Outdoors Smokey Mountain. Propane is a great way to go. This is my first smoker, and it is fantastic. And it was nearly the same price as some of the coal-burners.

I want to try ribs tomorrow night. Does anyone have suggestions as to which type (pork vs beef) and what 'cut' I should get?

PORK!!!!!! use the 3-2-1 method. 3 hours on the smoker with rub on, 2 hours on the smoker wrapped in tin foil, 1 hour on the smoker bare. This is hands down the holy grail of rib recipes.

Also a good dry rub and/or mop sauce. Down the road I'd like to try smoking a brisket as well.

Loads of guys and great recipes on this site:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/

Good Luck!

[TheClash]

agreed..pork for the smoker beef for the slow cooker.

i smoke mine for 1 hour first then wrap and slow cook 2nd...i find the smoke flavor penetrates better on the fresh raw meat rather than on cooked through meat.

[Mad_Mikee]

Last weekend I cold smoked a brined turkey for 4 hours with apple wood in my Bradley before deep frying it for 45 minutes.

I've tried about a million different ways to cook turkey and this is by far my fav.

Might have to try actually cooking my turkey in the smoker one of these days.

Next on my cooking appliance list is a Big Green Egg charcoal ceramic cooker.
There us a huge cult following for them.

Hopefully I'm allowed to hotlink to it since its not hunting/shooting related.

www.biggreenegg.ca and www.biggreenegg.com

[Clgy_Dave2.0]

Hmm...well I came home with nothing...well, except some wood chips (Hickory). I saw the el-cheapo $45 Bass Pro smoker and it was, well....CHEAP. Looked like it'd be hard to control the heat. No exhaust damper..no feed damper, wide open bottom and not a tight seal at the top. I could do THIS (http://home.comcast.net/~day_trippr/smoker_mods.htm) to it...but that's a lot of mods. The only other choice was about $300 and up, both propane, electric and charcoal.

I just bought a Weber smokey mountain from barbeques ....

If you are going to spend the money Dave, I would strongly suggest going with the Great Outdoors Smokey Mountain. Propane is a great way to go.

See...now Im not sure which way to go. I already have a huge $1,000 5=burner stainless steel BBQ. But it runs on natural gas. I kinda wanted to go back to the old charcoal way of cooking for a smoker. Saw the grandaddy of them all...an $1800 cast iron smoker..but thats just a tad big for the patio lol.

So for tomorrow night I'm just gonna try using the wood chips in a foil boat on my BBQ. Ease into it, one step at a time. lol.


Loads of guys and great recipes on this site:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/

Good Luck!

Mmmm...great link, Cutter, thanks!

I ended up getting three different types for tomorrow; Pork back ribs, side ribs and Beef ribs. I'm putting a store-bought rub on tonight ("Char Crust" from Co Op) and then trying Tony Roma's original rib sauce to finish them off.

[Clgy_Dave2.0]

Haven't been this excited since I first got my brand new Stainless steel 5 burner BBQ!!! Arrrgh arrrgh arrgh!!!

Got some Jack Daniels Oak wood chips. Made from actual oak barrels with the whiskey soaked right in. MAN, do they smell delicious!!

I put the rub on last night and put 'em in the fridge. Fired up the Q and put the "wood chip boat" on the burner, as well as a temp thermometer and a little water. The whole patio smells mouth-watering. It's a beautiful brisk fall day today...Gonna put up some more Christmas lights. Beer's already cracked.

So far:
Fresh out of the fridge after a 14 hour "soak"

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8615.jpg

Tools for the day:

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8609.jpg

beautiful crisp fall day outside:

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8626.jpg

aaaand they're off:

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8616.jpg

MMmmmmmmmmm.....can't wait.

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8622.jpg

[Geezle]

Looks good Dave, I'm getting hungry just looking at the pics!

[Clgy_Dave2.0]

Looks good Dave, I'm getting hungry just looking at the pics!

OMG...you should smell it out here. Even on the roof, putting up my lights, the whole air smells of Jack Daniels and Oak!!

[Bushmaster]

I don't think for ONE SECOND that its fair, ethical or moral to be posting pics on a thread like this !! :D

[Clgy_Dave2.0]

Well my meal is finished...my belly hurts...and OMG was it GOOD!!!!! However....I've got a lot to learn. Needed a larger container for the wood, so I took out a baking pan and put them on there. Then took the ribs off the tinfoil pans and just put them on the racks, stacked, to get more of the smoke on all sides. At one point, my foil boat came open and the wood chips all caught fire...spiking the temp up to 350 for about 10 minutes. Didn't like that :mad: Started to "seer" the beef ribs. So I had a learning curve on keeping a constant temp inside the BBQ...but I think I'll get it next time.

The ribs were ab-so-*insert expletive here*lutely delicious! They weren't QUITE "fall-off-the-bone", but very close.

I came out of the hot tub and opened up to this:

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8632.jpg

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8636.jpg

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o312/CalgaryDave/BBQ%20Ribs/IMG_8640.jpg

[Slannesh]

Damn, that looks tasty!

Gonna have to learn more about smoking on the BBQ myself now.

Thanks for the inspiration!

[TheClash]

that is how i do ribs as well....and chicken....but i have a cast ironsmoker box...works great and keeps the chips fro catching fire.

and to get them fall off the bone..if you want that (some people like that some don't) take them right off the grill wrap them in tinfoil and into a low heat oven for 45 mins......then they are falling off.

[aghoover]

Dave

Go to bbq galore in Calgary and pick up a chargriller smoker pro. Its just over $200. It has 750 square inches plus a offset smoker box. It is so awesome I've almost stopped using my propane grill. Just get yourself a meat thermometer and some good charcoal and wood chunks and you are good to go. Did some ducks on it the other weekend. They were amazing.

Andy

[mgn54]

If you are going to spend the money Dave, I would strongly suggest going with the Great Outdoors Smokey Mountain. Propane is a great way to go. This is my first smoker, and it is fantastic. And it was nearly the same price as some of the coal-burners.



Where in Alberta can I purchase the Great Outdoors Smokey Mountain Smoker? I've looked everywhere and can only find it at Walmart.com (American only) for $100 after cash back (Bing). Would Walmart USA ship to Walmart Canada?

[Clgy_Dave2.0]

Where in Alberta can I purchase the Great Outdoors Smokey Mountain Smoker? I've looked everywhere and can only find it at Walmart.com (American only) for $100 after cash back (Bing). Would Walmart USA ship to Walmart Canada?


Is This (http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_52170____SearchResults) it?

Bass Pro.

[gitrdun]

Sounds and looks like you're on the right track Calgary Dave. I use a Traeger myself, awesome piece of equipment. Anyways, may I suggest that you invest in some books by Steven Raichlen, the BBQ guru. I have the Barbecue Bible, Barbecue USA, Ribs Ribs Outrageous Ribs, Sauces Rubs & Marinades and Beer-Can Chicken. With these books, you'll be making your own rubs and marinades. This series of books literally is the "BBQ Bibles". They raise BBQ'ing to a whole new level. If you like Candied Salmon, also known as Indian Candy, I can share my most awesome recipe. I buy the Atlantic Salmon from Costco.

[Clgy_Dave2.0]

Hmm...sounds good, Git...I'll check those books out! Thanks!

[podman]

Bradley smoker $100 off at Canadian Tire right now.