97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Looks awesome man

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Stog, what kind of brine/seasoning did you use?

stogie1020

Thanks, planning to do a lot more soon. I was too afraid to eff up a large portion on the first run, but next time will be a whole filet from Costco.

I did a SUPER simple brine just to try the process out and see if my grill could do it.

I did:
-3qt H2o
-1 cup Kosher salt
-1 cup brown sugar

I sprinkled a little cracked black pepper on it before smoking.

It came out pretty salty, even though I rinsed the wet brine off.

Next time I am going to dry brine it and see how it comes out.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Thanks, I have a freezer full of Salmon fillets and Swordfish steaks. Definitely want to throw some in the smoker

stogie1020

Doo eet!

The salmon at ~225 took about 90 minutes to reach internal 145 degrees.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

stogie1020

Did batch #2 this weekend.

I used a dry brine for about 12 hours. 4/1 Brown Sugar to Kosher Salt.

Post-brine and pelicle formation, just before going on the grill:




And then after about 2.5-3 hours of smoking:



We gave away half of one of the pieces and managed to eat all the rest already...

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Those are the same size fillets that I have, can't wait to try this!

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Stogie inspired me to finally try smoking some salmon, I did a dry brine, but didn't have any brown sugar so I made my own dry brine. I did hand ground pepper and sea salt, onion powder and garlic powder, and some lime juice squeezed over top and marinated them in the fridge over night.
IMG_20160530_013738501_zpsiei3ft2l.jpg

Smoked at 225 for around 75 mins, I used foil to keep it from sticking to the grill
IMG_20160530_152741050_TOP_zpsksnrxsot.jpg

I started off with mesquite chips, but thought that the taste would be too strong so I switched to cherry wood chips, and I'm glad that I did
IMG_20160530_154014891_zpsjoq1hk11.jpg

I pulled them at about an hour and checked the temp, and decided they should go a bit more on the smoke, so I threw more wet cherry chips on, this was right at an hour
IMG_20160530_161140613_zps1hpimuvh.jpg

And the finished product
IMG_20160530_161816897_zpsyepl7py4.jpg

Next time I will rinse the dry brine off, but I didn't mind having the spice on all the way through. I broke up the salmon and served it as an appetizer, everyone raved about how good it was, and the flavor was incredible.
IMG_20160530_184631168_zpser8vho40.jpg

I definitely want to try the wet brine and the brown sugar method at some point, but I honestly would do it over again the same way and be perfectly happy with the results. When it was gone, I definitely wished that I had made more than 2 fillets.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

This was for Memorial day, my main course was my marinated chimichurri smoked London Broil that my parents love so much. I always marinate the meat for 2 days with Chimmichurri sauce before smoking.
IMG_20160530_013953037_zps02mz66fh.jpg

Threw those suckers on the smoker and let the smoke go
IMG_20160530_171726272_zpsenf6ezhq.jpg

The larger cut came out medium rare, and the smaller piece came out more medium to medium well which was good for everyone's tastes.
IMG_20160530_191133473_zps0umvydw1.jpg

I also made homemade pesto with my homegrown organic basil, and white truffle oil.
IMG_20160530_181621922_zps9m81e8xr.jpg

I cleaned and carved out some portabello caps
IMG_20160530_181626454_TOP_zpsqo1am4hz.jpg

Spread the pesto on the caps
IMG_20160530_181901909_zpsotg4vtuv.jpg

Then covered with mozzarella and sliced grape tomatoes to make pesto white pizzas
IMG_20160530_182347574_zpsywtynjrt.jpg

The cheese melted and ran a bit, but they were still phenomenal as a side dish, I've also had these as the main entree
IMG_20160530_184642475_zpsyki9ijpp.jpg

My mom made her famous asparagus salad, and we paired some petite syrah, and had an amazing meal
IMG_20160530_192145703_zpsd22oxuix.jpg

CCColtsicehockey

That all looks really good.

I will be in town for the US Open in two weeks. I will be stopping to pickup my ribs.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Nice, I'm going to the Open on Sunday, we should def try to meet up while you're in town. Bring some ribs by and I'll throw them on for you, I'm planning to do some more salmon too

SamDoe1

Care to share the london broil and asparagus salad recipe ?

CCColtsicehockey

I was going to say we should meet up at the Open but I am going Friday and Saturday, then getting up early Sunday to drive back to NC to watch Sunday on TV.

stogie1020

Ack, glad the salmon came out good!

The speed at which it is eaten is usually a good indication of how good it came out!

Jakes_tl

Did the fish turn out sweet? The reason I ask is because you said you used 4/1 brown sugar to Kosher Salt.

stogie1020

Not one bit sweet. The "sweet" power of the sugar is about 1/4 the strength of the "salty" power of the salt, so they basically cancel each other out in terms of flavor (you may still have some salty flavor though). The salt is required for the actually killing of any organism during the brine, as well as the reduction in the water content of the fish so it smokes better.

Make sure to brine for no more than 24 hours and do a really thorough rinse of the brine off the fish. Then let the pelicle form and smoke away!

doopstr

Anyone have any tips for smoking a turkey? I have a bird in the freezer that I'm thinking about thawing out and smoking next weekend with my MES30.

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

?!?!?! Lol

Cook to temp. Good luck.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Grind that shit up real fine, and roll it in a blut

Try this

Barbecue Turkey And Grilled Turkey: The Ultimate Smoked Turkey Recipe

Jakes_tl

Anyone done a whole turkey on a weber charcoal kettle or weber gas grill - would love to try to smoke one.

SamDoe1

I'm not sure a normal kettle will be big enough for a whole turkey... You'd definitely have to pile up the coals really far on one edge to keep having any direct heat.

Either that or a really small bird...

Legend2TL

That salmon looks amazing

Jakes_tl

I could eat some of that salmon right now.

doopstr

Here's my first attempt at turkey. It came out great, I think I like it better than fried.

Jakes_tl

that turkey

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Holy hell!

Jakes_tl

What temp did you run the smoker at and how long did it take for the turkey to get done?

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

This isn't an exact science. Your bird != his. Your smoker != his. Your air temp. Your sun/shade. Your wood chips. Etc, etc, etc.

Thus the thermometer. Get one. Use it. The backhanded 'cook to temp' comment I made above is 100% true.

Generally for poultry I do 225*.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Looking at new smokers for my bday... decisions decisions, think I know what I'm getting been reading lots of reviews.

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

Electric?

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

I was leaning electric/bluetooth, etc until I read the reviews, now I'm back leaning toward charcoal again

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

So I was originally looking at this one because I like all the bells and whistles (bluetooth, remote, built in temp probe, etc)

Masterbuilt 40-Inch Electric Smoker with Bluetooth - Sam's Club

But after reading lots of reviews on it on multiple sites, the wood chip drawer appears to be really small and people indicating that they had to keep adding wood chips every 30-45 mins... not cool

So then I started looking at this guy

Dyna-Glo 47 in. Vertical Off-Set Charcoal Smoker-DGO1176BDC-D - The Home Depot

Mixed reviews, but a lot of people said that they had to modify it to make it work well, not a fan of having to modify something to get it to maybe work right...

So then I started looking at a better version of what I have now and this one has amazing reviews across every site...
https://www.amazon.com/Weber-721001-...s=weber+smoker

So that's the direction I'm leaning... I really wanted to upgrade to an electric with all the fancy gadgets, but I'm hesitant to buy something that I'm going to be babysitting all the time... decisions decisions

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

I have to add chips to mine every hour or so. Sometimes less sometimes more.

BeezleTL85

I miss these threads.... Y'all have been making some delicious looking food

doopstr

Took about 4 hours. Started at 250 but I dropped it to 225 because it was cooking faster than I expected. I have a 30" Masterbuilt electric.
This is the one I have. I paid $177 https://www.amazon.com/Masterbuilt-2.../dp/B00104WRCY

Yes you will need to add chips every 30 minutes unless you get this http://www.amazenproducts.com/product_p/amnps5x8.htm
If you keep an eye on slickdeals the masterbuilts go on sale from time to time. I was afraid the 30" would be too small but it's perfectly fine for my use and I can lift it and move it around easily.

You also want a good temp probe. I got this ChefAlarm http://www.thermoworks.com/ChefAlarm
Sometime they have a deal on them. When I bought mine it came with two types of probes.

stogie1020

Ack, if smoke generation is the only problem with the MB, get an Amazen tube or tray for $20 or $30 and smoke away. I got the 12" tube and it will smoke for four hours easy. The tray can go 8 I think. they also have a 6" that smokes for ~2 hours.

I read a LOT of reviews where people were using the Masterbuilt and the Amazen tubes/trays.

LINK: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...eywords=amazen

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

^I had saw some mentions in the reviews about that... I will look into it more, thanks Stogs

Jakes_tl

Is there really a big difference in flavor with electric vs Charcoal smokers?

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Purists will say so, you're never going to get the same kind of smoke flavor from electric as you will with Charcoal, but charcoal is a shit ton more work