***** Official 2014 BBQ Thread - Sun is out, time to grill!! *****

About 7hrs. See that smoke ring.

Never bother with meat temp. BBQ was hovering between 120-150c.
Yep very tender but not shredding tender.
 
Glaucus said:
About 7hrs.

Never bother with meat temp. BBQ was hovering between 120-150c.
Yep very tender but not shredding tender.
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Well, you can definitely tell if it's done to the texture you like without temp, I agree. I quite like getting an idea purely so I can try to predict cooking times/etc in future.

Anyhow, the important thing is that it looks delicious :)
 
ganesh said:
From what i've read the smoke flavour can be a bit weak with pellet smokers, it's also cheating!
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I've read about that but there seems to be a 50/50 split about that as an idea.

I can see how it could be thought of as cheating by traditionalists but I really only care about the results and hassle - if results are good and hassle is low it's a winner in my eyes :)
 
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Hank_Marvin said:
haha yeah, its not a polished production ;) but sure getting the bids

Whats the go to smoker? and upright like my first link or the side mounted fire chamber?
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A bullet smoker is your best bet generally (upright, like your first link) but about the cheapest one that is worth buying is the ProQ Frontier - £189. There are lots of cheaper ones available but they generally suck.

Offset smokers (side-mounted firebox) tend to be pretty rubbish unless you opt for the much more expensive models. I can't think of a decent model off the top of my head but probably something £250-300 or more for a decent one.

If you have time and tools handy then you can go for the cheapest decent smoker - building your own Ugly Drum Smoker (UDS). There are lots of different guides online and you can make something quite good quite cheaply. Make sure you avoid galvanised steel though unless you like poisoning/killing your guests.
 
170, they were £49 the other day. Cheap BBQs always have issues. No lifting grate. Air vents don't seal so struggle to shut it down, rust easily etc.

Just had the other half of the shoulder, damn tasty breakfast, with just a smidge of habanero sauce.

Why Can't I have a decent work shop so I can build my own, and enamel it for rust proofing. I think a squashed (wider than it is deep) hexagonal container would work better than a drum and be easy to build, if you had the sheet bending equipment. Home cast aluminium for some nice touches like the vents, handle stays etc.
 
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Glaucus said:
Why Can't I have a decent work shop so I can build my own, and enamel it for rust proofing. I think a squashed (wider than it is deep) hexagonal container would work better than a drum and be easy to build, if you had the sheet bending equipment. Home cast aluminium for some nice touches like the vents, handle stays etc.
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That would be awesome. Need to befriend some people that work with sheet metal I think...
 
Got myself the Weber chimney starter and tried it out tonight - it's so much better than the cheapo B&Q one - a fair bit quicker and easier to handle. More sturdy as well. Having said that, it may be partly down to better charcoal as well. I got some of the CPL Restaurant Grade Lumpwood from coals2u and it's very good indeed. A lot less dross than the cheap crap I've been using and burns really hot - perfect for the steak I was cooking tonight.

While I'm at it, I'll post a pic or two of my steak. It was labelled as an Aberdeen Angus "Porterhouse" steak in M&S but it was actually a bone-in ribeye.
It being a ribeye, I was aiming for medium-rare. Gave it about a minute each side over direct heat and then about 2 minutes a side indirect. Served it with my two favourite veggies, asparagus and Portobello mushrooms (okay, mushrooms are fungi - sue me :p).

iTteB1k.jpg

I never noticed until I started my prep today that it was only aged 14 days. I prefer my steak aged for a minimum of 21 days - preferably 28-42 days - so I wasn't expecting much.

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As far as medium-rare goes, I think I pretty much nailed it. Also, it tasted much nicer than I would have expected from a 14 day aged steak. Just goes to show, if you have a quality cow, you'll get quality meat.

I seem to be getting better at this barbecuing lark (much of it is down to the excellent advice given in this thread). I've learned one cannot skimp on charcoal. I've been buying cheap crap for years and despairing at my poor results. It's mostly down to the fuel. If I can give one piece of advice it's BUY GOOD FUEL!!! (Also, the Weber chimney is better than the cheap one).
 
That steak looks amazing Stan. Good job there :)

Glad you've found the Weber chimney starter better. I do think the better quality helps. Did you order your charcoal from the actual Coals2U site or through the Creative Garden Ideas site (their sister company)?
 
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