***** Official 2016 BBQ Thread - Chucking it Down: Proper British BBQ Weather *****
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Soldato
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I've got a measly 1kg brisket to have my first go at smoking tomorrow. Only a small one so I don't mind so much if it comes out **** 
I appreciate that being small it will likely come out dryer than a larger one would though.
What kind of temp should I be looking at keeping it at and for how long? Internal temp low 90s is the aim?
I've only got lumpwood and planning to snake it. Is this going to be successful or do I need to get some briquettes?
I'll be around all the time to make adjustments as needed!
e: oh yeah, and with such a small one am I best keeping it rolled up or unroll?
I appreciate that being small it will likely come out dryer than a larger one would though.What kind of temp should I be looking at keeping it at and for how long? Internal temp low 90s is the aim?
I've only got lumpwood and planning to snake it. Is this going to be successful or do I need to get some briquettes?
I'll be around all the time to make adjustments as needed!
e: oh yeah, and with such a small one am I best keeping it rolled up or unroll?
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I'd unroll it personally..and wrap in foil once the internal temp hits ~65C. Final internal temp should be approx 92C. Once it hits this, take it off and let it vent for 10 mins (i.e. unwrap the foil) then re-wrap in foil, add towels to keep the heat in and let it rest for an hour.
If you want a crispy bark crank the heat up on your BBQ and cook the rested meat for a minute or two (max) per side on direct heat immediately before serving.
Lump wood will be fine - it'll just burn more quickly than briquettes.
If you want a crispy bark crank the heat up on your BBQ and cook the rested meat for a minute or two (max) per side on direct heat immediately before serving.
Lump wood will be fine - it'll just burn more quickly than briquettes.
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Thanks FT. Will report back (with pics) tomorrow 
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Has anyone ever bought a meat pack from Costco? I normally get my supplies from the local butcher, but the prices in Costco are too competitive to ignore...
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Just had some awesome roasts and purple broccoli...served with a pro red wine gravy and the bit that makes it have any relation to this thread at all, sous-vide steak finished over a chimney BBQ lighter. Pretty damn good.
@Skillmister - where are our pics?
@markwombat - I think Costco stuff is meant to be okay. Haven't tried it myself.
@Skillmister - where are our pics?
@markwombat - I think Costco stuff is meant to be okay. Haven't tried it myself.
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I had the same last night too FT, Nice fat piece of Bone-in ribeye cooked sous vide then seared on the chimney.
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@Skillmister - where are our pics?
Went pretty well for a first try. Think I hilariously over scored the meat, knife went through it like butter - oops! Overall the taste was fantastic. Meat itself was a little dry but still enjoyable. Probably a combination of being a bit too hot, scoring the meat and it just being a small piece.
Temp held pretty constant at ~225F although it was nearer 250 for the first half hour. Had to make a few slight adjustments to the bottom vent as the weather was changing between full sun and overcast. Also had a 10 minute torrential downpour which dropped it down to 200 for a bit. British BBQing
Internal temp was up to 65 after about 2 hours and then up to 92 after another hour of being wrapped.
I'd put it on quite early on the assumption that it would take a lot longer than expected but this turned out not to be the case so despite wrapping it up like a mummy after taking it off it needed a blast in the oven to bring it back to temp before eating. Sure this did me no favours either.
Happy overall and onwards to bigger and better things
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Looks good for a first attempt and a nice smoke ring. Did you cut against the grain though? Kind of looks like you didn't
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Nope, forgot that part too
My brisket came out tough so needs a longer cook next time although I had temperature issues due to the apparent flash flood that came outta nowhere which hammered the temps down.
That and my parents (who I was cooking for) wanted sliced meat for their dinner which was the exactly what I didn't want! :s
That and my parents (who I was cooking for) wanted sliced meat for their dinner which was the exactly what I didn't want! :s
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Tiny brisket is hard - just pony up for a larger piece next tine and freeze the leftovers
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I have used the slow n sear a few more times inc today for a pork shoulder - was a last min decision (buying the joint at 2am no less) and surprised that Tesco sell a bone in shoulder, I wanted a small one for a shorter cook so just over a kilo was perfect.
Of course it still wanted much longer than the 5-6 hours an after 7 hours it came off at 194 so ideally probably another hour!
The slow n sear behaved perfectly tho, rock solid temp and only changed when the sun was on or off the Weber and after the 7 hours there were enough coals left to cook some burgers and chicken - I can see the temptation of a dedicated smoker as this is the second time I've done quick cook after a long one and it would have been much easier having 2 devices...
Of course it still wanted much longer than the 5-6 hours an after 7 hours it came off at 194 so ideally probably another hour!
The slow n sear behaved perfectly tho, rock solid temp and only changed when the sun was on or off the Weber and after the 7 hours there were enough coals left to cook some burgers and chicken - I can see the temptation of a dedicated smoker as this is the second time I've done quick cook after a long one and it would have been much easier having 2 devices...
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Tbh compared to any other BBQ meat, all brisket is hard. I agree that tiny brisket is even more challenging though
Pretty awesome. If I were to get a Weber kettle at some point I'd definitely pick a Slow and Sear up to go with it.
I'm pretty impressed you managed to buy a bone-in shoulder...from Tesco...at 2am
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Came up to temp too quickly as well I'd imagine, try it on a lower temp for longer.
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^ Also very good advice.
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Doesn't happen often.
Bigger cut would obviously help that though, but I'd still start it lower temps. 3 things on BBQ: Cut, temp, time!
Bigger cut would obviously help that though, but I'd still start it lower temps. 3 things on BBQ: Cut, temp, time!
tbh it did rise pretty quickly before it started stalling. That said the smoker was barely making 200F at some points so no idea what went so wrong!
Oh well - more meat for me!
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Following on from my BBQ School experience, at the weekend, I wanted to test out my dual-probe thermometer and also see what I could do with my 4 year old £30 Asda 2 burner gas bbq with regards to temperature control and indirect cooking.
At the BBQ School I had been told that the first thing to do with a gas bbq is cover the vent holes in the lid. Never having really paid much attention to the vents etc I realised that my bbq is has loads of these! I set about loosely covering them with foil. Onve this was done I set up the bbq and got one burner going on it's lowest setting, set up the bbq probe of my thermometer and closed the lid.
I noticed after about 5 - 10 minutes that the temperature was rocketing up and had already reached 200C and was still climbing. I was after a temperature of about 170c so this was not ideal. I couldn't turn the gas down any more so I initially thought it was going to be a failure at the first stage. I then remembered what we had done on the course and realised that I needed to allow more heat to escape...
I loosened one of the foil coverings at the back of the lid and felt the heat escaping well. with a little experimenting I managed to get the temperature down to where I wanted it and from then on it stayed between approx 165c and 175c for the entire time of cooking. The main cause of fluctuations being the changable weather!
For my test I had got myself a cheap and cheeful supermarket chicken. To this I added some garlic and herb butter under the skin of the breasts and a little rubbed over the legs and wings. I also sprinkled a little salt over the top. I then stuck it into an aluminium cooking tin and stuck it on the bbq, away from the direct heat, and closed the lid.
It was incredibly hard to resist the temptation to keep checking it to see how it was doing but I did manage and relied on the information my temperature probe was giving me. Once it was up to temperature I checked it and have to say I was impressed!
I then wrapped it in foil and a couple of oven clothes and let it rest while I sauted some potatoes and cooked some peas to go with it. It was so moist and delicious, I was really impressed, and surprised how much control I could have over such a cheap and basic bbq.
Only took a coupple of pics.
The chicken at the end of it's time cooking and about to be wrapped for resting
Moist and tasty!!
At the BBQ School I had been told that the first thing to do with a gas bbq is cover the vent holes in the lid. Never having really paid much attention to the vents etc I realised that my bbq is has loads of these! I set about loosely covering them with foil. Onve this was done I set up the bbq and got one burner going on it's lowest setting, set up the bbq probe of my thermometer and closed the lid.
I noticed after about 5 - 10 minutes that the temperature was rocketing up and had already reached 200C and was still climbing. I was after a temperature of about 170c so this was not ideal. I couldn't turn the gas down any more so I initially thought it was going to be a failure at the first stage. I then remembered what we had done on the course and realised that I needed to allow more heat to escape...
I loosened one of the foil coverings at the back of the lid and felt the heat escaping well. with a little experimenting I managed to get the temperature down to where I wanted it and from then on it stayed between approx 165c and 175c for the entire time of cooking. The main cause of fluctuations being the changable weather!
For my test I had got myself a cheap and cheeful supermarket chicken. To this I added some garlic and herb butter under the skin of the breasts and a little rubbed over the legs and wings. I also sprinkled a little salt over the top. I then stuck it into an aluminium cooking tin and stuck it on the bbq, away from the direct heat, and closed the lid.
It was incredibly hard to resist the temptation to keep checking it to see how it was doing but I did manage and relied on the information my temperature probe was giving me. Once it was up to temperature I checked it and have to say I was impressed!
I then wrapped it in foil and a couple of oven clothes and let it rest while I sauted some potatoes and cooked some peas to go with it. It was so moist and delicious, I was really impressed, and surprised how much control I could have over such a cheap and basic bbq.
Only took a coupple of pics.
The chicken at the end of it's time cooking and about to be wrapped for resting
Moist and tasty!!
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Nom nom nom