Ok, I am a new member of the Bradley Smoker family...well, almost...I have a 4 rack digital electric model on it's way and should arrive the first part of next week. My wife is a first impression person. So, I need that first impression to be positive or she will be wondering why I spend $500 for this toy. Can someone give me what they think is the simplest and best recipie you think will make the first impression positive. I am open to any and all ideas for that first smoke.
Hi Aggie
Welcome to the family
Chicken is easy for a first timer. I'm sure lots of the other family members will be along shortly and give you more ides. Enjoy
nepas
Hi Aggie and welcome to the forum.
You won't be disappointed! What's your wifes favorite meats? Tons of great recipes floating around the forum. Also if you haven't been to the recipe site just click on the smoker in the bottom of my post. Lots of good stuff there too.
Mike
Welcome to the forum Aggie, I cruised the forum for a month before I got my smoker and it helped alot. A few people reccomended Pork Butt or Chicken for a first smoke. I did a pork butt and it was fantastic!!!
I'm a big fan of pork butt. It takes a long time (which I think helps with the cost argument, i.e. if it takes 18 hours to smoke and the toyool cost you $500, your cost per hour really starts to fall) and it's really hard to screw it up. You can make a bunch of it and the leftovers are just as good if not better than right out of the smoker.
SD
Aggie,
Welcome to the forum.
I recommend pork butt also. It takes time but is easy. It's my favorite thing that has come out of my smoker.
Deb
I would second what SD and Deb said. A pork butt is classic BBQ and is hard to screw up if you have a thermometer in the meat. The best part is I think you could throw it in the smoker with out doing anything and still get a better product than at a chain restaurant. The rubs hit it out of the park and like Mike said if you go to the recipe site they spell it right out for you.
Here is one example recipe that walks you through it start to finish.
http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?p=99#post99 (http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?p=99#post99)
W E L C O M E to the Forum AggieBQ72!
Pork butt is where it's at. Simple, hard to break, and darned tasty.
Aggie, welcome. A newby myself. Just got mine a week ago, but have not even been able to open the box yet and now my wife decides she wants to pay for it and give it to me for a Christmas Gift. Now I won't be able to use it for what another week and a half. - This is killing me.
Hopefully the Aggie means you went to the best university in the world. Class of '78 here!
First, welcome! I think pulled pork butt will be the easiest. Here's a link to a thread discussing an "overnight" technique for cooking pork butt (thanks again, Icerat4):
http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=4528
Caneyscud: I feel your pain. That is what happened to my Italian Grill book, but another copy is sitting in a gift bag for my brother in law, so I've been able to browse through the book. ;D
Good luck!
Cheers,
Consiglieri
But also never rull out the "A'nt your Momma's Meatloaf" recipe from Smoke and Spice. Its what made this the best thing ever. Sure it takes more effort, but it makes it more of a family endeavor. I do mop the meatloaf in the bradley. Got to do it safely. And finish with iceman BBQ in the last 30 min plus a little extra on the table. Leftovers a re great also.
Man, I am hungry for it again.
Quote from: IKnowWood on December 15, 2008, 07:45:55 AM
But also never rull out the "A'nt your Momma's Meatloaf" recipe from Smoke and Spice. Its what made this the best thing ever. Sure it takes more effort, but it makes it more of a family endeavor. I do mop the meatloaf in the bradley. Got to do it safely. And finish with iceman BBQ in the last 30 min plus a little extra on the table. Leftovers a re great also.
Man, I am hungry for it again.
Was taking a look at that recipe again. What temp do you use in the Bradley when making this?
Thanks!
SD
That meatloaf recipes is one of my favs!! Calls for a box temp of 200 220. I usually substitute Jommy Deans spicey sausage for the ground pork. Worth a try.
Thanks SS. I've got some ground venison thats cut with pork fat that I might have to try this with. I wonder if I just use 2 pounds of the venison burger if that would be okay?
SD
Here's the old post on that. The book is def worth buying.
SMOKE AND SPICE'S "AIN'T YOUR MOMMA'S MEATLOAF" I give them 100% of the credit. Here is the recipe. I used pecan and have used maple, but I am spoiled and can't get away from either of these.
I used an aluminum cheapo throw away pan to start it in and then just cut the end on each side, fold down the end and slide the meatloaf onto the jerky racks so that I don't worry it will break apart because of its own weight. Just the way I do it, you can experiment!!
I don't saute my onions and the other things they say to do. I am lazy and it tastes fine to me. But, just in case you have to follow to a T, take a T of veg. oil and saute all the ingredients up to the ground beef.
1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 green or red bell pepper finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 t freshly ground black pepper
1 t coarse salt, either kosher or sea salt
1/2 t ground cumin
1 1/4 pounds of ground beef
1/4 pound of ground pork
1 1/2 cups dry bread crumbs
3 T sour cream
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1 large egg
1/4 cup stock, preferably beef
1 t Tabasco or other hot pepper sauce to taste
Put smoker to 200 degrees. Mix everything together and make into a mound and put into a smoke-proof pan. Smoke it for about 45 minutes (I think this is to firm it up so it won't break apart on a rack) and then transfer it to your rack and then cook it for another 1 1/2.
Now, I never get off that easy with the time, so, I just put the probe in it and cooked until it was between 160-165 degrees. AND, because I hate food poisoning, I probe it several different places before I pull it out.
I do a rack of bacon above it to keep it moist. Your preference though.
Allow it to sit for 10 minutes before slicing.
They say to apply the bbq sauce with 30 minutes left to go on top of the meat loaf. I DIDN'T do that with either of the loaves I did and they were fantastic. I guess I didn't read that far down.
Have at it boys!!
Duck, for veinison, ya gotta use the pork or sausage and up the quantity a bit co compinsate for the leaner venison.
Thanks SS. I do have the book and really like it. I cut the venison with about 15-20 percent pork fat so I'm not worried about it being too lean but I'll have to go get some sausage. Definitely seems worth the trip and expense of buying the sausage.
Thanks again,
SD
For uncured ground meat, it's safer to use a minimum temperature of 225°F. It's important to get the center of the meat up to 140°F as soon as possible, then continue to cook until an internal temperature of 160°F.
Quote from: Caneyscud on December 14, 2008, 08:21:24 PM
Aggie, welcome. A newby myself. Just got mine a week ago, but have not even been able to open the box yet and now my wife decides she wants to pay for it and give it to me for a Christmas Gift. Now I won't be able to use it for what another week and a half. - This is killing me.
Hopefully the Aggie means you went to the best university in the world. Class of '78 here!
Yes, I am an Aggie....Class of '72.....and you should know what the BQ stands for! My granddad was a BQ, Class of '21 and I have two sons that were also BQ, Class of '02 and '04!
Recall, Step off on Hullabaloo!
The Noble Men of Kyle? (I guess you can't make that reference anymore)
The FTAB!
Dorm 11 eh? So you survived the countermarching, the criss-cross and the minsteral turns?
From a red-a$$ non-reg (got my scars from Cut and Stack and from a light pole on a cold night in downtown Old Dime Box after being "invited" on a 'road trip') you do know BQ may not mean quite the same thing to you as it may to me? ;D Something about soft, comfortable shoes.
Lived in Law - somewhere between MSC and The Dixie Chicken and between Hotard and West Campus (well it wasn't there at the time) and not too far from Sully or Sbisa! Got a BS in BC or was it a BC in BS?
Ain't whipped out in quite a long time (I should push more - my waist line needs it) - I've been 30 years from my beloved state. I still bleed maroon though.
My Great Uncle graduated in the 30's, my dad went in the early 50's, I graduated in 78 and my sister in 81.
Good Bull rules - squeeze 'em.
Aggie Laundry Marks - yellow in back and brown in front - wait, that's wrong, brown in front and yellow in back --- errr ---- yellow in front, brown in back! Gotta remember that - that is important stuff!
Whoop!
Just received shipping notice and my DBS will arrive this Friday! Going tomorrow to buy pork to start with. If I do the pork butt and it takes 15+ hours as someone suggested will I have to be checking the water in the pan? How often should I open the door to check on it?
Quote from: Caneyscud on December 16, 2008, 02:42:20 PM
Recall, Step off on Hullabaloo!
The Noble Men of Kyle? (I guess you can't make that reference anymore)
The FTAB!
Dorm 11 eh? So you survived the countermarching, the criss-cross and the minsteral turns?
From a red-a$$ non-reg (got my scars from Cut and Stack and from a light pole on a cold night in downtown Old Dime Box after being "invited" on a 'road trip') you do know BQ may not mean quite the same thing to you as it may to me? ;D Something about soft, comfortable shoes.
Lived in Law - somewhere between MSC and The Dixie Chicken and between Hotard and West Campus (well it wasn't there at the time) and not too far from Sully or Sbisa! Got a BS in BC or was it a BC in BS?
Yes I was a dorm 11 guy. However, both of my sons were in Dorm 9 most of their TAMU career.....just not the same as old army!
bonfire brings back old memories! My oldest son called me at 2am one morning and said "Dad, I'm ok...but the bonfire just fell!" He was suppose to be out with his B-Batt outfit on the stack site bringing in logs that evening and into the early morning. However, the Band had a bad practice and the CO said everyone was off bonfire that night as the next day they had to get the drill worked out! So my son missed by just hours or minutes being there when it fell! This is the same son that called me at 2am the year before .... again at 2am and said, Dad, I'm ok....but Dorm 11 just burned! He was on the third floor of Dorm 11, when a fire broke out in the room across the hall from his hole (room). Everyone was evacuated from the dorm after crawling down the floors and down the stairs. When I saw the room the next weekend that caught on fire I was amazed that there were not fatalities. Yes there are a lot of memories at TAMU!....some good and some not so good.
I can't belive I am going to get to use my DBS before you do!
Lee
Ain't whipped out in quite a long time (I should push more - my waist line needs it) - I've been 30 years from my beloved state. I still bleed maroon though.
My Great Uncle graduated in the 30's, my dad went in the early 50's, I graduated in 78 and my sister in 81.
Good Bull rules - squeeze 'em.
Aggie Laundry Marks - yellow in back and brown in front - wait, that's wrong, brown in front and yellow in back --- errr ---- yellow in front, brown in back! Gotta remember that - that is important stuff!
Whoop!
I change the water after the 4 hour mark...by that time, you should have gone through most, if not all of your bisquettes. After that, no need to change the water. The only reason to change the water is because of all the bisquettes that will extinguish in there. Hope all turns out well for you. Let us know how it goes!
SD
Quote from: AggieBQ72 on December 16, 2008, 05:25:28 PM
Quote from: Caneyscud on December 16, 2008, 02:42:20 PM
Yes I was a dorm 11 guy. However, both of my sons were in Dorm 9 most of their TAMU career.....just not the same as old army!
bonfire brings back old memories! My oldest son called me at 2am one morning and said "Dad, I'm ok...but the bonfire just fell!" He was suppose to be out with his B-Batt outfit on the stack site bringing in logs that evening and into the early morning. However, the Band had a bad practice and the CO said everyone was off bonfire that night as the next day they had to get the drill worked out! So my son missed by just hours or minutes being there when it fell! This is the same son that called me at 2am the year before .... again at 2am and said, Dad, I'm ok....but Dorm 11 just burned! He was on the third floor of Dorm 11, when a fire broke out in the room across the hall from his hole (room). Everyone was evacuated from the dorm after crawling down the floors and down the stairs. When I saw the room the next weekend that caught on fire I was amazed that there were not fatalities. Yes there are a lot of memories at TAMU!....some good and some not so good.
I can't belive I am going to get to use my DBS before you do!
Lee
I did not realize dorm 11 had burned. I haven't been on campus since the day after graduation. I started work in Dallas the day after that, and two months later is was told to be in Nashville. Been to a couple of games since, but they have been at the Alamodome though. They tore my dorm (Law) down a few years ago - it was getting quite old and the center row of footings weren't in the best of shape because of the highly expansive clays in the area. Yep, Bonfire brings back some great memories. I've still got the pot I used to wear somewhere and I still have a couple of broken and decorated axe handles somewhere. That is amazing about your son. He's one lucky dude - something is working in his favor or should I say someone! I still think it is quite neat that you have 3 generations BQ. That's pretty cool. Good memories - many, bad memories - some. Seems that I couldn't ever get any of them pretty college girls to date me. All my girlfriends were from back home in Seguin or McQueeney. Didn't get to share a blanket at the Grove nor many rewards after a score. Guess I was just too big and ugly - still am but at least my white hair lends an air of distinction now.
Mike - far from being a two-percenter.
p.s. I think my DBS is laughing at me. It just sits there in my Envoy looking sad, but I do what the boss says and she says I'm getting it for Christmas. I may have an out though - she hasn't forked over the money yet - so technically it's still mine. Yet, although I ain't a 2%'er I am also risk adverse - that technicality would have me flirting with disaster. So, lay on the smoke thick and post the outcome of the first smoke. I will live vicariously through your post.
CaneyScud
I forgot the best part! My '02 son married a '02 girl and they have two sons (WHOOP!). And if that wasn't good enough, my '04 son married a '04 girl! A man could not be more blessed!
The Dorm 11 fire was actually a fish prank that went BAD! The room that burned had two fish and one was not carrying his weight as a fish. Others in the fish class opened a can of shoe polish, lit it and slid under the door.....except that the can went under the bed and caught stuff under the bed on fire!
I'd suggest doing a pork loin for your first smoke after seasoning. It tastes good, is quick and easy. Just a couple of hours, and it will knock the socks off.
BTW...
Hook 'em.
Quote from: AggieBQ72 on December 17, 2008, 08:21:32 AM
CaneyScud
I forgot the best part! My '02 son married a '02 girl and they have two sons (WHOOP!). And if that wasn't good enough, my '04 son married a '04 girl! A man could not be more blessed!
The Dorm 11 fire was actually a fish prank that went BAD! The room that burned had two fish and one was not carrying his weight as a fish. Others in the fish class opened a can of shoe polish, lit it and slid under the door.....except that the can went under the bed and caught stuff under the bed on fire!
We almost got into something like that also. Something about a snuff can, peanut butter, and firecrackers - and we did not know his room had already been papered when it slipped under the door. The KK's weren't too amused!
(http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l95/43something/congrats.gif)
Bet there is more than one maroon t-shirt around and possibly a maroon pick-up! Wasn't lucky enough for an Aggie wife (lucked up on a good'n anyways)- Tennessee Tech and Vanderbilt with Masters from both - Daughter not married yes - undergraduate from East Tennessee State, and graduate degrees from Vanderbilt. Seems I have paid for more degrees than grandchild gifts. (http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l95/43something/MSN-Emoticon-sad-crying-025.gif) But truly blessed on many accounts - sure like grace better than justice!