Hello Everyone

RocketSurgeon · June 04, 2009, 07:20:15 PM

My brand new 4 rack DBS has just arrived today. After a short period of the smoker not working, the fat-finger-syndrome subsided and I got it working and seasoned it without problems. I have to say, I am new to smokers, but have been trying to smoke things using a Weber with a wood box. I was amazed at the amount and quality of the smoke during the seasoning process. I can understand why a person could get hooked on this!

I have been reading this forum for the last several weeks and can't wait to start smoking anything that isn't moving. Does anyone have any suggestions on what to smoke first? I have a whole chicken, baby back ribs, and ribeye steaks to choose from. I also plan to make my first ever jerky as well.

I look forward to trying all the different recipes I have been reading the last couple of weeks and any and all advice, tips, or tricks anyone may want to send my way.

Thanks in advance for any help you can lend to a total smoking newbie that enjoys overdoing things. After all if it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing!

JimmyDreams · June 04, 2009, 07:43:07 PM

Welcome, RS!

Everything I've read seems to indicate that pulled pork/pork butt is about the easiest and most forgiving for a first-smoke. That's what I did first in mine (still eating it). I'll probably do one more butt to hone my technique and then move on to ribs and anything else that isn't moving.

Enjoy!!

smokeitall · June 04, 2009, 09:29:47 PM

I just finished 18 lbs of pulled pork this morning (24 hour cook time), put it in foil, wrapped in a towel, and placed in a cooler (FTC). I brought it for lunch at one of my customers and pulled it right before we ate. It was so good I only came home with about 3 lbs left.

Welcome to the forum, the pulled pork is easy and you can wow some folks with it.

Gizmo · June 04, 2009, 10:34:29 PM

Pull the pig. Pull the pig.

Pork Butt is the way to go.

Now, being a rocket surgeon, one has to wonder what kind of Rockets do you operate on?

Habanero Smoker · June 05, 2009, 02:06:10 AM

Pulled pork is about the easiest, but one that takes the longest time to cook. While you have your butt in the smoker you may want to throw in a couple of chicken breast, so you get a reward sooner.

Here is a link to some chicken recipes; any of the four bacon wrapped chicken breast recipe is as good choice.
Chicken Recipes

Caneyscud · June 05, 2009, 07:02:17 AM

Ditto to the above! Oh and welcome to the forum. Wade in and have fun!

Tenpoint5 · June 05, 2009, 08:01:06 AM

Welcome Aboard!!! Looks like the others have you pointed in the right direction.

OU812 · June 05, 2009, 09:47:35 AM

Welcome to the fun.

If you already have a chicken that's a good one to start with, just keep the vent open, wide open. I like to split the bird in half and smoke with Alder or Pecan. Some like to brine it first, I don't but that's just me. Both are good.

I just rub the outside and inject the bird with some butter and the same rub that I grind fine b4 I mix with the butter.

If you have a beer can chicken thing that works good also, just don't put the beer can in it. Let the smoke roll through the bird.

sherlock · June 05, 2009, 09:58:00 AM

Be carefull.

Smoking is addictive.......................
;D

IKnowWood · June 05, 2009, 12:16:52 PM

RS

With the three selections you list. The Chicken is the first I would suggest. A simple smoke, just realize the skin is not good, unless you crisp it by other grilling / cooking means at the end. The Ribeye Steaks is a flavoring and end grilling type of thing with a grilling cook. Two different approaches. Now the ribs, that is a whole new adventure. But since you used to do the offset thing, I assume you done BBRibs before. This will be a new Rub method and spice likely. Look at the BBR Pictorial on here for some basic help on those.

So which first is tough. The chicken will give you an indication of the level of smoke flavoring (less is more here). The Ribs is a technique and flavoring complexity that I would not do first. Understand the smoke first. The Steaks are a nice flavoring thing to do on the nice day to grill the ribeyes. The smoke is used as a warm / cold smoke to add some smoke. Finish on the grill.

But one you start, its a whole new set of choices and adventures. Just hold on.

RocketSurgeon · June 05, 2009, 03:25:41 PM

Thanks everyone for the warm welcomes and advice. I read your comments over lunch, stopped by the store on the way home, and now have a 9 lb butt rubbed and sealed in the frig. I can't wait to throw it in the smoker! The plan is to start that tomorrow night and have it for Sunday dinner. In the mean time, to warm up the smoker for the butt, I will cold smoke a couple of ribeyes for dinner Saturday night and then toss them on the grill.

I appreciate the advice of going with something easy first, you guys talked me down from ribs...and I probably would have screwed them up being the first time and all. Need to make sure these meals aren't really bad for the first few times if at all possible-my wife thought I was crazy to spend this much money on a smoker. So now I need to show her how good it really is.

Well I am off to figure out for sure how long I am going to need to cook this thing and whether or not I want to do the covered apple juice thing or not. Again, thanks for talking some sense into me!

DaBeef2112 · June 05, 2009, 05:42:04 PM

Probably a good idea, I started off with Ribs and my first batch was chewy (but still delicious).

What wood are you using for the Ribeye's? I used the Crown Royal Oak and they turnned out great.

Wildcat · June 05, 2009, 07:08:15 PM

Need to make sure these meals aren't really bad for the first few times if at all possible-my wife thought I was crazy to spend this much money on a smoker. So now I need to show her how good it really is.

Welcome to the forum. Do not worry about being perfect. Good simple meals that she will like will do fine in the beginning. What will be more important to start with is how often you do dinner. Simply taking some of that burden off her will soon negate the cost. Or at least that is what my wife said. ;D

RocketSurgeon · June 08, 2009, 08:34:04 AM

Well, I thought I would give everyone a report on how my first weekend of smoking went. I started Saturday afternoon off with bacon wrapped chicken breast with the ham and cheese inside. I was planning on doing the ribeyes, but all I had for smoke was hickory and apple. I'll wait on the ribeyes until the Jim Beam or Crown come in. But the chicken was complete in two hours, four apple pucks gave the chicken a TERRIFIC flavor. Our first meal couldn't have come out better! My wife was very skeptical after smelling the apple smoke, and so was I a little. But the flavor it imparted was great. Although, I am sure the four pieces of bacon didn't hurt the cause either. ;D

Immediately after taking the chicken off, a nice way to preheat things, into the smoker went the 9 lb. butt. I screwed up kind of, I let it sit and warm up for only 45 minutes-the liquid fire prevention caused me to forget to get it out earlier. It started without a hitch, the box temps came up faster than I was expecting. Meat started at 43 degrees, after four hours of hickory, the temps had come up to 140 degrees. At this point, I took the Maverick and went to bed, waking up to check temps two or three times. It seemed to take forever to get up to 160 degrees, I thought this was the stall everyone talks about-NOT. After hitting 160 and staying there for what seemed a week, it finally started climbing again.

When it hit 175, I took the meat out and put into a sealed aluminum pan with apple juice and and back into the smoker it went. After several more hours, finally hit 185 degrees. At this point, I made my only real mistake. I pulled out the shelf to remove the temp probe, planning on putting the pan into the awaiting cooler with towels. Temp probe remove successfully, I saw a small piece that needed to be removed for official taste testing, you know how it is. All of a sudden my entire world started tipping out toward the ground!!! I quickly shoved my hands in it's path ready to save my hard work from the patio... You can pretty much guess how it turned out. I caught 9 lbs. of 185 degree meat in my bare hands! :o :o :o It now became apparent that I hadn't had enough fire prevention yet today. The meat made a lightening quick trip back into the now juiceless aluminum pan. The juice that helped keep the meat from drying out for the last couple of hours, all ended up on my knee and the patio. It did its job yet again, both my knee and the patio were very moist after that.

So after the initial shock wore off, I put more apple juice in the pan, sealed it back up and into the cooler it went. I let it sit for the next two hours, then pulled and ate some of the best pulled pork I have eaten. No need for sauce at all. It had a wonderfull flavor, was fall-apart tender, and juicier than I expected. Both my wife and oldest son thought it was incredible. Our youngest son doesn't eat much of anything lately, so his opinion doesn't count. ;D

So the weekend was a success and only had a short detour into the burn ward. ;D ;D Actually there wasn't any harm done except to my pride. I still remember the single thought running through my head as the pan started tipping-SAVE THE MEAT!!!

Now I think I will make some stainless angles to rivet above each shelf so this incident won't happen again. I narrowly avoided 3rd degree burns this time, I may not be so lucky next time. Sorry no pictures, the meat-in-hands incident kind of threw me off my game, maybe next time.

OU812 · June 08, 2009, 08:56:12 AM

Good save.

Had that happen to me on a turkey but the juices went all over my twelve pack abbs.

Glad everything turned out for you.