When did you realize that smoking meat wasn't a special occassion event?
Once upon a time it was a big deal when I cooked a brisket (and of course ribs, sausage, etc.) Usually for family or friends on some "event" or gathering or party. Sure, I'd do burgers, steaks or chicken just for dinner but over time it just became the way I cooked. This morning I casually tossed on 3 racks of ribs on the Yoder (pellet grills make "casual" a thing) having removed the silverskin and salted them last night). I know my Yoder and the ribs so well now that I am sure they will take 6 hours at 225. Then I'll glaze them and finish them with my roofing torch/industrial weed burner at 2 pm.
At some point this changed from what I did to who I am.
That's a good question. A long time ago, smoking a turkey for thanksgiving was a big deal for me (back in the 1990's), and was one of the few things I smoked during the course of a year.
Today, I cook true low and slow BBQ items such as ribs and Boston butts more often than I cook quick "grill" items such as hamburgers and hot dogs! I can't say when this happened, as it was a gradual process over the last 20 to 30 years.
The biggest obstacle to me in this area has been my wife, who is not a "foodie" and sure does not believe in planning meals hours much less days in advance. She is a spur of the moment person versus a planner, and she always says all I think about is food, as I will be planning the next thing I want to cook way in advance. We finally have it to the point I take care of almost all meat coming into the house, and just let her make her salads or buy her veggies and cut them up as sides. At this point she is fine if I want to smoke a butt overnight on Saturday, and we have that protein Sunday through Wednesday, or ribs, or whatever.
Sfdrew28 I think my wife could live on popcorn. She cooks but doesn’t enjoy it like I do, and looks at it as more of a necessary evil. I think she enjoyed the chicken I cooked her tonight. Her part - she cut up some celery... hahaha.
For ribs, yeah, because I can make one rack for me and Mrs. But for briskets and butts, it's still one of those have-people-over things, because of the size of the cook.
For ribs, yeah, because I can make one rack for me and Mrs. But for briskets and butts, it's still one of those have-people-over things, because of the size of the cook.
For me it isn't the volume of the food but getting the cooker fired up for a 6 hour journey... If I just need a rack for me and the spousal unit (as per today) I am going to do 3 or more...they always find a home and people seem to appear.
For me, it was when I got a Pit Barrel Cooker. Smoking on a Weber kettle made it an event due to the time and effort required. Now it's pretty much a given that I will smoke at least 1 chicken every weekend for lunch the rest of the week.
At some point this changed from what I did to who I am.
That sir is very well said. I began cooking for myself in college. Used to stuff dirty rice into a whole chicken and bake it in the oven for an hour or so and out came a delicious but simply made meal. Soon roommates wanted some so it became not one but two or three chickens. Soon it was what I did but really it became satisfying because nothing beats the comradery and pleasure one receives by sharing a meal with friends, family or even strangers. It's really kind of a rush when everyone is happy and the food thoroughly consumed.
Years later it has become a part of my conscientious life. I take better care of my cookers, sorry to say, then I do a lot of other more important things. I always think ahead and plan grocery shopping around my next creation. Not only do I want the satisfaction of good, home made food, I guess I crave the pleasure that it brings to me by providing for others. It has become who I am.
I don’t smoke as often as I’d like, mostly because I don’t have time. My family loves pulled pork, but doing a 14 hour cook and having to feed my stickburner every ~30 mins makes me one tired guy.
That’s what has prevented me from getting a stick burner. I love the food, and occasionally sitting around for hours on end might be fun...but overall it’s not for me.
Besides, feeding that thing would cost me a fortune. That wood doesn’t just grow on tress you know. LOL
I would say getting a Weber Performer and learning the snake method, then getting a SNS last year, helped me in this area. My stick burner is like yours - I gotta tend it constantly. With the kettle+SNS I can put 1-2 butts or 3 racks of ribs on and go run around town for the afternoon doing other stuff.
I used my Webber Performer with charcoal and wood chunks for many years and had good barbecue. Personally, I can tell the difference when I do that method vs all wood. I wish I couldn’t...it would save precious sleeping hours!
Cooking gadgets
Weber Summit Charcoal Grill Center
Weber Summit Platinum D6
Blue Rhino Razor
Dyna-Glo XL Premium Dual Chamber
Camp Chef Somerset IV along with their Artisan Pizza Oven 90
Anova WiFi
Thermometers
Thermapen Mk4 - ThermaQ High Temp Kit - ThermaQ Meathead Kit - ThermaQ WiFi - ThermoWorks IR-GUN-S - ThermoWorks Signals & Billows - ThermoPop -ThermoWorks ProNeedle - ThermoWorks TimeStick Trio x2 - and a Christopher Kimball timer - NO, I do not work for ThermoWorks...I just like their products.
Other useful bits...
KitchenAid 7-qt Pro Line stand mixer
A Black & Decker food processor that I can't seem to murder
A couple of immersion blenders, one a "consumer" model & the other a "high end" Italian thing. Yes, the Italian one is a bit better, but only marginally
Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus 8-qt + accessories like egg-bite & egg holders
All-Clad pots & pans, along with some cast iron...everything from 7" Skookie pans to 8.5qt Dutch ovens
Weber GBS griddle, pizza stone, and wok
Knives range from Mercer to F. Dick to "You spent how much for one knife? One knife?!" LOL
For me, it was June 2005. LOL
I know this because that’s when I my shiny new Weber Summit Platinum D6 was delivered. Prior to that I had a basic $99 gasser with no frills. The Summit changed everything. I started cooking anything & everything...and a lot more often. Not only did it get cooked on regularly...but it also has a rotisserie...and a smoke box.
Now that smoke box, while small, added flavours that I was never able to achieve with the small grill. (Even with a cast iron smoke box tossed in.) That lead me to attempt smoking on it... And while it’s possible, it still wasn’t quite right...so the game was on.
And if if you’ve got the toys, you gotta play with them.
Besides, I’ve never been one of those "save it for a special occasion" type person.
Life’s too short for such nonsense IMO.
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Avova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
About 2004 I got my fist Pellet Grill, a Traeger Texas Style after several years with a Gasser and Kettle. After some practice and a few Briskets, BB Ribs, etc I realized that this BBQ and Cooking could be fun! Of course the Amazing Ribs Site had helped me and proves to me that we can all do successful cooks if we share our experiences! With help from AR I've gotten better with Gas, Charcoal, and Pellets! FUN!
I started cooking regularly indoors in '73 or so. By 1980 it was just something I always did - enjoyed the adulation of my results! ;-)
Started with a few tin can smokers in '83 and rusted them out sequentially.
Then my new squeeze at the time said "well you left your last smoker with the ex, and I saw this cute little green ceramic thing. Why don't we get one"? We did, in 2002 - and that's when it just clicked in. We did get the large instead of the cute little one though.
Hmmm, been grilling, baking, and cooking since I was a kid, say late 60's. The last 50 years have been a constant evolution of learning, but it was when I retired in 2014 that my bbq and smoking skills really started to go up. I use my grills 4 or 5 times a week now, regardless of weather. As others have mentioned, it is more who I am now than what I do, and my friends and family now consider me the "go-to" guy when it comes to outdoor cooking. So much more to learn....
I will revise my answer to say that my number of low and slow cooks went up dramatically, when I picked up a used Performer Deluxe 18 months ago, and learned the snake method. Then last November I got a SNS (Thanksgiving turkey was my excuse!). My stick burner like most requires almost constant attention. With the kettle and a snake, or the SNS, I can plan on doing something else for 6 to 8 hours before I have to stoke the fire again. Game changer!
It was a week after I got my pellet grill and decided I was going to be the primary cook in our house. January 2 2018. And my wonderful wife luvs it this way🤓
I think that’s kinda key... Once you stop thinking "magic smoker device" and it becomes the "outdoor oven" (with magical properties LOL) then everything really takes off...and it gets used "whenever."
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