Yesterday I decided to try making burnt ends for the first time and it was a disaster, so I need some advice from more experienced pit-masters.
Some background: I did 2 Prime packers last fall that were about 10 3/4 lbs. each in separate cooks. I did them at 240 and they were done in 11 1/2 hours, which was just over an hour per pound, and both turned out great. It should be noted that they were done on my old smoker, a Grand Slam, and they were put directly on the grates.
I now have a Grid Iron with multiple shelves. For this cook I had a Choice packer that I trimmed and separated the flat & point. In retrospect I took too much fat off the point but there were other issues that had more impact on the failure.
The flat weighed 5 3/4 lbs. and the point was 2 3/4 lbs. so based on my previous experience I reasoned that the flat would take just shy of 7 hours and the point should take just over 3 hours, using an hour and 10 mins. per pound as my guide.
Both pieces were placed on the middle shelf in the smoker and spritzed with water and cider vinegar every hour. I put the Blaz'n Smoker Pro box (think Amaz'N tube) on the grates below this shelf and used 100% hickory in it as well as the hopper. I wrapped the flat in butcher paper after 4 hours with a good bark and an internal temp of 165, which was when I put the point on. At the 7 hour mark, when I thought the flat would be done, it was only at 163 internal. At that time I wrapped the point after 2 1/2 hours based on the bark, but the internal temp was only 135. Since it was considerably smaller, I didn't think I should try to take it to 165-170 before wrapping. I also upped the pit to 275 hoping to power through what appeared to be a late stall (?) The flat was on for 8 1/2 hours before it got to 198 and the point took 5 1/2 hours to get to 192, neither piece was probe tender. I pulled and cambro'd the flat for 90 min. and I cut the point into cubes, sauced them, and put them back on for about 45 minutes. In the end the burnt end pieces were tough and very chewy, to the point of not being edible. The flat was very dry and in the end it wasn't edible either, both pieces had an overwhelming smoky taste which I've never experienced with a pellet smoker.
So here are some things that I'm wondering about: 1) could Choice vs. Prime have made that much of a difference? 2) could the larger Grid Iron and cooking on the middle shelf have made a significant difference due to increased air flow vs. the Grand Slam? 3) I'm not sure that I've ever been able to discern the difference between different pellet types, i.e. apple, oak, pecan, etc. but I'm wondering if the hickory and using the additional smoke box contributed to the heavy smokiness? 4) I followed the heygrillhey video on making burnt ends but it just didn't happen, my temps and the timing were completely off. 5) Do those of you who have succeeded in making burnt ends separate the muscles before, during, or after cooking?
Sorry for the length of this, I'm truly baffled by this failure and I need to figure out how to fix things going forward. Maybe I'll try a full packer and keep it intact then try burnt ends later. Maybe I just need to learn the Grid Iron and the differences in cooking on the different shelves vs. directly on the grates. I'd appreciate any advice the Pit can give me.
Some background: I did 2 Prime packers last fall that were about 10 3/4 lbs. each in separate cooks. I did them at 240 and they were done in 11 1/2 hours, which was just over an hour per pound, and both turned out great. It should be noted that they were done on my old smoker, a Grand Slam, and they were put directly on the grates.
I now have a Grid Iron with multiple shelves. For this cook I had a Choice packer that I trimmed and separated the flat & point. In retrospect I took too much fat off the point but there were other issues that had more impact on the failure.
The flat weighed 5 3/4 lbs. and the point was 2 3/4 lbs. so based on my previous experience I reasoned that the flat would take just shy of 7 hours and the point should take just over 3 hours, using an hour and 10 mins. per pound as my guide.
Both pieces were placed on the middle shelf in the smoker and spritzed with water and cider vinegar every hour. I put the Blaz'n Smoker Pro box (think Amaz'N tube) on the grates below this shelf and used 100% hickory in it as well as the hopper. I wrapped the flat in butcher paper after 4 hours with a good bark and an internal temp of 165, which was when I put the point on. At the 7 hour mark, when I thought the flat would be done, it was only at 163 internal. At that time I wrapped the point after 2 1/2 hours based on the bark, but the internal temp was only 135. Since it was considerably smaller, I didn't think I should try to take it to 165-170 before wrapping. I also upped the pit to 275 hoping to power through what appeared to be a late stall (?) The flat was on for 8 1/2 hours before it got to 198 and the point took 5 1/2 hours to get to 192, neither piece was probe tender. I pulled and cambro'd the flat for 90 min. and I cut the point into cubes, sauced them, and put them back on for about 45 minutes. In the end the burnt end pieces were tough and very chewy, to the point of not being edible. The flat was very dry and in the end it wasn't edible either, both pieces had an overwhelming smoky taste which I've never experienced with a pellet smoker.
So here are some things that I'm wondering about: 1) could Choice vs. Prime have made that much of a difference? 2) could the larger Grid Iron and cooking on the middle shelf have made a significant difference due to increased air flow vs. the Grand Slam? 3) I'm not sure that I've ever been able to discern the difference between different pellet types, i.e. apple, oak, pecan, etc. but I'm wondering if the hickory and using the additional smoke box contributed to the heavy smokiness? 4) I followed the heygrillhey video on making burnt ends but it just didn't happen, my temps and the timing were completely off. 5) Do those of you who have succeeded in making burnt ends separate the muscles before, during, or after cooking?
Sorry for the length of this, I'm truly baffled by this failure and I need to figure out how to fix things going forward. Maybe I'll try a full packer and keep it intact then try burnt ends later. Maybe I just need to learn the Grid Iron and the differences in cooking on the different shelves vs. directly on the grates. I'd appreciate any advice the Pit can give me.
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