The Heresy Topic: BBQ Favorites, But Non-Smoked Or Only Lightly Smoked

[Huskee]

I originally posted this in the SUWYC topic, but I got to thinking how the general idea applies to many foods/meats, so I thought I'd make it its own discussion.

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Since y'all reading this are obviously either budding or very experienced Pitmasters (capital P), are you OK with making some regular BBQ staples in a non-traditional, non-BBQ, way?

Examples: Oven ribs, drenched in sauce -- gas grill brisket -- smashburgers (I know burgers are their own thing and not really BBQ per se, but I'm trying to cover many bases here) -- crock pot pork, etc...in other words, cheating the way restaurants do to save time ($) yet still make a perfectly edible end product?

Thoughts for or against?

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My original post on the subject:


Work in progress, but I'm doing something a little different for din din tonight—gas grill ribs.

Oh, the heresy!

I watched a video from Brian Lagerstrom, one of my favorite YouTube recipe personalities, and he does a couple racks of ribs in the oven wrapped in foil first, for 3 hours. Then on the gas grill for some char, then basted in homemade sauce. And I know exactly what you're thinking right now, "C'mon man... Oven and gas grill for ribs? Someone tell Meathead this whackjob is over here logged in and typing things unsupervised!"

But crazy as it may sound I have learned to appreciate food not drenched in smoke, it can be just as good. Think about a good smashburger. Even a fried steak. Both still delicious because of what it is. I realize I have had some BBQ blinders on, thinking ribs and steaks and burgers MUST have some degree of fire and smoke involved. Well, no you don't have to have smoke for your favorite proteins to be wonderful. And Brian's video here inspired me to try ribs in a way I'm not sure I've ever done them. However...

...I will make some small changes from his video- I will "smoke" them on the gasser first, with a pan of wood chips & small chunks, for an hour or so for some delicate-but-there smoke flavor (cuz I can't have my whole pitmaster card revoked by group vote here), then wrap in foil to continue the cook. Then I will sear and use my own homemade Shawsh to baste them.

Stay tuned.



After 1 hr of gas-grill-smoke-from-a-homemade-smoke-pouch, at wrapping time:

[tstalafuse]

I'm more open minded these days and willing to go with whatever turns out a good product. In my youth, it was must be done on a traditional offset smoker or it wasn't happening. Over time changes to my willingness to stay up all night tending things opened the door for electronic controllers, pellet smokers, etc.. Now, after 4 months of a forced no smoking ban, oven/pressure cooker ribs sound better and better.

[smokenoob]

yes, if it tasts good, I’ll eat it!
hold the lettuce!

[zblongladder]

Not to rehash my own thread, but if you want a juicy chicken with crispy skin, the answer's an oven, not a grill. I swear by Thomas Keller's roast chicken recipe, and it's very reliable, though I typically do it on top of a bed of carrots and onions, since otherwise the rendered fat will smoke your house to kingdom come.

https://www.food.com/recipe/thomas-kellers-favorite-roast-chicken-149560

[Huskee]

Does smoke flavor make this recipe not as good? Otherwise, really a smoker and an oven are both just hot boxes.

[zblongladder]

Huskee I imagine a smoker would do it justice, too...I've honestly never tried. It's high temperature, but even most pellet smokers could probably get to 450F with some charcoal pellets blended in. It's really the 450F for an hour+ that's the tricky part.

[klflowers]

No pics, but I recently did a butt in the slow cooker. It came out really good. I did not use liquid smoke to fake a smoke flavor, but I did use a couple rubs. Can’t remember which, but they were probably Meat Church.

[Donw]

When I’m cooking a lot of butts for a large occasion my little secret is that one or even two may have been cooked in an Instant Pot. I just add them back in when pulling to add moisture and some really nice meat. No liquid smoke ever used as it is not needed with the proper rub.

[Sid P]

This is what I was going to say. The only thing missing from Crock Pot pulled pork is the smoke, and it’s still delicious.

[Lynn Dollar]

This is blasphemy .............. hahaha

[barelfly]

My smoker, a Smokin-It 3D, is basically an oven. An electric smoker yes, that has a smoke box set directly over the heating element, allows for smoke. And like you say, it’s definitely a lighter smoke but it’s there, more pronounced on certain meats. But it works great, is set it and forget it style cooking and is well built.

So, I’m all for cooking whatever way works for you and your current cooking situation. So….cook on Pitmaster!!!!!! And keep posting those great pics of ribs! 😎

[Oak Smoke]

I’m about the quality of the finished product not how we got there. Smokers, grills, flat tops, SV heaters, ovens, and crock pots are all tools we use to arrive at an end we like. I learned to love having lots of good tools as a mechanic years ago. My cooking tool selection is pretty good now.

[synodog]

I've done the oven thing after realizing my gas smoker was out of fuel after an hour or two of smoking. I think they were ribs and they were good. I'm no purist, but more of a preferist (there is no such word) so I generally smoke or two zone cook most of the time, but I have done lemon-pepper chicken in the oven and in the gasser. Now that I have the Smoque XL, Lemon Pepper Chicken thighs are on the menu for next week and I'll be using that for the first time with that recipe.

[Skip]

I just enjoy cooking...Outdoors, indoors, planning, grocery shopping, even cleaning up as long as I clean as I go!

[klflowers]

I was with you up until the cleaning up part

[drobinson]

Does the end justify the means? Regarding this subject, I say yes.

[58limited]

I've done all that you mention Huskee, especially in bad weather. It's all good but I like what smoke does to food so I'm inclined to at least smoke for an hour or so before going into the oven or crock pot when possible.

[Huskee]

Next time I need to do oven or gas grill ribs (if there's ever a reason) I will smoke on the kettle for a good hour first. They just needed more.

[Henrik]

I’m cool with either. Good food => I’m happy!

Getting into the details though, I’ve noticed a small thing that makes me prefer cooking outdoors - the meat/veg you’re cooking is suspended in air, since the food is on grill grates. I’m trying to replicate that indoors, since an oven roast or turkey turns out better if you place it on grates, in a pan, so the bird/meat isn’t resting in its own juices.

Then we can talk about smoke vs no smoke, but this ”surrounded by air” thing is important me thinks.

[Huskee]

Totally agree!

[captainlee]

One needs to mix it up, I love smoked food but don't want it all the time. Different recipes and methods are great. Especially now with Stage 2 fire restrictions my smoker is idle.

[tenphases]

I don't think anyone takes offense to crock pot pulled pork or oven ribs, I even had boiled then grilled ribs I liked. I think that most people here are amateur craftsmen/women so when some one makes pulled pork in a crock pot and calls it or compares it to what I just spent 14 hours doing is when we get irritated.

For example an Italian that labors over their gravy for hours doesn't care if I eat ragu but don't compare it to their gray lol

[58limited]

I know we joke about boiled ribs but the father of one of my techs made some and shared with my staff and they were quite good.

[58limited]

One reason I found this forum and joined is because another forum really raked me over the coals for the way I sometimes do pork butt: Inject with a brine solution, rest overnight, season, then wrap in foil. Into a 275^o oven (or smoker - this is the part one guy really didn't like but it was summer so I decided to cook outside) for 1 hour per pound then unwrap and put into the smoker with thick white but not dirty smoke for an hour. The pork tastes great and is softer than the bread you serve it on.

The other forum really didn't like that - one guy pointed out that smoke doesn't penetrate foil - I had to really bite my tongue and not go off on him (<sarcasm>gee, in all my chemistry and other classes in high school and college, plus basic common sense, I never learned that smoke wouldn't penetrate metal </sarcasm> and I'm being much nicer that when I read his post), one of my first posts here was about this method and it received positive responses so I joined.