PitCast Episode 89 - "PotKettleBlack" interview - January 11, 2018

[BBQCentralShow]

This week on the Pitcast, Potkettleblack makes his world debut. We get to know the sual stuff we have come to expect in these interviews...HOWEVER...there is also some incredible Sous-Vide info that you might find kind of life changing...if you're in to that kind of thing!! ENJOY!!

[Potkettleblack]

It was a great pleasure talking with you Greg. I'd be happy to go again someday.

I'm changing my celebrity answer from Flay to:
Any of the following: Rick Bayless, Alton Brown, Grant Crilly of ChefSteps, Ken Forkish, Christopher Kimball (though I don't think he'd be that fun to hang with).

[spoon]

That sounds like a crazy amount of work on the brisket. Plus I need to write a BBQ manifesto just because it's fun to say. Really fun interview with Potkettleblack!

[Potkettleblack]

It's really not that much work.
If I sous-smoke, it's salt it, dump it in a bag, set it, forget it for 3 days, then smoke it for a few hours.
I don't have to dry brine, because I'm hot brining in the bag. I don't have to worry about the stall. And I don't have to monitor the grill for 8 hours.

It's more time, but it's not more work.

[EdF]

Think person-days vs elapsed time. For SVQ, it's mostly the latter.

[Potkettleblack]

For anyone interested in the Manifesto:

http://www.smoquebbq.com/manifesto.pdf

[Huskee]

Good to hear from you Potkettleblack! A medium rare, yet tender, brisket with good bark sounds incredible. Must try. Will try, eventually.

[Potkettleblack]

My SV mentor wrote it up here:

https://lipavi.com/recipe/a-tale-of-two-briskets-sous-vide-hot-smoke-the-sous-b-q-solution/

[DWCowles]

Nice interview!

[JCBBQ]

PKB!! Great to put a voice to your avatar. Funny, I assumed you were a chef bc you're so knowledgeable on SV. A while back I did a little SV experiment w brisket. I liked the texture of a medium rare brisket but didn't care for the mouth feel as there wasn't the fat that a steak has. But that was the problem, I was comparing it to steak.

https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/forum/the-pit-mastery-program/sous-vide/284501-1-brisket-flat-2-sv-experiments

I like your idea about smoking it and treating it like a brisket at medium rare. I'm going to try it. One question: you said you found the bags for a full packer...care to share that resource? Thanks.

Great interview Greg!

[Potkettleblack]

Also, if you want steak on the cheap, that's chuck more than brisket. SV makes a properly butchered chuck roast into some great steak.

[Huskee]

Link edited Potkettleblack

[Potkettleblack]

Thanks.

[Troutman]

Good to put a voice to a character Max. Being a rookie sous vider I have listend to and accepted your advice many times. Again good to hear from you and look forward to continued banter with you on the pit. Being a former Chicagoan I can identofy with your points of view on Chitown BBQ.

And to Greg and anyone else who has never tried or is skeptical about SV-Q medium rare brisket, you interested in a piece of this? Done exactly as Max describes, in fact Max had influence over my procedure. It was pre-smoked, sous vide at 133*, then final smoked;

[HouseHomey]

Yeah he would!

[Steve B]

HouseHomey is like Mikey. He would eat anything. 🤣. But seriously that brisket looks incredible 👍👍👍

[Mr. Bones]

Super Coo!!!l

[Eugene A]

OK, so now I add one more thing to my barbecue and grilling bucket list -- sous-vide!

[Huskee]

Attempting my first foray into SV tonight with chicken breasts. Following CLint's advice in his AR article. Because of my wife & kids I am thinking of doing it a little hotter, say 153ish, maybe 155, to avoid the soft "this isn't done" texture. What are your thoughts on the best way to do BLSL breasts Potkettleblack & Troutman?

[HouseHomey]

I'll bite BLSL??

[Huskee]

HouseHomey Technically BS fits more correctly, but it stands for boneless skinless.

[HouseHomey]

All good. I felt left out.

[Potkettleblack]

Attempting my first foray into SV tonight with chicken breasts. Following CLint's advice in his AR article. Because of my wife & kids I am thinking of doing it a little hotter, say 153ish, maybe 155, to avoid the soft "this isn't done" texture. What are your thoughts on the best way to do BLSL breasts Potkettleblack & Troutman?

155 should be fine. A couple hours at most. Nothing in the bag but salt. I'd probably go lower, at 149, but nothing wrong with 155. Sear over medium high heat. You don't really want to put a hard sear on BLSL, as that makes Chicken Wood. I like a vinaigrette on this, perfectly legit. Alternatively, if you want to fire up the smokey joe, brush with some glaze, and give 5 minutes over the fire. You'd shock in ice water for 5 minutes before doing that. And wipe clean out of the bag. Last idea would be to process the purge per the sticky, and build a pan sauce with that and some white wine and whatever else you have going on... capers, dill, garlic, whatever.

[Potkettleblack]

Medium heat, don't want the hard sear, then. I don't do pan sauces in my CI, but I'm nervous about it.

[EdF]

Looking forward to the outcome. My wife likes her meat "done" and I've been pushing down the temp for breasts.

[HouseHomey]

Be careful. Chicken breast are like the rictor scale as they get to hotter IT.

[EdF]

Great interview with one of the most helpful guys on the forums!

[Polarbear777]

Finishing at 350F to avoid evaporative cooling and get a bark is genius. I didn’t think a standard finish would be worth the trouble, so I’ll have to try this

Maybe this should be an AR main site recipe (with appropriate credit of course to PKB and mentor).

Maybe meathead will drop a brisket off for you and visit you a week later. :-)

[Potkettleblack]

Not a long haul as I understand it. But have to cross the dividing line between the wide open burbs and the big bad city.

[HouseHomey]

Wholely agree! Meathead "Where's the Beef?" A worthy cause with The crown and Kingdom in mind.

[scottranda]

Great interview. No mention of bread though

[Potkettleblack]

Maybe next go. Greg drove. That said, I make bread, but I know the Sous Vide.

[HouseHomey]

Potkettleblack Great Job my friend!!! I enjoyed this. I would also like to take a s cond and let everyone know that when I had an SV brisket question PKB responded promptly to my questions in true AR form!

I threw a Tri tip in the bath at noon. This interview was appropriate in its timing.

BBQCentralShow Greg, is it my imagination or have you been stealthily asking SV questions along the way. I think Greg is now a closet t SV'er. Cmon Greg, spill the beans!!

[Potkettleblack]

He did admit to have a Supreme, which is what I got when it first came out. My Supreme is getting sent to a friend to make space. Once you go IC, you don’t go back.