I never cooked anything that wasn't edible. I did always try to improve. After a few years of trying all the tricks, I found the easiest simple recipe's were the ones I enjoy and make the most. Worcestershire and rub is all I use nowadays.
Enjoy the journey and check in often. Lot's of good advice in the forums.
Welcome Sherpa. Check out the 101's that appear at the top of the different sections. There is some good information in them. There are some interesting things to learn about your new smoker. The first one is when you are loading your smoker make sure that the little tube that sticks out of the back wall of your smoker. is not in contact with the meat. There are others and if you spend some time reading I think you will find the stories. One of the hardest lessons I had to learn was when the recipe calls for 4 OZ. of wood, try to stick as close as you can to this. These smokers do not need a lot of wood to make good BBQ. Then there is the "Big Bang". You may never experience one, but you need to know about them just in case. My "Big Bang" happened while I had my new 045 filled with 2 turkeys. About 45 minutes into the cook I had the Bang. My wife was in the back of the house and came running out screaming "What the heck was that"? All of the dogs in the neighborhood were going ballistic. I ran out thinking my new smoker was going to be round and there were going to be turkey pieces parts all over my back yard. The smoker was fine, the turkeys were fine but I shut the smoker down just to make sure everything was all right. That brings up another thing you should know. These smokers have a preset startup mode. No matter what temperature you set them to run at, for the first 30 to 45 minutes they are set to run full blast. This is to get the smoke rolling fast. If you shut the smoker down, or the smoker looses power for some reason, when you turn it back on, the smoker will go back into the startup mode. Enjoy your smoker, and welcome to the group.
Welcome to the forum! You'll find lots of exerience, ideas, recipes, disaster reports, success stories, and just plain everyday enjoyment of smoking food here. You'll find experts in smoking fish, brisket, pork, steak, etc., all willing to share (and argue about, and compare) their techniques and flavorings. Some truly unique stuff will have you immediately searching for meat cuts and ingredients you've never heard of. Enjoy!
Thanks to you all for the warm welcome! I've already spent the better part of the day reading through the 101's and preparing to attempt my ALL-TIME FAVORITE (brisket). There is a wealth of information here and thus far, what I've gotten out of it all is to keep a journal, which I've already started.
Now, if I can just understand what in the hell is wrong with my CS thermometer and what the hell it's good for.....? Thank god for my Weber 6741 or I'd be even more lost....
Now, if I can just understand what in the hell is wrong with my CS thermometer and what the hell it's good for.....? Thank god for my Weber 6741 or I'd be even more lost....
Hello, new here 
Welcome aboard!
Lots of good stuff to be found here.
And good folks as well.
Lots of good stuff to be found here.
And good folks as well.
Welcome DanaChambers and happy smokin!
Good afternoon everyone. I have been smoking for about 20 years on a electric water bullet. I have a lot of success with that thing but alas, it died with a couple of racks in that cold, darn metal missile. I have been wanting a smoker I could control a little bit more than not at all. So I did my typical thing and geeked-out on smokers. The SM025 won and I did my first smoke with a whole chicken. Fantastic, everything was as I hoped. Looking forward to my new adventures into proper q...well at least the lazy persons electric style.
Nothing "lazy" about it - you just get to spend your time on more fun stuff! Welcome!
quote:Originally posted by DanaChambers:
Hello, new here
Welcome to the forum and I hope you find lots of ideas, recipes, and friends wiling to give great advice!
Tell us more about your smoking apparatus, your meat preferences, and your experience, and lots of good cooks here will jump in to help when you need it.
Hey everyone,
New to smoking here... bought a "previously loved" Smokette II from a friend who got a larger CS smoker.
I'm in LOVE! I've only had it a month or so and started with a brisket, then a pork shoulder, and a couple pork butts. Everything has been fantastic, I don't know how you can go wrong with these CS smokers.
New to smoking here... bought a "previously loved" Smokette II from a friend who got a larger CS smoker.
I'm in LOVE! I've only had it a month or so and started with a brisket, then a pork shoulder, and a couple pork butts. Everything has been fantastic, I don't know how you can go wrong with these CS smokers.
Hi All,
I am opening a Smokehouse Bistro in Bonnie Scotland. I have just purchased an FEC 240.
I want to try to create a fusion of Smokey Cue with a nod to the local produce in Scotland. There is an excellent supply of cheeses, lamb, beef and pork. We are also on the coast for salmon and shell fish. Should be fun.
I am opening a Smokehouse Bistro in Bonnie Scotland. I have just purchased an FEC 240.
I want to try to create a fusion of Smokey Cue with a nod to the local produce in Scotland. There is an excellent supply of cheeses, lamb, beef and pork. We are also on the coast for salmon and shell fish. Should be fun.
quote:Originally posted by Wellpark:
Hi All,
I am opening a Smokehouse Bistro in Bonnie Scotland. I have just purchased an FEC 240.
I want to try to create a fusion of Smokey Cue with a nod to the local produce in Scotland. There is an excellent supply of cheeses, lamb, beef and pork. We are also on the coast for salmon and shell fish. Should be fun.
Excellent! Welcome to the family. Hope you enjoy your 240 as much as I enjoy my 100. And if it's not a trade secret, we'd love to see a few smoked Scottish recipes that you come up with. Best of luck in your new endeavor and keep us posted with your progress.
Thanks AndyJ! Love your pork belly burnt ends...might use! Thanks
HELLO everyone, my name is Joyce and I am so glad to be a part of this community. I work as a web developer for an online shop that sells quality pet supplies shock collars for dogs, dog crates, and pet bed. Thank you for giving me the privilege to join this forum. I am looking forward to getting new recipes and tips from the aspiring cooks in CS. See you around!
Welcome! Don't be shy, we're a friendly bunch.
Phaelon56 is the screen name I've used for the past 20 years in a variety of forums - travel, food/dining/cooking, and coffee/espresso. I'm also a big fan of live and recorded music (most genres except for country and hip-hop) and have a kick-a*s vintage audio system that I spent years putting together.
I am Owen O'Neill - formerly of central NY state, but as of last year a transplant to the Triangle area of NC. Back in the late 1990's I purchased a cheap ($70) Char-Broil electric bullet style water smoker. It had limited capacity (three full racks of ribs if halved and using rib racks,) didn't perform well if outdoor temps were below 75 degrees, and required replenishing the water bowl at least once during each smoking session (more if it was pork shoulder.) I started with hickory chips but later used mesquite, then a combination of the two. That unit died after ten years of use (4x to 5x times per year,) and I bought another one just like it. Used that one for 8 years, then gave it to a friend when we moved.
Fast forward to now: Did lots of research and was finding Masterbuilt, Char-Broil, and other brands in the $200 to $300 price range that looked iffy, in terms of build quality and reliability. Spotted a used SM025 on Facebook Marketplace, did some research ( I had never heard of the brand.) We settled on $400, including casters and the probe. It needs a light cleaning but is in perfect working order. I've never before cooked a brisket, so I tried one this past weekend. Until I develop a better dry rub of my own, I just use McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning (try it with ribs - you might be pleasantly surprised.) It was just the flat - about 5 pounds. Rubbed, wrapped, then refrigerated for 18 hours and left it room temp for several hours before smoking. I used about 1.5 cups of mixed hickory and apple chips - soaked for several hours prior. Set smoker to 225 F and placed brisket on lower rack with fat side up (probably should have done fat side down?)
Expecting roughly 1 hour per pound... and 4 hours in it was only reading 170 F and had been stuck there for awhile. I did some quick reading online, then decided to pull it out, wrap in foil, and return to smoker with fat side down. Inserted the probe into meat at an angle - through the foil - to ensure that the tip did not come out other side. 45 minutes later, it had budged only 2 degrees. I bumped up temp to 250 F, then at 5.5 hours in I raised it to 275 F. At 6 hours it finally read 190, and I pulled it (bed time was soon and it was late. ) Waited 30 minutes then opened foil and cut a slice. It was a bit dry for my taste (not bone dry but still...) and had a bit of pink. Tried eating part of the slice and it was not as tender as a good brisket should be. To salvage it, I tried the Drunken Brisket recipe (smoke for only 3 hours, remove and char both sides on a grill, simmer 1.5 hours in a Bacon BBQ sauce, replenish liquids, then simmer an additional 1.5 hours. I did that but skipped the final 1.5 hour simmer, as this brisket had already smoked for nearly 6 hours.)
I'm generally a ribs guy, but my wife does not eat pork for religious reasons (former Seventh Day Adventist.) I used thick cut turkey bacon in the sauce, subbed Sukrin Gold brown sugar (0 calories) for the recommended sugar (and still cut the amount of sugar by 50%,) then simmered it down to a fairly thick consistency. The brisket had cooled been re-wrapped, and sat in the fridge overnight.
Results? Actually... fantastic. It doesn't really need the sauce but the extra simmering in the sauce gave it the texture I was hoping for. It's tender enough to cut with a fork but still holds together nicely when sliced. The sauce has cider vinegar, chili sauce, and molasses as components. It's thick but tangy and only a hint of sweetness (I detest super sweet BBQ sauce.)
I remain puzzled as to why it took so long and came out a bit on the dry side.
Here is what I am looking at - other ideas appreciated:
1) Calibrate temp of probe (our instant read digital meat thermometer is in storage until our kitchen remodel is done.)
2) Cook with fat side down.
3) Wrap in foil halfway through instead of closer to the end of the smoke.
4) Set unit to a higher temp - maybe 250 F?
Note: if the section of above after my intro should be edited out and pasted in as a new thread elsewhere - please say so and I will accommodate. Thanks!
bp
Hi guys. My name is Don Bailey and we have a BBQ trailer we are having built that will have the FEC300 installed in it for regular retail and competitions. Can't wait to get my hand on that smoker to get it going. Aslo I am located in the Central KY area right outside of Lexington, KY.
Welcome Don and Phaelon
Pahelon, suggest a packer brisket next time and check out the brisket section, particularly Smokins 101's. That's a good place to start. Take notes each cook and improve each time.