Who on the board has an outside smoker, and what meats have you smoked?

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Originally posted by: nelehnitram

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Originally posted by: Roulette Man


I have mesquite and hickory laced charcoal and sometimes have bought chips. I know that hard woods are the key. I have heard woods like apple wood and cherry wood is also good.

I tasted brisket at a high end barbecue restaurant the other day. It was delicous but had a lot of fat under the bark (the crust) of the meat.

I'm seeing dueling positions on ribs. Some people advocate if you use a sauce, that you shouldn't put sauce on until the very end. Some advocate putting in on early because of the carmelization of the sugars in the sauce.

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We use a rub and then add the sauce at the end - mmm good!

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Originally posted by: umpire48
My next door neighbor & I have smokers. On holidays we are up very very early starting our smokers. Our neighbor across the street came over & said he was going to call the fire department because of all the smoke. I think he came over to grab a beer (at 0700).
I have smoked turkey for Thanksgiving & it was excellent. We mostly smoke brisket & ribs.

You will enjoy the smoked turkey.

BTW, I use hickory & mesquite.

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Originally posted by: Roulette Man

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Originally posted by: umpire48
My next door neighbor & I have smokers. On holidays we are up very very early starting our smokers. Our neighbor across the street came over & said he was going to call the fire department because of all the smoke. I think he came over to grab a beer (at 0700).
I have smoked turkey for Thanksgiving & it was excellent. We mostly smoke brisket & ribs.

You will enjoy the smoked turkey.

BTW, I use hickory & mesquite.

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I will want to do a trial run before Thanksgiving. My birds are usually 22 to 25 pounds (in other words large). I of course will do a lot of reading on this, but how many hours do you estimate for the bird to be done on a smoker? I see a couple of articles where turkeys can be smoked at higher temperatures than other meats. When I've done a turkey on my Weber barbecue, I usually coat the skin with an herbed butter. It creates a beautiful golden skin. I usually have to put foil over the wings, because they are direcly over the coals (indirect heat) and will catch on fire if you don't do it.

Of course getting a fresh bird from a high end market helps to add to the taste and the experience. Last year I bought mine from Whole Foods, and everybody raved it was the best turkey they ever had.

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Originally posted by: BAGIANT
We have a nice one that has two grills....a large one and a smaller one on the side. The only thing we have really smoked so far is pork ribs.

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Originally posted by: Roulette Man

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I will want to do a trial run before Thanksgiving. My birds are usually 22 to 25 pounds (in other words large). I of course will do a lot of reading on this, but how many hours do you estimate for the bird to be done on a smoker? I see a couple of articles where turkeys can be smoked at higher temperatures than other meats. When I've done a turkey on my Weber barbecue, I usually coat the skin with an herbed butter. It creates a beautiful golden skin. I usually have to put foil over the wings, because they are direcly over the coals (indirect heat) and will catch on fire if you don't do it.

Of course getting a fresh bird from a high end market helps to add to the taste and the experience. Last year I bought mine from Whole Foods, and everybody raved it was the best turkey they ever had.

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Originally posted by: jatki99

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Originally posted by: Roulette Man

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I will want to do a trial run before Thanksgiving. My birds are usually 22 to 25 pounds (in other words large). I of course will do a lot of reading on this, but how many hours do you estimate for the bird to be done on a smoker? I see a couple of articles where turkeys can be smoked at higher temperatures than other meats. When I've done a turkey on my Weber barbecue, I usually coat the skin with an herbed butter. It creates a beautiful golden skin. I usually have to put foil over the wings, because they are direcly over the coals (indirect heat) and will catch on fire if you don't do it.

Of course getting a fresh bird from a high end market helps to add to the taste and the experience. Last year I bought mine from Whole Foods, and everybody raved it was the best turkey they ever had.

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HA! that;s more like birdzilla there RM, better start smoking that F'er the day before my man, hell it might not even fit in that smoker(seriously). If that's the smoker I'm thinking it is, I had a freind who had one and I don't think it will fit. There's two levels I beleive, why not do two smaller birds and prepare them two different ways? Folks might even appreciate they have a choice and you'd get a good gauge for your family's bird preference, but I'm just talking off the top of my head.

Keep us updated, Id be interested to know how things work out. I've thought of asking for a smoker a few times and just never remember to ask, the thought leaves my mind as quick as it comes.

J

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Originally posted by: SandyPaws
There are a lot of books and websites out there but most are not as informative as talking with somebody who has done some smoking. Over the last 25 years have gone thru a lot of smokers as will smoke something at least once a month and that is on a year round basis. Have had charcoal, gas and electric models. Currently have two gas models (a Brinkman and a Smokey Mountain) and an electric Masterbuilt. Why so many? Because of the difference in size and how much to smoke. The Smokey Mountain is so big that a few days before I fire it up, I go around to the neighbors to find out if they have anything that they would like me to smoke. I've used various woods: hickory, mesquite, oak, apple, pecan, cherry and various commercial blends. I found that I prefered cherry for all the meats and planted a dwarf cherry tree strictly to have the wood which I let age at least 6 months after cutting. I have smoked turkey, ham, chicken, cornish hens, pork roasts, pork ribs, beef ribs, prime rib roast, some fish and various vegetables. I have tried various BBQ sauces but found most have to much sugar so they burn off before flavoring deeping into the meat. So instead, for fowl or ribs, I use a mustard base and add various spices and then cover them completely. I also add a mix of chopped apples and onions to the cavity of any birds, For a rib roast, I cover them with a vegetable base shortening and then cover that completely with a thick layer of salt (sea salt or kosher salt), pepper and possibly garlic.
I don't recommend smoking turkeys larger than 15 pounds. Smoke two at the same time if that is to small.
The newest smoker is the electric Masterbuilt, which is doing it's thing now as I write this. It is quite an improvment over my gas smokers as it is highly insulated. Since I do actually smoke when there is snow on the ground it will be nice not to have to extend the smoking time. It also has a digital temp gauge and a meat probe.
Hope some to this is helpful.

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