Is My Barbecue Ready Yet? – Cooking Beef Brisket

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By Kevin Bevington
Now that we have our rub, the right equipment, and we are able to control a consistent temperature, we are ready to attempt the toughest meat to cook, Beef Brisket. Lets first discuss how to select the meat you are about to cook. Beef Brisket can typically be sold in 3 different size cuts.

First, is the whole packer cut, this whole cut includes the 2 very distinctly different muscles that make up the entire cut, you have the flat which would be considered the flat long piece of meat, the point, which includes the nose end, and the meat layer underneath the flat, which is separated by a layer of fat which is also known as a deckle layer. The whole packer cut is the most desirable cut to cook in your smoker, the main reason being, the tremendous amount of fat that can be left on this cut to give it plenty of moisture to draw from while cooking.

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Make it your own…

 I was told by my brother in law, Glenn, that at least one time I would want to try to make barbecue my very own…from start to finish.  I asked him what he was talking about…he explained.

He told me that I take the time to select and buy the cut of meat I am looking to cook, I trim it and do all the other prep stuff…fire up the cooker and then start the cooking process…which is a long investment of time.

He went on to say that you do all of this, take it off the cooker, hold it while you prepare other items for sides and then put some store bought bbq sauce on your barbecue right before you eat it…He didn’t understand why I would do that.

Well, to be honest, I never had given it a thought…there were rubs already made for me to use…the same thing in regards to sauces.  I figured I was just saving some time in certain areas.  But he explained that if I would just take the time to learn how to make a rub and a sauce THEN the barbecue would truly be MY OWN!  No one else’s mixes or recipes would be in my bbq hence it would be MINE from start to finish.

Just some bbq for thought for you folks who are just getting in to the art.  Don’t get me wrong, I use rubs that aren’t mine more then I use my own…but 9-10 times I make my own sauce.  I love it…my guests like it…and it just seems to compliment my barbecue.

Basic Brisket Rub

BASIC BBQ RUB

HomeBBQ.com
Here is a basic bbq rub recipe to use on just about anything! Basic BBQ Rub 1/4 cup salt (non-iodized) 3 Tbs Brown Sugar 2 Tbs Black Pepper 1 Tbs. Garlic Salt 1 Tbs. Paprika 1 Tbs. Chili Powder 1 Tsp. Sugar 1 Tsp. Onion Powder 1 Tsp. ground Cumin 1 Tsp. Red Pepper (optional)

PORK RUB

SMOKING THE SHOULDER

HomeBBQ.com

Pork shoulder is really two cuts of meat, the butt portion or “boston butt” and the picnic. Typically the shoulder is used for pulled pork, and rightfully so, if cooked properly this meat will practically pull itself. If you have heard the term “low and slow” it definately applies here. This cut of meat loves time. Ok, lets get started! Smoking The Shoulder   Description: Pork shoulder is really two cuts of meat, the butt portion or “boston butt” and the picnic.Typically the shoulder is used for pulled pork, and rightfully so, if cooked properly this meat will practically pull itself. If you have heard the term “low and slow” it definately applies here. This cut of meat loves time. Ok, lets get started! If I buy a shoulder, I will try to get them to take as much of the skin off as possible, without removing the fat cap. Its very difficult to use a rub when there is alot of skin. I like to use my Florida Rub (listed under rub recipe’s). It does a great job on this cut of meat. 1. Thouroughly coat the shoulder with yellow mustard. 2. Liberally cover the meat on all sides with the rub. 3. Let marinate over night covered and refridgerated. 4. I usually soak my hickory chunks over night as well. 5. Bring the smoker up to a temperature between 200 – 225 degrees. 6. Place shoulder on V-Rack in drip pan (BGE), or directly on the rack in water smokers and offsets, and place it in the smoker (make sure you add your wood chunks to the fire). 7. Smoke the shoulder for about 75 to 90 minutes per pound, depending on what temperature you are cooking at, type of pit, and the physical size of the piece of meat 8. About half way through the cook, remove the shoulder from the smoker and wrap in heavy aluminum foil. 9. Either place it back into the smoker, or in the oven at 225 degrees. 10. Let cook wrapped until the internal temp reaches 194 to 200. 11. When finished, let stand wrapped for about 10 to 20 minutes, and then start pulling it apart. 12. Now its time to add a finishing sauce, I like to use the Vaunted Vinegar sauce (from Smoke and Spice), or STUBB’s spicy. 13. Place back into the oven at 200 degrees covered for 30 to 60 minutes. 14. Remove from the oven and serve This should make you a hit at any party. Cooking times will vary based on the type of smoker you are using. Make sure to read the manual.

How the Internet Changed the BBQ Culture

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The secrets to juicy and tender barbecue have been closely guarded for many, many years and the art of barbecue has been handed down from father to son and treated as family heirlooms. The rising popularity of the Internet during the past decade has changed the culture of barbecue forever.

In the southeastern region of the country, barbecue usually referred to whole hogs cooked slowly over a fire of coals. Families often had their own recipes for rubs and sauces to go along with their favorite woods for smoking. Gaining access to these secrets wasn’t always easy. Good barbecue recipes were a source of family pride.

When I moved to Dickson, TN from Missouri in 1992, I was invited to help out with a family barbecue. I arrived at about 6 p.m. on Friday evening to find a hog roasting on chicken wire stretched over a metal bed frame. The cooks took turns roasting various meats including ducks, rabbits, and chickens throughout most of the night. There was a lot of conversation, some beer drinking, and a lot of work tending the fire. Periodically they would dab a vinegar marinade mixture on the hog.

After relocating to Florida in 2001, I rediscovered barbecue again. While searching the Internet for grilling tips and a recipe for pulled pork, I found Barbecuen.com and TheBBQForum.com. These websites reopened my eyes and ears to barbecue. About this same time, Food Network started airing various programs featuring barbecue restaurants, festivals, and contests.

A couple of years later, I discovered HomeBBQ.com and met up with Kevin. After a sharing a few e-mails and a couple of cell phone conversations, I drove to Kevin’s to help him break in a brand new Lang reverse flow offset smoker. I attended KCBS events with Kevin and Clara in Brooksville and Lakeland, FL and a few FBA events including the big contest in Sebring, FL. I struck out on my own at the Okeechobee, FL contest and got my first category win at the FBA event in Arcadia, FL in the chicken category. I’ve been preparing my own style of barbecue ever since.

I’ve cooked in KCBS events in Florida, Tennessee, Michigan, and Indiana since those early contest days and I’ve have competed against some of the best teams in the country holding my own with consistent top five overall finishes and several category wins. I’ve started my own web blog about barbecue to help others get started in the hobby and started selling my own spice rub on my personal web site.

Before the Internet Age, my learning curve would have been much, much steeper. However, for those seeking how-to barbecue information these days, championship recipes and techniques are only a few mouse clicks away. For $240, you can order a Weber Smokey Mountain from Amazon.com and have it delivered to your door step. You can spend some time reading the articles and forums and watching videos at VirtualWeberBullet.com or YouTube.com and learn how to use it effectively. There are numerous discussion groups and Forums that will answer any questions you have about specific cuts of meat or specific recipes you want to try out.

HomeBBQ.com is just another example of the vast amount of information provided on the World Wide Web for those that seek it out. I’m honored to have been invited to contribute to the collection of articles and discussions on this site. If you have questions about barbecue or suggestions for future articles, please let me know.

BBQ Tips

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How to keep BBQ hot if you’re not quite ready to eat it…use an ice chest/ice cooler. Put some hot water in an empty ice chest, close the lid and let it set for 3 or 4 minutes. Drain the hot water and you’ve got yourself a portable BBQ warmer. We’ve kept pork butts warm this way for 6 or 7 hours.

How to keep your hands clean when cooking BBQ…use powder free latex gloves. They come in packs of 100 at the local Sam’s Club and will keep your hands clean. You’ll maintain good sanitary practices too. Many bbq sanctioning bodies require the use of gloves when preparing contest entries.

How to keep your spouse interested in the BBQ hobby…get him/her involved in it with you. It’s a lot of fun. You meet nice people and it’s something you can do together.

How to keep your BBQ expenses in line with your budget…research all your purchases thoroughly. Make sure your purchase will do what you want it to do BEFORE you purchase it. For example, if you want to learn to cook whole hogs, you probably need to consider a big cooker or if you want to cook 10-15 racks spare ribs every weekend you’re going to need something bigger than a WSM.

How to continually improve your BBQ recipes…keep records of your cooking efforts including cook times, prepping techniques used and especially measurements for sauces or rubs and spices used. When you tweak the recipe for taste, only change one thing at a time–change the cook time, change the rub, change the sauce, but try to avoid completely changing everything all at once. Small changes to your technique and recipes will help you focus on the effects better and you’ll be able to fine tune the product quality more efficiently.

Is My Barbecue Ready Yet? – Part 2

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SWEET AND SPICY BONE-IN PORK LOIN ROAST

HomeBBQ.com

This recipe uses the HomeBBQ.com Old Florida Key Lime Jerk Seasoning, and a Cider Vinegar Marinade. Its real good, let us know what you think.

Items Needed:
2 – 3 lb Bone-in Pork loin roast
1 Jar of HomeBBQ.com Old Florida Key Lime Jerk Seasoning

Marinade Ingredients:
2 cups of Cider Vinegar
2 tbsp of brown sugar
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

Directions:

Mix Marinade Ingredients in non-reactive bowl. Place pork roast and Marinade in a sealed container or plastic bag, and let marinate for a minimum of 1 hour to a maximum of 2 hours.

Remove the pork roast from the marinade, and discard the marinade.

Season pork roast liberally with HomeBBQ.com Old Florida Key Lime Jerk Seasoning.

Let stand for 15 to 20 minutes before cooking.

This roast needs to be cooked indirect at a temperature of 350 degrees for approx. 20-25 minutes per pound. The internal temp of the roast when finished should be 150-155 degrees.

After removing from heat, let stand for 15 minutes before slicing. This will let the juices settle inside the roast.

This recipe can be used for cooking in the oven, smoker or grill.

Enjoy!

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