What to put in the smoker this weekend?

[Great-Kazoo]

Do you try to reach a certain temp for pizza, or is it more time based?

Time based. You'll know when the crust is brown and cheese melted, time to eat. Or not......

[Jer]

One of my favorite methods for cooking steaks is to smoke at 150 deg for 1-1.5hrs and then sear the outside. My steak of choice is usually bone-in ribeye but King Soopers had the NY Strips on sale for $4.99/lb so I couldn't resist. Just a little pink Himalayan sea salt, fresh crushed pepper and a little garlic powder and these puppies are set! The picture was only after 15min at 150 deg so it doesn't look like much yet but they will turn a deep mahogany red color and take on just a kiss of smoke flavor that doesn't over power the natural flavor of the meat so much as compliment it. I've got a set of GrillGrates so after the 150 deg smoke I will pull them off, plop the GrillGrates on and up the temp to 550 deg for the sear. I'll hit it for a minute or so on either side to get some epic diamond grill marks and caramelize the very outer surface for a final result that looks like it was lifted from a TV commercial and tastes even better. While I'm a big fan of the perfect done-ness of the sous vide method we're discussing in the other thread the flavor that comes from this method even if the steak isn't edge-to-edge medium rare is my personal favorite.

[DenverGP]

Do you try to reach a certain temp for pizza, or is it more time based?

I try to hold the smoker temp steady around 500F, and the time is around 7-10 min, but that I adjust by peeking occasionally to see if the cheese is melted and check the bottom of the crust for nice color.

[ChickNorris]

I've a sweet story... It was late afternoon & the Butcher shop was near picked clean. So I bought a prime rib & had the butcher cut it in thirds.
When I got back home My husband said: WOW. Now those are steaks!
I held up my forefinger & thumb to represent the thickness & said: That's how much I love you.
Now I often make that gesture an just say: This much ♡

[Jer]

I've a sweet story... It was late afternoon & the Butcher shop was near picked clean. So I bought a prime rib & had the butcher cut it in thirds.
When I got back home My husband said: WOW. Now those are steaks!
I held up my forefinger & thumb to represent the thickness & said: That's how much I love you.
Now I often make that gesture an just say: This much ♡

Better love story than Twilight.

[Irving]

I try to hold the smoker temp steady around 500F, and the time is around 7-10 min, but that I adjust by peeking occasionally to see if the cheese is melted and check the bottom of the crust for nice color.

It's kind of funny that I even asked, since my only restaurant jobs have all been pizza places and I can pretty much tell if a pizza is done just by looking at it.

7-10 minutes is about right for those temps, do you even bother trying to get smoke going?

[Gman]

It's probably more like a wood fired oven type of flavor.

[Irving]

It's probably more like a wood fired oven type of flavor.

So over rated?

[colorider]

I use the pizza oven attachment on my green mountain grill. EPIC pizza.

[Jer]

It's probably more like a wood fired oven type of flavor.

It's got just a touch of smoke flavor as I use a pellet smoker and what is some people's complain about that style (not enough smoke) is actually one of the things I like about them. Personally, I like the taste of the meat and just like complimentary flavors that enhance this. IMO if you buy good meat you don't need to mask it's flavor or lack thereof with overpowering enhancements. Salt, pepper & a kiss of smoke will make something really good just a touch better.

We also picked up a thin-crust pizza from Papa Murphy's last night (Tuesday is $10 for a large pizza night) that I plan on cooking in the smoker tonight for dinner. Just follow the same directions as an oven (425deg for 10 min or whatever) and it's cooked great but with just a touch of smoke flavor. I also use apple wood or a mild blend as mesquite or similar is too powerful of a flavor profile for my personal taste. There's an adapter for my GMG smoker from GMG for pizzas that turns it into a 800 degree wood-fired pizza oven that I may have to put on the wish list for Christmas this year.