What to put in the smoker this weekend?

[Jer]

FWIW the only smoke technique I've consistently read won't give you the smoke ring is electric smokers which happen to use wood chips or pellets. Whoever is saying that it's pellets specifically is wrong & is misconstruing what people are talking about as it's more the method than the materials.

I used electric smokers for years with consistent success as far as delicious food always in the absence of a smoke ring though. Nobody who ate my meat (uh huh huh /Butthead) waxed negatively about the lack of a smoke ring. It was always praise on how delicious the pulled pork or brisket was. I used a combination of chips in the tray and pellets in a tube. Great taste, no smoke ring.

Once I started using a pellet smoker I immediately noticed the smoke ring. Flavor isn't incredibly different between the two methods but the smoke ring is present with the pellet pooper. Everything I've read in addition to my personal experience says that the presence or lack thereof of a smoke ring has zero outcome on flavor so IMO it's a non-issue anyway.

tl;dr Choose the method that works best for your budget and application and perfect your technique and ignore the internet haters. Eat what you like.

[Irving]

I had a terrible electric smoker that someone gave to me, and I was able to get a decent smoke ring on the one good piece of meat that we smoked.

[Great-Kazoo]

FWIW the only smoke technique I've consistently read won't give you the smoke ring is electric smokers which happen to use wood chips or pellets. Whoever is saying that it's pellets specifically is wrong & is misconstruing what people are talking about as it's more the method than the materials.

I used electric smokers for years with consistent success as far as delicious food always in the absence of a smoke ring though. Nobody who ate my meat (uh huh huh /Butthead) waxed negatively about the lack of a smoke ring. It was always praise on how delicious the pulled pork or brisket was. I used a combination of chips in the tray and pellets in a tube. Great taste, no smoke ring.

Once I started using a pellet smoker I immediately noticed the smoke ring. Flavor isn't incredibly different between the two methods but the smoke ring is present with the pellet pooper. Everything I've read in addition to my personal experience says that the presence or lack thereof of a smoke ring has zero outcome on flavor so IMO it's a non-issue anyway.

tl;dr Choose the method that works best for your budget and application and perfect your technique and ignore the internet haters. Eat what you like.

Sous Vid is over there >>>>>>>.

[wyome]

Nothing in the smoker this week... next week I'll have a brand new Blaz'n Grills pellet smoker to play with tho.. yay me

[Jer]

I'm throwing a Boston butt on my Green Mountain Grills Daniel Boone Wi-Fi before I go to bed. Can't wait for all-you-can-eat pulled pork tomorrow for football.

[Great-Kazoo]

I'm throwing a Boston butt on my Green Mountain Grills Daniel Boone Wi-Fi before I go to bed. Can't wait for all-you-can-eat pulled pork tomorrow for football.

How much that weigh you need to smoke all night? Around here we can't do overnight due to the skunks, raccoons , bobcats who wander the area.

[Irving]

They don't mind the heat of the grill? They don't sell caribiners down there? What's your address, l'll send you 37.

[Great-Kazoo]

They don't mind the heat of the grill? They don't sell caribiners down there? What's your address, l'll send you 37.

Wildlife don't care about heat, when it comes to food. Those low to the ground critters can knock a grill or smoker over like a trash can.

[Irving]

You need an electric fence. They make a light weight packable one for hunters/bears/hunters/slashes.

[Jer]

How much that weigh you need to smoke all night? Around here we can't do overnight due to the skunks, raccoons , bobcats who wander the area.

I think it's about a 10 pounder or so, give or take. I go low and slow (215-225deg max) versus hot and fast so for my I find that getting it on the night before alleviates people standing around with empty plates and growling stomachs for an hour or more while I try to rush it at the end. I also like it to be done before lunch time (not dinner in the evening) so that way we can pick on it throughout the day. If it's early I can simply drop the oven or smoker (depending on where I'm finishing it) to a warm temperature or wrap it in a bath tower and throw it in a large cooler for a few hours. Either way, having it done early always beats being late and what I've found about 'que, especially when you go low and slow, it's done when it's done. No good way to time or rush it w/o sacrificing some quality in the end.

As for the critters.. I feel for you there. That would certainly add a new caveat to the smoking game. I even spilled my render bucket onto the patio the last time I smoked. You can't ever clean that crap up fully since it seeps into pores of the concrete. When we had the dogs they'd sit and lick the patio forever even if I cleaned that spot up like crazy. Now, since we don't have dogs, I don't even really clean it as much as let the rain take care of it over the years. If we had a coyote or other wildlife problem that would be a bit more of a troubling mistake.