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Hey Bob And Jack, That Was Fantastic Barbecue...What's Your Secret To Smoking Meat Like That? "Barbecue is the Mystical Communion of Fire, Smoke and Meat"
We're the "Cookin' Cousins", love smoking meat, and have answered that question countless times in our 40+ years of backyard research developing smoker recipes with various meat smokers. Yep, driving our neighbors nuts, smoking meat...it's a primal thing! So how do we do it? Well, there's actually six secrets that we've learned to help you attain, in our humble opinion, one of life's greatest pleasures. But first... Did you know that, historically, barbecue is the method of roasting meat over hardwood coals, slowly, with low heat and a constant exposure to the aromatic smoke? Yessir, real barbecue! Read on, and we'll put it all together, starting with... The 6 Secrets to Smoking Meat
Secret #1...Great Meat Beef To get the best results smoking meat, buy the best meat you can afford. The quality of the meat does make a big difference, and we prefer "Prime" or "Choice" grades of beef for that beautiful marbling. You get the wonderful flavor that our primal instincts crave! You want plenty of marbling (the white fat running through the meat). The more fat, the better it tastes! Health-wise, if you do not make high-fatted beef a frequent staple, you're fine. Pork Fresh! Whether you want to roast a whole hog, or a shoulder cut, get the freshest meat you can find. Period. Now, which cut? Spare Ribs, Country Style or Baby Back Ribs? It's your choice! It's all good but...we prefer traditional spareribs, especially St. Loius Style, for our smoker recipes. For the "Cookin' Cousins" barbecue pork recipe, we like the shoulder (12-16 lbs./5.4-7.3 kg). It has a ton of flavor and the fat needed to keep the meet moist and tender. Fat is good...especially when smoking meat for extended period of time. If you can find a whole shoulder cut, all the better! Chicken Are all chickens the same? Nope. If you were raised on a farm or before the '70's you know what we mean. When smoking meat, those yard birds are unbeatable for flavor! We're talking about "range chickens" where the birds range freely, have plenty of fresh water, exercise, and scratch the ground at will, with lots of grain for the peckin'. A good eatin' bird will go to market at about 180 days. Most chicken today is fast grown (80 days)... ...stressed out and raised in confined cages, fed goodness knows what and "mechanically" processed for mass sale. No comparison in taste, so we like to buy "free range" chicken when it's available. No free-range chicken available? Well...get the freshest, plump, 3-5 pound bird you can find. If you don't want to mess with cutting and cleaning, buy the chicken parts you most enjoy. Look for the freshest dates! Frozen the only thing around? Buy the most recent dated package, suck it in, and we'll make it taste great anyway! Turkey Are all turkeys the same? Well, basically. If you have ever eaten a wild turkey, you know that they have a very different flavor from the domesticated bird. However, either turkey taste great! Because most of us do not have access to that wonderful wild fowl, let's talk about buying the readily available domestic breed. Natural/Free range/Organic? Yes, there is a better flavor with a free range and/or a turkey fed organic feed. To say nothing of the potential health benefit. These turkeys are available both fresh and frozen. But there is nothing wrong with the mass produced bird, if cost is a real consideration. Fresh or frozen? It's actually a personal, or financial, preference. Fresh, due to the shorter shelf life and special handling required to assure safe delivery to the customer, is more expensive. However, if preparation time is a problem (thawing), this is a good alternative. Frozen turkeys are considerably less expensive. They are immediatly flash frozen, after processing, to 0°F(17.8°C). So, once thawed, you have a turkey that's as fresh as the day it was processed. We generally use frozen turkeys and defy any who can taste the difference! Size matters! Our smoked turkey recipes use only smaller birds (8-16lbs./3.6-7.3kg). Why? A large bird takes too long to heat past the danger zone of 40-140°F/4.4-60°C. You don't want to ruin the occasion with sick folks! We have found that 1.5lbs/.68kg per person feeds all, with enough left over to make us tired of turkey...for a while. If you need more, smoke two or... If you have a big bird you can simply cut the legs and thighs from the breast and smoke them alongside. We've done it, and it works great.
Secret #2...Great Spices Use the best quality, and freshest spices you can. There is a huge difference between the old, been-in-the-cupboard-way-to-long, "buck a bottle" spices, and the top quality stuff (this is one important difference between a "tenderfoot", and top competitors). We learned this smoking meat secret the hard way! You can review our rub secrets at our Barbecue Rub Secrets page. Secret #3...Great Tools We've all done it...bought cheap, paid dearly. From the barbecue grill, meat smoker, to our barbecue tool set, most of us try to "make do" with usually frustrating results. Well, now it's time to upgrade! Thermometer; Instant read and oven types - When smoking meat, it's imperative you keep track of the inside temperature with an oven thermometer. Also, you need to check the meat towards the end of the cooking time, with a meat type "instant-read" thermometer, to ensure the meat is done to perfection. Nobody likes uncooked chicken or pork! Tongs - Long and strong is the secret. If your BBQ set didn't come with a good pair, you can find great tongs at a restaurant supply store. Chimney Starter - For the charcoal grill folks, this is the best way to start, and maintain, the coals. If you've never used one of these ingenious tools, you're going to love the experience! Secret #4...Heat Control Boy, is this smoking meat secret important. All great barbecue recipes are predicated on controlling the heat! Follow the suggested temperatures in our recipes...religiously, and use a darn good oven and meat thermometer. Check that meat! Use an "instant read" meat thermometer to ensure safe minimum temperature. Secret #5...Timing The timing is directly related to temperature; the lower the heat, the longer to cook but, don't cheat! Maintain heat control, and base the timing on the meat's internal heat, period. This barbecue tip could have been titled, "Patience". You will need a bucket-load of this to properly barbecue chicken, ribs, brisket, and prime rib, et al. Secret #6...Smoke The smoke gives the meat that incredible, "make-your-tongue-want-to-beat-your-brains-out", flavor. But... When smoking meat, always use only seasoned (never "green") hardwood chips/chunks like hickory, oak, mesquite, cherry, fruit-woods, etc., to suit your taste. These are readily available wherever barbecue accessories are sold, and we have found all to be good. Never use softwoods such as the conifers fir, pine, spruce, cedar, cypress, oleander, etc. They are bitter tasting and some trees and bushes/shrubs are toxic to humans, so stay with the known traditional woods used by the experienced "tongers" (those who wield the tongs at the fire). So, whether you have a grill, or a smoker, we will guide you to your smoking meat fame. Try our smoking meat secrets with one (or all) of our Great Smoker Recipes! Barbecue Ribs on a gas grill? Great. We'll show you a simplified method to smoked ribs nirvana, here. Barbecue Ribs on a charcoal grill? You are just a few sure-fire steps away from barbecue rib heaven, here. Barbecue Ribs in a smoker? Fantastic! Gas or charcoal, this is the easiest way to barbecue rib fame, here. Barbecue Chicken on a gas or charcoal grill? Great. Real barbecue chicken with the least hassle! Want to do Beer Can Chicken? Wonderful! One of the greatest American backyard culinary inventions! Chicken in a smoker? Fantastic! Gas or charcoal, this is the easiest way to barbecue chicken fame, here. Our Free Smoked Turkey Recipe For Your Smoker is Magic! A surefire smoked turkey recipe with no hassle at the grill or smoker.  Custom Search
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