The BBQ Pit Blog

Peach Wood Smoked Chicken on the Weber - Indirect Heat

It had been a while since I had used my Weber Grill so the the boys and I decided to smoke some chickens over the weekend.  We ended up having to do some inventory of our dry rub and BBQ sauce ingredients before we got started. 

The boys helped make our red sauce and the dry rub that we put on the chickens.  Although they love to tell their friends about how good the BBQ they cook tastes, they also follow the BBQ Code of Honor to never reveal the secret recipes for our sauce and dry rub :o)

We started out with 2 whole chickens and put the dry rub on them.  We then put charcoal on one side of the Weber Grill and placed the 2 chickens on the opposite side of the Weber Grill creating the Indirect Heat method.  The following link -  Difference between direct & indirect cooking - will give you some great information about the differences between direct and indirect cooking. 

We added a couple of chunks of Peach Wood and then cooked the chicken on the Weber about 3 hours.  The Birds were ready once the breast meat reached 160 degrees and the legs are easy to "shake". 

We are looking forward to our next opportunity to smoke some more BBQ this weekend and start to do some practice runs cooking ribs and chicken for the upcoming Birmingham Habitat For Humanity BBQ Contest in June.

Unbelievable Double Smoked Hams

It has been a while since I have smoked hams so I figured I would smoke a few for some friends recently.  You just can't beat a smoked ham when it comes to flavor and the ability to feed a large number of people.  They just absorb the smoke so well and when smoked properly they are one of the best tasting smoked meats.

I always buy hams from the grocery store that are pre-cooked and they turn out great. The hams I bought were half hams and were the shank end. 

The shank end has a lot of flavor and the smoke from the wood really sinks in to make a great flavor. Recipes Tips - Info on Hams is a great site that explains the different variety of hams.

I made my dry rub out of brown sugar, paprika, pepper, seasoning salt, and a few other secret ingredients before applying liberally to the hams. 

I smoked these 10 pound half hams for about 5 hours each at 275 degrees with pecan wood.  From the pictures you can see how they had turned a dark brown on the outside and the "face of the meat had started to fall apart. 

I used my Traeger Smoker which is an electric wood pellet fed smoker to cook these hams.  With it 35 degrees outside you can't beat a smoker that you can really "set it and forget it". 

Since pre-cooked hams are ready to eat even before you smoke them, you don't have to worry about  getting them "done".  The secret is to smoke them long enough to penetrate the ham with the right amount of smoke flavor and allow the ham to start to fall off the bone.  If you cook them till they are  160 internal then great, you can slice them and they will turn out fine.  But if you dare to enter BBQ Nirvana, then go to 195 degrees and have "pulled ham". 

I like to leave my ham uncovered and let the outside of the ham darken but if you prefer you can wrap the ham in tinfoil after it reaches 165 degrees internal and let it cook on to 195 degrees internal so the outside still looks shiny/tan but still falls apart.

A smoked ham is going to be better than any oven baked pineapple glazed ham or one from the "old store" down the road.

Smoking BBQ on a Charcoal Grill or Gas Grill

I get asked all the time about how to make mouth watering BBQ at home using a small charcoal grill or even a gas grill.  When I am not catering events I do use a Weber 22 1/2 inch charcoal grill to cook meals for our family.  Although I would love to break out my 7 foot Lang Smoker and smoke a giant piece of meat for the family, my wife reminds me that can be a bit overkill for a family of four....Go figure...

Charcoal Grills - For those of you with a charcoal grill you will want to have your coals & wood chunks/chips burning on one side of your grill and your meat on the opposite side of the grill.  This allows you to cook indirect which slowly cooks the meat and allows the meat to stay very moist.  The  heat/smoke produced from the fire will surround the meat and produce great BBQ. The picture on the right shows the coals and wood chips on one side of the grill and the rack of ribs on the other side. 

When you place the lid on the grill make sure to have the lid air vents open and located on the side where you meat is located.  You can cook all kinds of meat this way including chicken pieces, whole chicken, ribeye roasts, sausage, etc.....  I would recommend starting with just chicken breasts, thighs, pork ribs, or wings to just get a hang of it.  Then work your way up to doing ribeye roasts, whole chickens, pork loins and other larger cuts that will take a bit longer to cook.  Invest in a meat thermometer for checking the temps on your meat and also document your cooking times so you will be able to repeat your success each time. 

Gas Grills - I have to tell you there are BBQ enthusiasts across the world that will not use the word BBQ and Gas together.  The argument between gas vs. charcoal/wood is similar to the battle between the Hatfield's and McCoy's or better yet Rocky & Clubber Lang in Rocky 111 ... Hands down in my opinion charcoal and/or wood cooked BBQ is the best tasting when done properly.  But there are so many people out there with gas grills that I wanted to discuss how to produce a great quality BBQ on a gas grill. 

You will basically follow the same Indirect Cooking procedure as with the charcoal grill.  Light only one side/panel of your gas grill.  Place your meat on the opposite end of the grill over the unlit panel.  Make a tinfoil pouch and fill it up with a couple of  hand-fulls  of wood chips.  Close up the chips in the foil and then put them over the lit panel on your grill (place pouch on the burner itself and not the grill grate). Poke a few holes in the foil on top and that will allow the smoke to release.  You can soak the wood chips in water before adding but dry chips will work fine as well.  Most gas grills come with a temperature gauge mounted in the top so try to keep your temp at 250-325 degrees while cooking.  Also, use a meat thermometer to determine when your meat is done on larger cuts and chicken.

Wood Chips/Chunks - Go to your local BBQ store or grill section of WalMart, Home Depot, etc...department store and buy some wood chips or chunks.  I recommend peach, cherry, pecan, or hickory for pork butts, pork loins, ribs, chicken, Turkey, and lamb.  For ribeye roasts I suggest pecan or hickory chips.  In Birmingham, the  The Smoke & Fire Place in Vestavia Hills on Highway 31 across from Mark's Outdoors carries the largest supply of wood chips in the area.   You can also buy a cast iron or steel smoker box as well that will hold the chips instead of using a self made tinfoil pouch.

FYI - the larger the grill or smoker doesn't mean that it will produce a better BBQ.  You can cook great bbq on a charcoal grill or a gas grill.  Steaks are great for grilling but when it comes to chicken, roasts, leg of lamb, pork butts, ribs, turkeys, other large cuts, go with the indirect cooking method and you and your guests will be knocked out by the flavor and moisture.  Give yourself some extra time to get the food done on the first couple tries because you will probably end up checking on the meat a bit more than once you get this method down.  Once you start to master this indirect cooking method you will be amazed by the taste and flavor of the food. 

Pulled Pork for 100

I was fortunate to get to cook BBQ again for the Church of the Highlands / Tittusville AOH Church of God  prayer luncheon Saturday.  Pulled Pork was chosen as the main course.

I had seasoned eight Boston Butts with my dry rub the night before and then smoked the Butts for 12 hours over Cherry Wood.  For a BBQ enthusiast like myself, this is the best meat to smoke.  It also goes along way when feeding a hungry crowd.

The outside surface (bark) of the Butts was dark and crisp. The bark still held a good amount of the sweet flavor from the dry rub.  The smoke from the cherry wood had really infused well into the meat and gave it a great flavor that complimented the pork.

The Butts had been smoked to the ideal internal temperature.  This allowed the fat inside the butts to render which in turn made the meat moist and pull off the bone (Pulled Pork). 

The raw weight of the uncooked Butts was 56 pounds.  After smoking the Butts and shrinkage that occurs during cooking, we ended up with about 30 pounds of pulled pork which was plenty of food for the luncheon. 

For sides we had coleslaw, baked beans, and BBQ buns.  Brownies were for dessert.

We had a great group that helped put on the event, prepare the food, and serve all the attendees.  We are all looking forward to
the next one!!!

Let's Talk Ribs

I get a lot of questions about the different styles of ribs that are on the market today.  The three most popular ribs are Baby Back, Spare, and St. Louis. The good thing about all of these ribs is that when smoked properly, they all are delicious. They are also found at most of the grocery store meat departments I have been to in Birmingham, AL.

I have smoked all 3 styles while catering and I personally lean a bit more towards the St. Louis style ribs because of the flavor and appearance.  I know other BBQ enthusiasts that lean towards the Baby Back. It really just depends on your preference and what you believe showcases your bbq expertise.  If you are new to BBQ'ing then buy all three styles and give them all a try. Let your family or friends try them and give you their opinion on which one's they like.  I don't think you will have much trouble getting some "samplers" to try out your ribs.

The website www.allbbq.com/index.php does a fabulous job of describing these styles of ribs.  They also provide a great illustration of the different pork cuts on the market today.  The information below is from their website.

Baby Back Ribs - Baby backs are also called loin back ribs. The grocery stores usually label them as loin backs. Baby backs are usually smaller in size and have a fairly pronounced curve to the bone. The meat is leaner than spareribs so be sure to reduce your cooking time accordingly. Baby backs are most often confused with St Louis cut spareribs because they are similar in size. But St Louis style ribs will be much flatter with more fat and meat.

Spareribs - A full slab of spareribs is hard to confuse with any other type of BBQ rib type. The sparerib comes from the side and belly of the pig and they are larger than baby backs, contain more fat, and are flatter than baby backs. The extra fat provides more flavor. Most slow smoking BBQ rib enthusiasts prefer the taste of the sparerib over the baby backs. It is also a cheaper cut of BBQ rib.

St Louis Cut - This is a sparerib that has been trimmed to remove the tips or brisket end of the spareribs. There is also a flap of meat called the skirt on a full rack of spareribs that is removed. The result is a fairly flat rack of ribs that is easier to handle, looks nicer, and cooks up more evenly.

                  

4th Annual Hog Roast in Vestavia

It is time again for the annual Hog Roast at Swann's house in Vestavia Hills. This party averages around 120 to 150 guests and has become legendary.  There is always an acoustic country band and a plethora of slow cooked bbq.  You know Robert's neighbors have got to look forward to this party!!!  August 9th has been selected for this years "Boar Bash" as it is now referred.

The following picture is the star of last year's party - a 100 pound hog that we spit roasted for 12 hours over a combination of charcoal, peach and pecan wood.  Only the love of bbq would drive us to spend a day in 95 degree weather, standing around hot burning coals, cooking this hog to perfection.

Once the hog is cooked we place it on a buffet table and the guests will come through the buffet line and use their forks to pull the pork off the hog and place it on their plates.  Nothing like a "Pig Pickin" in the middle of Vestavia Hills!!!

We also cook several whole chickens and Alabama made Conecuh sausage to go along with the hog. Baked beans and coleslaw are served as sides although a true bbq glutton has no need for sides.......

We are getting ready to order the hog for this year's party and we are going to smoke the
hog in my Lang 84 smoker.  Ben Lang manufactures these awesome "stick burners" in Georgia and this pit has cooked thousands of pounds of bbq through the years. I will have some great pics to post after this year's party and hopefully Swann's neighbors will tolerate him for another year after this party..... 

How the BBQ Journey Started

My journey into the depths of BBQ began early on as a child growing up in Walker County, Alabama. I would sit on the back deck of our house and watch my Dad grill steaks, chicken, pork, roasts, and any other piece of meat fortunate enough to end up being placed on the old charcoal grill. The grill itself was a testament of time based on how long it held together through the years and the flavor it held. If there was a hall of fame for grills, it would have been inducted its first year of eligibility. 

You could see smoke coming from the Wade’s house on Pawnee Circle almost every night. And if the neighborhood filled of smoke wasn’t evidence enough of dad’s love of the grill, there was a mountain of charcoal ash behind our house as proof. To this day we joke about climbing that charcoal hill as kids and riding our sleds down it during the rare snow falls. Yes, only in Walker County.

The next step in my journey occurred when my Grandfather introduced me to Crutchfield. Crutchfield was a well known Barber in Jasper, Alabama but he was famous for his BBQ. Through the years I would get to enjoy Crutchfield’s smoked chickens and pork shoulders that he would bring to my Grandparents house accompanied by his “secret” red sauce. 

I was fortunate to get a chance to witness Crutchfield cook BBQ at the Walker County Lake one Fourth of July. I can still remember the smell of smoked chicken in the air and the taste of that “secret” red sauce that had to be simmered for hours. The anticipation was overwhelming while we all waited on Crutchfield to make the decision that the chicken had reached the end of its BBQ journey and was ready for us all to enjoy. Crutchfield was a master of the “low and slow” BBQ process and a legend to this day.

This early baptism by fire into BBQ has taken me on a journey from that back deck of our house on Pawnee Circle to the BBQ catering I now do for companies and organizations across the state of Alabama. To me, BBQ is about Crutchfield’s “secret” red sauce, Dad’s charcoal ash hill, and my journey to take the art of slow smoked BBQ to the masses. For a BBQ addict, there is nothing better than hearing “This is the best BBQ I have ever tasted.”