Show Us Your Meat, and We'll Show You Ours

[SlimKlim]

Yeah we have a weber just like the ones in that article, I was going to set it up like this:



Or maybe if I'm feeling really baller I'll order one of the smokenator things to make it really easy.

http://www.amazon.com/SMOKENATOR-1000-Ke...B000HI3I68

[navin]

The dweebs @WeberKettleClub (yes, there is a forum for everything) don't really seem to like the smokenator. I forget what that method is called, but I was thinking about using the 'snake' method for some ribs. I never really smoke anything else because I don't have the patience for that anymore.

[Evan]

Yeah we have a weber just like the ones in that article, I was going to set it up like this:



Or maybe if I'm feeling really baller I'll order one of the smokenator things to make it really easy.

http://www.amazon.com/SMOKENATOR-1000-Ke...B000HI3I68

The problem with that setup is adding wood chips looks to be a pain.
I think if you supplement that with something like this
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.amazon.com/A-maze-n-Tube-Smoker-12/dp/B00CS6YFIC/ref=pd_sbs_lg_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1B4MBR7RCAPM045HTNH5">http://www.amazon.com/A-maze-n-Tube-Smo ... PM045HTNH5</a><!-- m -->

(insert joke about smoking a tube)

it would work out better.
you would also need some wood pellets and a propane torch.

I have one and it works very good. I even cold smoked some cheese with it last week.

also, forget the water pan(s), they are BS.

[SlimKlim]

Huh, I'll have to do some more reading. Navin is that tube thing Evan posted the snake method you were thinking of?

[navin]

Nah, this is the snake method: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiGRbyg_zeI">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiGRbyg_zeI</a><!-- m -->

My Weber has a hinged grates, so it really isn't that much of a pain if you need to add in wood chunks.

[Sully]

So here is a rack of ribs I made a dry rub for. I used to buy the, pre-rubbed but they are difficult to find in Harrisonburg so I found a decent Kansas City Rub recipie I like online and have been using it lately. It's pretty good.



Next up is somewhat controversial. So I hadn't had a good car project in a long time and really wanted to build something. My Styrofoam cooler method for Sous Vide worked pretty well and delivered an amazing steak. But this type of Styrofoam allows water to eventually seep through it so it wasn't a long term solution to cooking. I was also hoping to get some better insulation so that maybe I could maintain 160 degrees for longer to cook other things. I bought some foam board insulation and tried to cut it at school with no real tools and failed pretty miserably. Nothing was square and I used a whole tube of glue to get it to look somewhat boxish. Luckily I had enough foam to do a second run but I tried a very similar method as the first and the results still weren't great. I went ahead and ran with these anyway. Below are some pictures of the build, test, and first cook. Sorry there were no post cook pics but I was busy manning the sear skillet and throwing steaks off 3 at a time and they were all gone before I even finished searing my own steak and at that point I had to eat and get the grill ready for my grilled peaches dessert which I forgot to take pictures of :roll:

I realize now I don't have a pic of the initial build or the process really but I can walk you through it a little.
I started with nothing but foam insulation 2" thick (pink board). I then cut it into a box shape based off a drawing I made in google sketchups. I glued all the pieces together with a special foam insulation glue but didn't have enough clamps and wasn't sold on the glues strength as it isn't meant for this style of support so I wrapped several bands of duct tape around it to hold it. I then decided duct tape would supply a good covering support method and already had a larger roll so I wrapped the entire box (both boxes, made two) in the tape. I ran out of tape and switched to the gorilla brand which I'll come back to. The lids are double thick with the top layer measuring the entire size of the finished box and the second layer fitting inside the box so I get a nice tight lid. I may eventually dip the outside but I don't know.

I had trouble determining a good liner but eventually decided I wanted something strong and durable and easy to wipe down so I chose to pick up some aluminum sheet metal and fit it the box. (This, and the foam is where the majority of the cost come from but I enjoyed the build so it was more for fun anyway) I got a big enough sheet to bend it all the way around the sides so only one seam going up and I left an extra 2" on top to bend over and cover the foam. I used another sheet for the bottoms and made a sort of cake pan that I hammered around the bottom to get a snug fit and wrapped with a piece of tape to hold it in place while I put the liner in place. I originally planned to spot weld them but the shop I used to work at only has a ginormous spot welder that would have blown a hole through it so I ended up with some industrial adhesive and that plus the snug fit in the box holds it together. Lastly I secured the top flaps with more tape and then since the gorilla tape seemed stronger and had a more durable shell, I wrapped the entire box with the gorilla tape. I chose not to glue the line in because I may want to remove it at some point and redo the outside foam board.

I also glued/taped a piece of aluminum on the bottom of the lid just to protect it plus help the insulation keep the heat in. Since my panels weren't all that square, I ran a bead of that sprayable insulation in all the seams before I inserted the liner. Then I sealed the line seams with silicone that through research I found that many aquarium guys use so it should be fairly safe although the food never comes in contact with the box or the water within it. I inserted the extra probes I bought for my Maverick et-733 and silconed them in then shot more sprayable insulation behind them to help stabilize them.

So now pictures:


Thermometer check


First water test, First box started at 160 and dropped 10 degrees in two hours, second started at 135 and dropped to 131 in 3 hours


So my dad was curious about this method and he decided we would have a big party to test them. Why he would think a big crowd is a good way to test an unproven method is a good idea is beyond me but whatever I was up for the challenge. The science was there to back me up. So we found a deal (9.99 per lb) at Tom leonards where you buy the whole tenderloin and they cut it into filets for you. So we found a 8lber and had it cut into about 13 steaks.

He wanted his with a little seasoning so my dads is already missing but you get the idea.

All sealed up and weighed out.

And we're cooking


I had 11 steaks cooking at once because I miss-counted. Only needed ten. Come back to that later. I had both boxes going and had 6 in one and 5 in the other. One box was cooking at medium at around 140 degrees and the other was a medium rare at about 133. It was a lot of meat and I didn't let them sit out very long ahead of time so I fought for the first 30 minutes adding more hot water every 3-7 minutes. My et-733 made it a breeze as I had both alarms set and they warned me when they went out of their threshold. Its wireless too so I was even able to go out and bs in the garage with people while they cooked


I left them a little over the hour cook time because my sides were running slightly over due to losing track of time. Think I went two hours or so because it also helps ensure bacteria is dead all the way through. Lucky I did because the steaks were a few degree under when I took them out probably due to the volume of steak and the lack of circulation equipment but the skillet brought them up to the correct temp without overcooking so they were still perfect. (I'm talking like 1 to 2 degrees off, nothing serious or unsafe)
Cooking


My side: Bacon Wrapped asparagus with a brown sugar sauce(not yet applied)



I was searing three at a time which I think sucked more heat then I realized because my last batch took awhile to sear all the way but they didn't overcook so it was still good. Doing this many may call for two skillets going concurrently and an assistant to cut open bags. Everyone loved the steaks though and some said it was the best steak they had ever eaten. You get a real good taste of beef throughout which impressed some too. (It seems common sense that you would, but I don't taste the beef flavor that much in a regular steak) Its almost like eaten the meat fresh off the cow but its got a better texture and its warm throughout.

I did a quick freeze technique on that extra steak right in its vacuum bag in an ice and water bath and refrigerated it. I gave my dad some instructions and he's going to try one of two methods to reheat it without overcooking it. Either simmer in water for 15 min then sear or low temp oven for 15 min then sear. Normally you could just put it back in the box and cook again I suppose but I brought the boxes back to school with me.

Once again, I wish I had a picture of the finished product but they were all gone by the time I sat down to eat and that was literally only 5 minutes after the first one came off the skillet. I inhaled mine and moved on the peaches which I also forgot to take a picture but they are peaches cut in half and then grilled face down to get some grill marks then flipped and filled with brown sugar until it caramelizes/liquefies, take them off and top with a scoop of ice cream. Enjoy

I will probably be doing another cook this week so I will post pictures of that then.

The boxes hold heat well but probably not much better than a regular cooler which I was going to use but was hoping to get better heat retention this way. I'll keep experimenting with how long I can maintain heat. I need to add drain plugs to make adding water and draining after use easier.

Sidenote: Normally I would use a big pot of heated water to bring the temp up more during cooking but luckily my water heater at home is turned up super high and it comes out of the kitchen tap at 161 degrees so that was a definite help when doing this many steaks.

[SlimKlim]

Nice man!

I can't find it now but I had found an immersion circulator that will clip onto any container for $99, and you can get an actual vacuum sealer for about $80. I think at some point I'm going to pick up both of those, and maybe build I'll build an enclosure similar to yours. Something with a rack in it to keep the steaks vertical and evenly spaced would help keen everything even.

I did it for a second time in the crockpot a few weeks ago with some new york strips and got excellent results, all of them were a perfect 130* medium rare and this time I knew not to let them sit for 60-seconds per side on a 500+ degree skillet, so I was able to get a perfect sear with minimal spread into the meat itself. I seasoned them with a little bit of garlic, pepper and a tsp of woschestershire in each bag,

On top of the improved temperature control and better texture/flavor, I'm really digging how easy sous vide makes the rest of the meal. Usually timing for a good steak dinner is a bitch, you want all the sides to finish precisely when the steaks are done resting, not before and not after. With sous vide you start the steaks an hour in advance, then cook all you're sides, and whenever they happen to be done you pull the steaks and drop them in the pan while you plate everything else, then go right from the pan to the plate. It's awesome. :thumbup:

[Sully]

Something just caught my eye with the way I said,

I will probably be doing another cook this week so I will post pictures of that then.

And this is all I could think of.

[Evan]

Interesting. That looks pretty awesome. I've been wanting to try this no-knead recipe for cast iron skillet pizza.

http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/20...pizza.html

Look at that freaking crust! Look at it!

Just got a big honkin' 15" cast iron pan and started the dough last night. Anyone have any tips? The dough seems really salty.

Seems a little odd that you dont pre-heat the pan, that much iron needs some time to heat up.

[*insertusernamehere*]

How much salt did you add? :evileye: Lol

The recipe i followed never said this, but after you take it out the container let it sit on the counter before you start shaping it. Shape it. It's gonna shrink. Just let it sit again. Then shape it some more. It should hold shape better. When you oil the pan don't oil the upper sides. I did that so that its easier to get the dough to stick to the non oiled part so it wouldn't keep shrinking down. I didn't use a cast iron, I used a baking pan/frying pan so that could explain why mine kept shrinking. Just make sure your oven is blazing hot when you put it in and it'll be fine. You don't need as thick a dough as you think you might need. Unless you like it super thick, then go ahead, but dat bitch gon RISE! I sprinkle garlic powder and oregano directly onto the pan, yum. I had to experiment for a while to get it how i like it especially since i don't have a cast iron. Good luck.

What cheese you gonna use?

[Evan]

just used as much (kosher) salt as the recipe called for. I figured it was a no-knead thing, but then I read that the salt actually inhibits the gluten formation. so :dunno:

Wanted to use aged mozzarella but couldnt find any at the grocery store, so im going regular mozzarella with a little parmesean, asiago and fontina. Next time Ill stop by the overpriced yuppie grocery store and get some.


side note, I highly recommend a digital kitchen scale. I got one a while back and this was the first time using it. Made adding ingrients fast and easy. No juggling measuring cups or spoons.

[*insertusernamehere*]

just used as much (kosher) salt as the recipe called for. I figured it was a no-knead thing, but then I read that the salt actually inhibits the gluten formation. so :dunno:

Wanted to use aged mozzarella but couldnt find any at the grocery store, so im going regular mozzarella with a little parmesean, asiago and fontina. Next time Ill stop by the overpriced yuppie grocery store and get some.

Cheeses sounds good :thumbup: Now excuse me while I go make some dough for tomorrow now

[Jewels]

side note, I highly recommend a digital kitchen scale. I got one a while back and this was the first time using it. Made adding ingrients fast and easy. No juggling measuring cups or spoons.

+1, Rex used his mom's for the first time we made the pizza, and then bought his own. Very very handy!

[CaptainHenreh]

side note, I highly recommend a digital kitchen scale. I got one a while back and this was the first time using it. Made adding ingrients fast and easy. No juggling measuring cups or spoons.

+1, Rex used his mom's for the first time we made the pizza, and then bought his own. Very very handy!

+2, fuck a measuring cup. Give me how much of each thing i need in grams from now on.

[ScottyB]

brisket and/or baby back ribs incoming for some low and slow action this weekend, will report back

[Sully]

I have picture of some sous vide ribs I did for over 30 hours but they don't look much different than a regular rack of ribs :dunno:

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Apoc]

side note, I highly recommend a digital kitchen scale. I got one a while back and this was the first time using it. Made adding ingrients fast and easy. No juggling measuring cups or spoons.

+1, Rex used his mom's for the first time we made the pizza, and then bought his own. Very very handy!

+2, fuck a measuring cup. Give me how much of each thing i need in grams from now on.

So this made me realize I never cook anything that requires measuring. I also never cook anything that requires the over, so I guess that makes sense.

[.RJ]

brisket and/or baby back ribs incoming for some low and slow action this weekend, will report back

Dirty souf cookin'

[Evan]

Been iterating on the no knead pan pizza discussed earlier because I LOVE pan pizza, so I thought I'd share my experience.
First go at it was pretty closely following the recipe with a iron pan



Tasted good, but the bottom was not done when the top was, since that huge iron heat sink had to be heated up while the top toasted away. I finished it on the burner, but even with the iron it was hard to get it perfect.

next i tried pre-heating a iron skillet and spreading the dough on that. no pictures. not surprisingly, didnt work out so well.

3rd try was the other half of that no knead dough, that I left in the refrigerator (which supposedly adds flavor to the no knead)
I also used an aluminum cake pan instead of cast iron which helped a lot with the underside, BUT the top was still browning too fast. Granted I like my cheese toasted and crispy, but even if I pull the pizza out right before the cheese starts to burn, the underside still isnt golden and crispy.


also, at this point I decided to not do the no knead anymore. Its pretty awesome if you dont want to knead fresh dough, but its also gummy so its hard to work with. The taste isnt any better, and I havent noticed any better results.
Since I have a bread machine, I set it on the dough cycle and let it rip.

so clearly I need more heat energy on the bottom of the pizza. So next try is to put the pizza pan right ontop of a an iron skillet preheated to 550, along with a pizza stone above, and a pizza stone below. The rationale for the pizza stones is that at 550 degrees, I bet the heating elements are cycling pretty frequently, so hopefully the stone is buffering that some and will prevent the cheese from browning as fast.

first off, the bread machine dough rises a LOT more than the no knead!

results were definitely the best so far. I could take this one to the bank BUT Im not quite done yet.



Ive ordered a proper deep dish pizza pan, and Im going to try 2 things next.
First im going to try putting a cold pizza stone directly on top of the pizza pan. This should slow the browning on top, and since in a brick pizza oven, the floor of the oven is around 1000, and the top is lower, around 700, that should help emulate that.
Next Im going to try cooking one on the grill (maybe even my wood fired grill) on top of a pizza stone to see how that turns out. Maybe put a welding blanket over the grill to keep the heat in.


also, my wife prefers NY style pizza. Personally i think its a waste of cheese and flour, but whatever, if Im going to do it, Ill do it better than those yankees.

no floppy underdone pizza that has to be folded here. :bootyshake:

[JPolen01]

Next Im going to try cooking one on the grill (maybe even my wood fired grill) on top of a pizza stone to see how that turns out.

This works awesome. Emily's dad does this every once in a while (although he uses a BGE) and it's so good.