Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Off-Topic: Seeking Grill advice

Tom, I took your advise and picked up the "apple wood" chips. Thank-you. Unfortunately, I couldn't bring myself to NOT soak the chips. Actually, I think I soaked them too long. The grill was at 600deg for over 20minutes and there was only a faint smell coming from the tube. My guests (more like my wife) were getting impatient, so on went the ribs. Since she baked them in the oven first, they weren't on the Q long enough to absorb any of the smoke smell or flavour.

Just as I was removing them, the tube came alive with copious amounts of smoke. I yelled in and had her send out some frozen chicken breasts. Having cooked on straight natural gas for the past decade, this was a revalation. They came out awesome. The applewood imparted a wonderful mellow flavour that wasn't overpowering. I am almost depressed that I missed so many years without smoking!

So next time, I will cut the soak time in half (from an hour down to 30min), or take your tip and not soak them at all.

Shawn

Right on, Shawn! I'm so glad that you find promise in that method. But you ARE making me hungry

Tell me more about the ribs. Beef or pork? Bone in or out? Use a rub? How long do you pre-cook them? I'm eager to learn.

Shawn, i have a bag of mesquite and hickory chips downstairs. The instructions on the back confirm what i saw on a bbq (food network) show yesterday.
They recommend soaking the chips for 20-40min and mix 2/3rds wet with 1/3rd dry.
The wet creates more smoke and for a longer period of time while the dry acts like tinder to keep the wet smokin.
I use charcoal myself and need to find a starter chimney.

Ok, here we go! Our favorite is baby back pork ribs, bone-in. We have no hard and fast rules as to cooking them. Our thought is to have fun!

This time around, she rubbed them with a montreal steak spice, put them in a roasting pan with water, and cooked them (covered) for 3 to 4 hours at 350deg. I had to be careful when it came time to grill, as they were falling apart!! I can't remember which BBQ sauce she used. (We usually have 3 to 4 bottles open at a time) It could have been one of these "Diana" sauces. We also like the Southern Comfort BBQ sauce, as well as the 6 sauces from this guy.

Sometimes we will use different spice, as well as adding lemon slices to the pan. Often we will substitute the water for beer / gingerale / juice. It is really fun to experiment. THAT'S why I was so excited to try and smoke them. I'll know better next time. Even without the smoking, they were a big success. The key is to always cook them in the oven first.

Ah-ha! That's the trick! Mix wet & dry - Thanks Chess!

It's supposed to be sunny here this weekend. I'll have to grab a pork roast for the rotisserie and try to smoke again.

What do you think of this BBQ with integrated chimney.

That bbq grill is pretty swank to the one that we own. Two years ago we decided not to spend alot on a bbq until we settled someplace a bit more permanently. At that time we wanted a quick and dirty bbq for a house warming party so i bought a $12 CanTire metal special and 2 bags of quick lite charcoal along with the wood chips. We still have the bbq and it has been used about 6 or 7 times since (we do not bbq that much and usually utilize an electric grill for most dinners except when company is over).
That little bbq has paid itself off several times over now.
We're looking into buying a more full sized bbq (with a lid) that can burn duel fuel, both propane and charcoal.
Personally i prefer bbq'ing over nothing but real wood.

Ah... a BBQing thread to go with the beer thread. Car racing has been covered. What's next? The best brothels in Nevada?

Please note that I am not complaining.

[sound of palm slapping forehead] Wet AND Dry! Of course!

I never really warmed up to that whole "reading the directions" thing. Next thing you know, Chess is going to tell us that he stops to ask for directions too.

This brand has become popular lately and can be found at many Safeway and Costco outlets (at least in Canada).
However, the wife and I prefer to make our own sauce and have a variation based on this recipe. It really needs to be cooked down good and thick so we usually quintuple the recipe quantity.
Surprisingly the recipe given by Emeril for a bbq sauce was not that good.

In reply to:

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Chess is going to tell us that he stops to ask for directions too.

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Actually i usually just tell my wife that i'm lost. She tends to keep on track with the map.
Directions are amazing things and provide the recipe for the failure or success of...well a recipe.