Amphoran Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 OK, OK, I wimped out. What with visiting relatives, work and everything, my first cook was simple direct burgers - both salmon and beef patties. I filled the basket with lump (cowboy), got the top going with a weed burner, opened everything wide, and the grill was reading 400 in about ten minutes. So far so good. I shut down the lower and upper dampers and the temp stabilized quickly at 350, so I put the patties on the main grill. They didn't act like they were at 350. Instead of the normal 4-5 minutes per side, they took almost twice that long! (the beef burgers did develop a beautiful smoke ring, though!) and everything tasted great, once done. So here's the question - do I need to let it ride up to 500 or so on the initial heat up before choking off the air, in order to get the grills nice and hot? Should direct quick cooks be done on the lower grill? Second (first REAL cook is all afternoon today - 3 big racks of St Louis ribs. Pics will follow!) Thanks, Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curly Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 Yeah, at 350 4-5 minutes isn't enough. I can get mine to 650 and then 4 minutes per side plus a 4 minute dwell (after shut down)...and they are still medium rare. I will clarify that these are 1/2 lb patties. So 350 may be enough on a very thin patty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanny Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 350 is baking temp, not burger temp. Think about it - you'd do meatloaf at 350 or thereabouts, right? Burgers are hotter food than that. Even if you broiled them, they'd be 500* plus. Go back and do it again. hehehe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amphoran Posted September 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 Thanks, Curly! Is that on the lower grill, or the main one? I can see it will take me a bit longer than I thought to internalize how this thing heats up. Now that's a challenge I can really dig into! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firemonkey Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 The grill may be considerably further away from your heat source than you are used to as well. For example, on my K5 I can do burgers at about 375-400 dome, since the vessel is smaller and the grill is closer to the fire. I need to keep my temps reasonable because my burgers are typically over an inch thick. On the KK i let it heat soak a bit more, and go for about 425-450 direct, about 8 minutes on one side, then flip. If you have the lower grill, you can give that a shot, but I think you will like cooking things that you need to tend (like burgers) on the main grill better. It can get pretty hot reaching down into the lower grill to flip burgers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amphoran Posted September 2, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 350 has worked very well for years on the old steel gashog - after letting it run up to 500, then kill the middle burner and turn the other two all the way down. With the lid closed, that stabilizes the internal temp right at 350. The rules are clearly different with the ceramic, and I'm learning! Thanks, all. The ribs are in for the afternoon cook, and I'm trying to bump the heat down to the 230 range. Here's the picture as they went in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanny Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 Yummy! What time should we all be there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firemonkey Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 350 on your gasser was up near the top of the lid, while your burgers were down probably 6-9 inches from the heat source. Good looking ribs...230 might be low, dont be afraid to go up to 250. keep it closed and resist the urge to keep peeking- thats the hardest skill to learn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdbower Posted September 3, 2007 Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 keep it closed and resist the urge to keep peeking- thats the hardest skill to learn Maybe Dennis needs to add a little window. Or a heat-proof webcam - ooo, with infrared imaging so you can see how hot your food is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Porkchop Posted September 3, 2007 Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 burgers can go both ways, hot or low-n-slow. depends on your mood. sometimes, i make these 1/2# or more burgers, add some seasonings and moisture, and do a 250 cook for about an hour (til done anyway) with hickory or wild cherry. no need to add bacon to the burgers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amphoran Posted September 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 And here is the result of the first real cook. 6.5 hours at 250 direct. Falling off the bone, with a fair amount of nicely crusty bark. Couldn't taste the rub, though. Either I used too little (about 4 oz for the 3 racks), or the flavor just evaporates over the course of the cook. Any comments on that? Hot off the grill cutting up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firemonkey Posted September 3, 2007 Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 Ive never had a rub melt off the food, so either there wasnt enough for you to have a distinct flavor, or the rub itself was not powerful enough. you didnt say what your rub was? Its not necessarily a bad thing if you couldnt taste any overwhelming flavor from your rub. Maybe you got a nice complimentary flavor, that jus t wasnt as pronounced as you were expecting? They looked good, though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curly Posted September 3, 2007 Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 Well, looks like you nailed the ribs And yeah, like PC said, burgers can be done low too, just takes a lot longer. And If I'm cooking a butt or ribs and want burgers I'll do them low. But usually I do them at about 600-650 cause it's fast and they are darn good. They are good low too...just take longer and definately not better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amphoran Posted September 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 The rub was one of may compromises made this week due to the shortage of time. It was Stubbs Chili Lime rub, and it was very fragrant while being rubbed in, a couple of hours before they went on the grill. Don't get me wrong, the ribs were delicious, but I couldn't taste the chili and lime in them. I've got a half-dozen rub recipes I'd like to try out, so my next step is to put in a Penzey's order for some nice fresh spices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThreeDJ16 Posted September 3, 2007 Report Share Posted September 3, 2007 I highly suggest Dizzy Pig rubs!! Swamp Venom is one of my favorites on ribs. There is more info in the link section! -=Jasen=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professor Salt Posted September 11, 2007 Report Share Posted September 11, 2007 Couldn't taste the rub' date=' though. Either I used too little (about 4 oz for the 3 racks), or the flavor just evaporates over the course of the cook. Any comments on that?[/quote'] I find that pork ribs "sweat" off alot of their moisture, and carry away the rub. This seems to happen in a ceramic or a steelie. In the first 90 minutes, I usually mop and reapply rub twice to counter that loss of seasoning. I make my dry rub with relatively little salt, or else my finished product would be too salty. Also, when the pores of the meat are open and sweating, the meat absorbs the flavors I reapply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Porkchop Posted September 11, 2007 Report Share Posted September 11, 2007 try this on your ribs next time, to avoid the "sweating" loss... ribs and other meats that have a salt/sugar base rub applied develop a "pelllicle" by drawing out moisture and moisture-soluble proteins. what you want to do is dry that pellicle while it is forming on the meat. after rubbing your ribs down, place them on an elevated rack over a shallow pan and let sit for 20-30 min. during this time, you'll see fluid begin to show on the surface of the meat. place close to that rack a small, table-top fan, and turn it on low, blowing over the meat. this will help dry out the pellicle, and cause it to become more tacky than "wet". a well developed pellicle will react very nicely in the smoker and develop a very healthy smoke ring. just before placing on the grill, hit the ribs with a bit more rub, to cause that pellicle to dry up just a little bit more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThreeDJ16 Posted September 11, 2007 Report Share Posted September 11, 2007 try this on your ribs next time, to avoid the "sweating" loss... ribs and other meats that have a salt/sugar base rub applied develop a "pelllicle" by drawing out moisture and moisture-soluble proteins. what you want to do is dry that pellicle while it is forming on the meat. Or just use mustard. It will be neutral in flavor and hold the rub. -=Jasen=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curly Posted September 11, 2007 Report Share Posted September 11, 2007 try this on your ribs next time, to avoid the "sweating" loss... ribs and other meats that have a salt/sugar base rub applied develop a "pelllicle" by drawing out moisture and moisture-soluble proteins. what you want to do is dry that pellicle while it is forming on the meat. Or just use mustard. It will be neutral in flavor and hold the rub. -=Jasen=- I agree, I'm really not sure about pellicles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThreeDJ16 Posted September 11, 2007 Report Share Posted September 11, 2007 try this on your ribs next time, to avoid the "sweating" loss... ribs and other meats that have a salt/sugar base rub applied develop a "pelllicle" by drawing out moisture and moisture-soluble proteins. what you want to do is dry that pellicle while it is forming on the meat. Or just use mustard. It will be neutral in flavor and hold the rub. -=Jasen=- I agree, I'm really not sure about pellicles I use PC's method for smoking fish - it is a must for good texture. Except I do it in the fridge. -=Jasen=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
