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London Broil a la Meathead.

Italian rotisserie chicken night. Three day beer brined chicken with molasses and a local beer called Avondale vanillaphant porter. I was thinking it was a waste of a good beer until I tasted the chicken. Turned out to be a good use of the beer. I also split an Italian sausage and tied it to the chicken during the cook. Served it with asparagus and Avgolemono soup.

We had a nice break in the weather this weekend - highs in the 50s! Just a teaser for Spring though, more cold and snow on the way this week. Took advantage and grill up a nice steak dinner. A nice piece of pichana, rubbed with a mix of coffee/chile based rubs, direct on the lower grate with chunks of mesquite and post oak. Simple baked potato, sautéed mushrooms & shallots, with a nice side salad.

The ribs turned out great .Ready to go..time for a rest..and carved. Sent from my SM-T835 using Tapatalk

No complaints ! this was my 3rd pig for these guys and this on the KK was the best, the other two were on one of those caja china boxes. pita

Done to 75c. Request for no smoke, charcoal only. Oh well, still bursting juices with every break of the skin. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Busy evening preparing meals for the week. Tried this chilli recipe with a few Aussie variations and left over brisket. https://www.vindulge.com/smoked-beef-brisket-chili/ It’s pretty good. Added some fresh soaked chickpeas that provided a different texture to chew. Also been asked to prepare these two chooks for some asparagus chicken with cream of mushroom for later in the week. This is where the Meater stands apart. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good to see Tyrus mixing his rubs .I love mixing it's amazing the different flavour profiles that can be made .in my true fashion I decided to add a vegetable rub to my ribs .it may be on the bottom .But it's a start to see if It can progress to the top lol..Ready to go..smoking over jam wood can't wait. 3 hours to be precise. All day everyday love how consistent Ora is Sent from my SM-T835 using Tapatalk

Small 2kg( 5lb) brisket for tonight. Kk got away from me so I’ll check for leaks tomorrow. Crept up to 170c. I might have got lazy putting the bottom door back after the last clean out. Turned out ok after 4.5 hours. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Turned out great Sent from my SM-T835 using Tapatalk

Marinated a Tri Tip Asian style . Ready to go ..gave it some rub..on it goes .. The ingredients. . Sent from my SM-T835 using Tapatalk

Poured concrete on the BBQ island and coordinated with Dennis for mid March delivery of the KK. Next post will be delivery!

I'm looking forward to the garden too, Bruce. Some days are diamonds and some days are stones. I guess you and I had that covered yesterday. Tomorrow it could be the other way round.

Only 1 for me Aussie. That’s the first 15 of 30 sold amongst mates. Didn’t think I had that many friends until the lamb call came in! If u were near Brisbane I’d line you up for 1. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I was out in historic Plymouth Mass. the other day looking around antique and second hand stores hunting for something to add to the BBQ villa. So I open the door to this one establishment and what to my wondering eyes should appear but a pig staring at me from up on high, I think he could talk because I believe I heard him say, "You yah you,...Take me home". AS I drew closer the 25% off ticket I saw sealed the deal and before ya knew he was riding shotgun back with me to the house. So, um...do any you have a mascot around the KK to dress up the area, help me out, I can't be the only one....could I? He's a pretty big porka coming in around 30 x 24 inches and fully welded at the seams, a handsome creature, a sight to behold. The picture really doesn't do him justice. And how about the cowboy coffee pot also, it was found not to distant apart, a daily double just shy of a trifecta. A horse might be next. Zo if your watchin, we can settle the big question here and now regarding the 23 KK and the whole hog. Pictures don't lie! Open your eyes...the truth shall set you free

Indeed. Only probe of its kind out there. That's the single reason that I backed their Kickstarter campaign.

I rarely sift unless a particular recipe calls for high extraction. I don't do "no-knead" either. I use bulk fermentation to build structure via a set of folds. My bread muses are my pals Maurizio and Trevor J. 1) Maurizio (https://www.theperfectloaf.com/) has a number of recipes specifically for fresh milled flour. You'll also find that he has a number of recipes that include high extraction flour. He tends toward very high hydration doughs and exotic flour combinations. 2) Trevor J. Wilson (http://www.breadwerx.com/) is known for his open crumb techniques and his excellent ebook, "Open Crumb Mastery." While many try to push the hydration as high as it will go, Trevor J. makes the point (correctly, I think), that proper dough handling and structure building are the keys to open crumb, and hydration is secondary and over-rated. His Champlain Sourdough recipe, for example, is only 70% hydration as I recall, but with proper structure building and dough handling, has a fantastic open crumb. The take-away? Focus on learning to build structure and handle dough before worrying about hydration. Most people get this backwards. The issue with 100% whole grain is that the bran tends to act like tiny razor blades and cut gluten strands shorter and, hence, makes your breads a tad more dense. There are a number of techniques to fix that. These include a long autolyse (I typically use at least 90 minutes) so that the bran softens. Others will sift out the bran, but then add it back into starter so that, again, it has more time to soften. Peter Reinhart wrote an entire book on Whole Grain Breads but, as with many Peter Reinhart books, I think he misses the mark.

Looks great Basher, high hydration sourdough breads can be frustrating, its hard to bake a good loaf. The process provides me with plenty of opportunity to learn and say a few cuss words. 😁

Thanks. I love pasta made with 100% extraction flour but have been a little less adventurous with bread, sticking to Chad Robertson's ever more complicated/varying mixes of high extraction, whole grain and bread flours. Do you have any idea what colour the wheatgerm is? I have assumed that if I simply sift out the brown bran I must be retaining the wheatgerm but that assumption could be completely wrong. Do you have a go-to recipe/hydration level for using 100% extraction wheat flour? I also seem to remember you saying you used a modified Tartine no-knead method. Care to share?

Personally, I agree with you that sifting out the germ just to put it back in is just a wee bit silly. I would skip that and go 100% extraction. But that's just me.

I have been meaning to ask about wheatgerm. A number of the Tartine No 3 recipes call for, say 70g, wheatgerm alongside 500g of high extraction flour. Given the fact that I am milling my own flour it seems to make no sense to be buying additional wheatgerm when the flour that I mill will contain wheatgerm in any case. Thus far I have got over this hurdle by sifting the bran out of my milled flour to get to about 85% extraction. Where the recipe calls for wheatgerm I simply use more of this high extraction flour. What do you think? Should I be looking to buy wheatgerm as well?

London broil and Roto chicken, both great looking meals, it's hard to decide....envelope please....it's a tie

As stated, talk to Dennis. However, I’m very pleased with 32. The basket splitter gives it a lot of efficient versatility.

That looks great @Basher. I have finally got my leaven to float reliably and look nice and lively. I have been trying a different loaf from Tartine no 3 each week and I find that the high hydration doughs end up a little flatter. Still tasty but not that plump look that you got there. I think I have had most success when I have refreshed the starter twice and then made the leaven. Will experiment more to see if that is indeed an important factor.

I’m thinking you could vertical roast tacos al pastor with the right set up.

Mixing with a plan of course, a plan to track down the best ribs you can make. Plan is to keep doing it for a long time. Hey, good plan.

Looks great! My opinion: stick with this formula until you’re comfortable you’ve mastered the process, then tweak from there. But if you like it, nothing wrong with sticking with it either. Regarding your starter — if it’s healthy I find one feeding the night before and then another the day of making is sufficient. YMMV.

I finally feel like I nailed a sourdough loaf with the spring and shape I wanted. Twas delish. This was 60% hydration rather than 70% and I added a little dry yeast before the final proof. Maybe tells me I wasn’t feeding my starter regularly enough before adding it to the dough? Not sure I want to change this process for now. The other recent attempts have been too dense or too flat. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Very similar to mine in structure however yours has so much, much more detail and it is looking like a gem. You must live in a dry climate and the rain may not be a concern, so I believe you designed the top as a shaded area by placing the rafters closer together for sun protection and leaving the opening exposed to the elements. Here in the northeast weather and rain are always a concern, could ruin your day, like a Florida shower and the event would be dashed. Unfortunately, and with the added expense the roof has to be closed. Nice to see yours coming along so well.

So looking forward to attending this next weekend .https://www.perthfestival.com.au/event/highway-to-hell/ Sent from my SM-T835 using Tapatalk

Is it like a tribute memoriam to him cause he's been gone since 1980. Heard AC/DC may play the Super Bowl next year here for our football half time ceremonies. Enjoy. Just returned from seeing Fitz and the Tantrums (good show) not so crazy manic like AC/DC but a band thats been around awhile and can give some good entertainment...

Instead of the red pepper flakes I added purple crack Sent from my SM-T835 using Tapatalk

@Basher heres one more good one of the final setup. Fridge in front. Flat top griddle in middle, side burner on right. Storage doors hidden in backside and electrical stub ups hidden inside island KK will stand to the right completing the island and closing it off

Tyrus if you bend his legs in a little and tuck his head, then put him in the rotisserie I think that might work. Might be a little hard to cut and tough to chew.

With bait like that it's no wonder friends came crawling out of the woodwork.

Surely not Bruce, but you are right. That pasta does look good. These are on their way to my house this afternoon. Raised on chickpeas- protein. Hence the low fat lamb. Can’t wait to fire up some chops on the kk tonight. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Nah, the 23 is working fine and meeting my needs for 90% of the cooks. Actually, I should have jumped on Dennis's clearance sale last year on the 19. Nope, going to hold pat for a while, putting on a new deck. Don't tempt me, I'm on the straight and narrow.

Tyrus, you need a bigger KK.

More indoor cooking, it is really cold outside, feels like -25C so the kitchen stove was looking pretty good. Made some whole wheat pasta today and sometimes things just work out and today was one of those days or maybe I was just starving. Those tomatoes are from last summer's garden. They were partially dehydrated and then frozen, delicious.

SOOIE and no skunks wanted here Jon B, you keep em. Have to find a steer next Basher and possibly a duck. It's all about the hunt

I’m going to have to get one. I’ll be Keeping an eye out now Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have a big old skunk that visits time to time when I'm cooking at the marina. He always manages to show up just about the time the food is ready to come off the KK. A few cooks have been overdone when Pepe Le Pew shows up!!! I'll gladly trade you old Pepe for the pig 😁!!!!!

No mascots here other than a black lab. Just wanna say congrats! You must have been "squealing" in delight!

I’d definitely buy one. Wrap it in tin foil and wear it whenever I’m back in DC.

Look forward to seeing it!!! (my kids are going to hate me when they see all the "accessories" they will need to get rid of - revenge for all the sleepless nights - Ha!!!!)

It took me a while to figure out what the prongs at the bottom were for and then I noticed the screw at the bottom and realised it is a bit like a vertical roti. I would like the frame and the ability to hook meat onto the top of the frame. My current adaptation when cold smoking ham is to use the half grate. This frame would improve on clearance and allow you to hang bigger joints in the KK. Below are a couple of hams, brined in beer and molasses for a few days and then cold smoked.

This week’s loaf is Trevor J. Wilson’s Champlain Sourdough, which is mostly white bread flour (I used Giusto’s Artisan) with a touch of fresh milled spelt and fresh milled rye. Trevor has an ebook called “Open Crumb Mastery” in which he contends that open crumb is 80% fermentation and dough handling and 20% other factors. Whilst most amateurs are fixated on hydration, Trevor says they’re looking in the wrong place. This loaf was only 70% hydration, using techniques from his book. I think I believe him. Next week I’ll begin experimenting with a higher proportion of spelt and rye, and also replace about half of the bread flour with high extraction hard red wheat. I’ll also boost the hydration a bit (75% for starters) due to the higher amount of whole grains. Once I have everything dialed in, I’ll move my indoor baking back out to the KK.

Mac that looks just down right delicious!!! It’s really cold up there! It got to 68 here today😀I spent about $42 today On some veggies and meat and made a cabbage stir fry, turned out terrible I’ll probably end up throwing it out. What a waste. Think I’ll just stick to eating out. Hope the weather gets warmer soon so you can plant your garden.