Leaderboard

@tekobo yes you are right I’m so into gardening. I’ve picked up a yellow passion fruit tree and black mission fig tree since the last update.... we finally got my roof and solar done. This is what I do for a living so I geek out on this stuff. We got a new roof, 15kW of solar, 3 Tesla Powerwalls for battery storage and I got 2 Tesla EV chargers on back order. Got everything installed by my friends company who did it super clean. Here’s the end result

And if revealed the certainty of that color may not at all be what it is. No, alas with the Tekebo secret, it is hidden in a vault beside the CocaCola recipe and is safe for the moment. We need to employ other methods of extraction, "I'll get you my pretty, and your little cat too". Do you believe in spooks?

Well, as luck would have it, we were in Costco this afternoon (to my Aussie friends: Costco is a huge buying cooperative, run practically like a non-profit, that has a very large national presence in the US, enormous buying power that extracts razor thin discounts in bulk buying and passes them along to their "members"). Passing along the meat counter, I found they had- and this is in my experience unusual - these huge Cowboy/Tomahawk ribeye cuts for sale for $11.99/lb. This is about half of what I would pay a good local restaurant supplier or Snake River. Did I mention, "prime"? So I brought one home, and had my first experience cooking....not bad. I probably could have moved it farther away from direct heat and cooked slower, but overall, it was good experience and I think I have this cut at least partially figure out. PS, Don't hate me, but I still like filet mignon (tenderloin) better.

Do the sear second. Smoke it first, get it to temp, take it off to rest for about 10 minutes as the cooker come up. Open the vents wide, let it heat up, then put it back on 1.5-2 minutes per side.

I have trimmed my last brisket with a beater knife. I fought with the last one and got fed up. Introducing the Super Gou! We bought a Kiritsuke and boning knife, and will complete our set over time. 161 layer Damascus clad SG2 steel, scalpel sharp out of the box. I am researching wet stones now and have been practicing honing other knives with good success. We bought a ESO SG2 boning knife, but sent it back in favor of these. 😊. Cutlery and More has a 20% off Labor Day sale so we got these for a relative steal... Definitely not a steal, but a deal nonetheless!

You are on the right Forum!

Striploin for the father in law last night. Very rich with that marbling. Sunday is fathers days here... a good day for slow beef ribs. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Finished the vac Next... outfeed table

Hit me where I live! Sucker for good knives, especially Japanese. I started out with Shuns, which are very good, but have bought a few of the handcrafted ones. Pricey, but amazing. I don't practice enough with my stones. I probably should buy the "cheater" guides, particularly for the 15 degree blades. Be very careful, as this is another rabbit hole that will empty your wallet in a hurry! 🤑

Wow, $11.99! That's way cheaper than my CostCo. I'm happy with $16.99 Prime. Nothing wrong with a nice filet.

@basher Yes it is a very beautiful part of the world. Here is the view from our Orchard to our village 12th Century Church with our four Labradors wandering around.

Stir fry of chicken, bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, zucchini, carrots served with fried rice and Thai basil from the herb garden

Ha ha. That is the million dollar question. At the end of each working day The Husband asks me what cocktail I would like him to make me. I say "a nice one". That way I get a nice surprise. Same with my new KKs.

She has a sense of humour?

Hello @tekobo Thank you for your response and I will look out for both books. PS. I have enjoyed reading many of the posting over the last couple of weeks as I am considering buying a KK PPS. As a fellow Brit I recognise your sense of humour best wishes

I added (with help from a few friends of course) a 14' x 24' extension to my existing 12' x 24' workshop. This gives, me a full 12' x 24' inside space for woodworking, all of my lumber and raw materials are in the new section along w/ lawn tractor and other assorted lawn things. Half is a deck, so I can roll my machines outside to work when the weather is nice. I used a brilliant metal spike collar holder for the 6" x 6" posts, as good as concrete with the benefit of not having to dig holes. Just need to do a new ramp to the extension (pile of wood on deck), then it will be done.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I saw one of those barbecue competition shows the other day, and the pitmasters were challenged to cook brisket point for burnt ends and big huge old Cowboy Steaks- big ribeye Tomahawk type steaks. So, inspired by that, I ordered a couple of prime ribeye Cowboy Steaks, one cut 3" thick, and the other 4". This should be interesting and fun. So, does anyone have any experience cooking these monsters and tips on how to conduct this cook? The smaller one is 2.3 lbs and the bigger one about 4.1. Any tips or recommendations would be welcomed.

Delicious dinner, Basher.

I could easily settle in to scrumpy country. Ron have you made your own cider? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Beautiful wingman. Stones are the only way to go. You don’t need the most expensive stone. I haven’t had a bad stone yet. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Troble my solar goes in next week. 13.3kw system and pool heat pump. What panels did you end up with? No batteries here as the government is not allowing power retailer to charge at the variable commodity rates so we don’t get peak price spikes. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

NICE. Well, as far as filets, go, I stand by my choices. They also say "real" scotch drinkers prefer the peaty ones- Tallisker, Laphroig, Lagavuillion.....but I prefer Glendrinach, Glenlivet, Glenfiddich. So there....

Yeah... That. Is. Sick.

Yep, I’m weak. 10” slicing knife purchased. 😔 😄👍

Yeah, you’re right about that. I have the 10” Super Gou slicing knife in my cart right now. The angle on these is ~12 degrees. I almost went with Shun Premier as they have lifetime free sharpening... you only pay shipping. That almost had me sold, but the blade quality wasn’t quite as good, and we liked the handles of these. 😊

Beautiful.

My wife’s favorite. 😊

Looks great nice cook! Hey what’s not to like about filet mignon? But that steak looks pretty tasty.

Small world! You would be very welcome.

Gosh @Ron Hixon, our cats would love that freedom! Lovely view. I reckon you are about 2.5 hours from where I live near Portsmouth. Happy to introduce you to a real live KK - either my old ones on their own or my new ones as well when they arrive.

That’s beautiful country Ron. I have a strong connection with The Forest of Dean. Turned 18 at the Lydney rugby club. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good start Ron. She hasn't thrown you out or had you sectioned and she has even considered a colour. You're in! With your choice of colour you may want to consider your moods. At the moment I have green hair and am waiting for my pink mask to arrive in the post but I can and will change both, in time. That said, all the rooms in my house are painted white because I like the calm and blank canvas that a single colour provides. Although I loved my cobalt blue KKs and they served me well, they were just too persistently cheerful for me. As tonyb will always say: YMMV.

@basher I lived in London up until 20 years ago, I now live one hour west of Bristol in a little village looking out into what is called the Somerset Levels Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yes, I have a basket splitter (that I have never used)- I can try doing it that way, thanks. This will be probably a weekend project.

I've only done 1 this big. Started out in the sous vide, then final sear on the grill. Use the basket spitter (assuming you have one) and reverse sear. Roast up on main grate on the indirect side until 5 degrees below target, then drop down to the lower grate on the direct side, flip every 30 seconds until you have a crust built up. Can't wait to see the pictures!

Hi there Ron. The version that I have is by Robert Marin. It is the non bilingual English version. I just found it on amazon.co.uk and the first review was all about how it is a book for men who grill. Poo to that but yay for the book! Certainly worth getting it if you can get hold of it. Having said that, I do also like the Francis Mallman books. Great sense of freedom, imagination and skill in his way of cooking with fire.

Hello @tekobo Who is the author of your version of "Secrets of the Patagonian Barbecue" as strangely there are two books of this name, one by Robert Marin and the other by Hector Salgardo. Thanks

The technique using the sear method I have found is to not be afraid of turning or flipping for quick short periods. Letting a steak as large as that to sit there will only allow the middle to remain pink while the outer portion looks fully cooked if it isn't turned often enough . Wingman and Basher are spot on target for a saving grace method for balance however, the continuous short time flip is an alternative. Have you tried Umani or Dried shitake mushroom seasoning, it enhances flavor profile on large steaks as this? Good eating and good luck.

Bards I’ve cooked a few of these. Set up for 2 zones. Spice to your preferred flavour. Let the steak drift up to just short of your desired temp in the KK with early smoke. Then reverse sear on grates low down. Good luck whichever way you choose. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I did not mean to sound disrespectful. I hope that it didn’t. I just don’t think I do anything too innovative. 😊👍

Oh yeah... We buy 60-90 pounds every year! A local market uses pizza ovens to roast them evenly. We remove stems, pre-freeze, then vacuum seal it in portions. We don’t remove peels as it’s easier to do after steaming them 8n the bag slightly. Also, it saves a ton of time during the process. We have 3 Foodsavers... 2 of them only come out during Chile season. That’s an awesome basket, it’s really cool roasting it yourself! We’ve thought about it, but we buy so much it’d be way too much work. We typically mix 1/3 extra hot and 2/3 hot. The bottom basket is full of Chile too.

Catching up on a couple of cooks. Sunday dinner - duck on a stick. 3 different preps - French (red wine, herbs de Provence, powdered roasted garlic & tarragon), Asian (oyster, hoisin and soy sauces with 5 spice powder) and classic Chinese Duck Sauce, with some extra apricot jam and szechuan pepper oil. Direct, 350F, main grate, cherry wood chunks. Plated with duck fat spuds (hint, hint tekobo!) and a nice Pinot Noir. Birthday dinner last night - rack of lamb (rubbed with Dijon and Penzey's Greek seasoning). Direct, main grate, 325F, grape vine chunks. Plated with a nice salad, more duck fat spuds and Bubbly! After dinner - a lovely late harvest Zinfandel. Very port-like. Better than cake!

I think it is great that you have that outside space to work @Tucker. Best of both worlds - an extended workshop and a chance to enjoy the good weather when it's here.

Getting there Just finished putting the new table saw onto a cart so it is mobile. In process is a 2hp cyclone, portable.

I could live in that. Great looking workshop. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Nice. I've done a couple of pandemic projects, but nothing on this scale!

That's great Troble. Looks like you've got the gardening bug. I find gardening teaches me to be more philosophical about things. Some years your tomatoes are fantastic, others your whole crop is hit by blight but something else does really well. Having variety is a good way to make sure something goes right all of the time. Have fun!

I have a good one called "Churrasco," that I got on Amazon. Check it out.

I was just reminded of a great book: "Secrets of the Patagonian Barbecue". It is full of food porn, pictures of gorgeous cuts of grilled meat. It is also very macho. I think the girls get to do the salad and the boys grill. A great book to own if you can get hold of it as there is a lot of detail about South American cuts and grilling techniques if you are interested. Stupidly expensive on amazon for some reason, can't work out why, but hopefully you can find a cheaper used copy.