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We've been buried since last June.. Please excuse my not spending much time here. Sai wanted some Pastrami so I grabbed two brined brisket pieces from the freezer. I have a German butcher here who sells pastrami and I've talked him into selling me uncooked ones.. uncooked piggy bellies for bacon and shoulders for ham too. I soaked them in fresh water a half hour to reduce saltiness.. hit with pepper again.. Some coffee smoke at 235º no wrap because I fell asleep.. pulled at 205º the thin flat with little fat was typically a bit drier than it would have been wrapped but the thicker piece as you can see is heavenly.. I love when meat gets this oyster shell look.. Yes it tastes as good as it looks..

First brisket in the books, it came out excellent! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I had intended to sous vide this steak but then I thought I should do something I haven't done in a very long time - a reverse sear steak. The greens and radish are from my cold frame. The moisture was dripping from the radish it was so fresh.

Seems it was steak night for many of us. I cooked a large ribeye last night. Duck fat and Montreal seasoning, cooked direct at excessively high temp. Plated with baked potato and broccoli with a 2007 Jericho Canyon Cabernet. Nothing exotic, just steak night. Very tasty. By the way, I wasn't kidding when I said "large ribeye"; the plated version is only 1/2 the steak.

Looking good! I’m very impressed at my briskets in the KK. A traditionally not forgiving meat to smoke has been exceptional consistently. Looks like we ate similarly today. No wrap, just lump, a smoke pot, the FireBoard for temp only (no fan) and patience. Foil for mess prevention only, no wrap, 15 hrs at 225-240. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

@Forrest - I just did a chuck roast (similar to cooking brisket, just smaller) and had a nice smoke ring. I'd suggest a stronger smoking wood for brisket - I use a combo of post oak and mesquite in the smoker pot. If you have any of Dennis' coffee wood chunks, toss one of those in the mix, too. Upfront confession - these pics are from a previous chuck roast cook. I had a dinner guest for this last one and didn't want to mess around with "food porn."

To celebrate "Mask Liberation Day" (my name for the 1st day after CDC drops almost all mask wearing requirements!) - what else? Steak night! Prime grade NY Strip, direct, lower grate, mesquite chunks, dome at 400F. Plated with sautéed shrooms, roasted Yukon gold spuds w/green crack sauce and a nice salad with blue cheese dressing! And a decent bottle of red to go with it!

I ordered one to "take one for the team." I'll probably prefer it to the Trompo King drip pan; I have an unused 38cm (15") paella pan that will be perfect. Better coverage, more uniform tandoori cooks.

Dennis introduced me to the concept of smash burgers while we were discussing what accessories to get. When he realised I was completely ignorant of the subject he sent me this link: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/the-ba-smash-burger My KKs arrived and I forgot all about smash burgers until, by chance, I came across this short but fabulous post on the forum: I have now had smash burgers two weekends running and they are great. Still working on getting those edges super crispy but The Husband and I are happy with the results so far. Introducing the burgers to the KK. First batch done Topped with pan fried foie gras Second batch topped with bacon and cheese. In honour of @Aussie Ora's Wagyu fries and Dennis' foie gras fat popcorn, we fried the bacon in the foie gras fat and dribbled some on the buns for good measure. Yummy!

I don't have a precise measuring tool, but simple eye ball and tape measure said it's pretty damn close to 1/4" (~6 mm) - best guess 0.25" +0"/-0.0156". As we used to say at back in the day "close enough for Government work."

Ya’ll are making me hungry I had well done/microwaved filet Mignon at a wedding last night. great cooks all around especially liked the ribeye @jonjbut I just want to sit at your table one night to drink your wine, man do you drink well @Forresthow did you like that rub? I’ve cooked probably 20 Briskets on my KK and only gotten a good smoke ring mauve once. I like a lot of wood smoke and the smoke pot doesn’t usually give me enough so I generally throw on a wood chunk right before I put the brisket then I put another big chunk on when I first open the KK to start spraying which is usually about 6 hours in. I get the smoke flavor but not the pink ring @MacKenziegreat looking steak

New video up, tour of the 32” Big Bad. Next video is the burn in. Some content for those of you with grills on a boat! Yes, I do see the Title Text Here, I was too lazy to fix it once the video rendered.

Coffee and beef are good pals, coffee just adds a subtle earthiness that rounds everything out. Yes, used my 475ml smoke pot stuffed full with hickory chips. The brisket had a very very subtle smokiness, I would have preferred more. I may have to use the KK hot/cold smoker in addition to a smoke pot for brisket. Also I got no smoke ring even though the meat went in cold and the lid stayed closed for the first 14 hours of the cook. Might need to add celery seed for a smoke ring in a KK, it just cooks so efficiently I don’t think I’m getting the charcoal fire burning vigorously enough to cause the chemical nitrate reaction. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I suppose it is possible but I do not think they'd turn out well at all.. bad sticking and not enough heat transfer to the burgers.. you need a griddle type surface to do smash burgers properly.

I bought a Trompo King and Trompo King - Four Spike System after a tip from the Trompo King on sale for Cinco de Mayo thread. I'm returning their grate. As noted in the thread, there are various alternatives, particularly if one owns the KK double bottom drip pan. As promised, my first cook was tandoori chicken from Ranjit Rai (recipe above in this thread). We were thrilled how it came out, and plan to make many similar experiments using the Trompo King. Tandoor: The Great Indian Barbecue by Ranjit Rai I like having five spikes, and a small drip pan I can carry already loaded from the kitchen to the KK. The Trompo King drip pan is however a bit small for this purpose. As Ranjit Rai notes, 482 F is a typical tandoori chicken cooking temperature. Using the KK double bottom drip pan on my lower grates, and the Trompo King on my main grates, I was able to easily reach and hold 480 F to 500 F for hours, for a completely indirect 30 minute cook. This is much longer than Indian timings, though my chicken pieces are larger, and there's essentially no radiant heat in this setup. One might want one's tandoori chicken to come out a bit more beat up from the fire? Approaches I've taken in the past risk too much fire crisping the outside of the chicken, before it cooks through. Using the Trompo King was the least stressful tandoori cook I've ever experienced. There was plenty of taste of the fire, and one could dial up the abuse factor by cooking at a higher temperature. As always, temperature readings in any fire-based cooker are relative to the design and configuration. The KK is far more nimble than a traditional tandoor at changing temperature. One might ideally want to cook at a somewhat lower temperature until the chicken cooks through to the bone, then let the temperature climb at the end for exterior abuse. I'm thinking start at 450 F, end at 550 F. Big picture, one wants to somehow cook tandoori dishes free-standing vertical, and indirect. If one has the equipment, the recipe is most easily prepared by grinding the dry spices in a Vita-Prep dry ingredient bowl, then grating the ginger and garlic on a medium Microplane, then blending everything together with the oil, salt, and yogurt in the same Vita-Prep bowl. Now vacuum pack the marinade together with the chicken. One could easily get by with less marinate this way, but like any brine process that could affect the equilibrium. Just don't stress over exact marinade to meat proportions. The marinade ingredients are not expensive. Cleanup is a different issue at 500 F, not the target temperature for the Trompo King design. One should oil the drip pan, or line it with foil, or resign oneself to long soaks as part of cleanup.

10 year egg user.. Cooking some beef ribs tonight, for panther hockey game. Need to get this guy to 225, for sure am a bit confused about how to do this! I have basket splitter set up for 1/4 size. There are really small beef ribs, always shocked how fast they cook. They are the small ones from Snake River Farms. Then I have the "middle grate" on, and I have the drip pan on the side away from the coals. I plan to put he ribs on the right side of the girl so they will be away from the direct heat. I'm coming from an EGG, I've heard Dennis say don't need place setter, and this drip pan will do the trick? Do I wrap the drip pan in foil? Any advice greatly appreciated!

The food. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well, I made my pilgrimage to KC, and thanks for all the great input. Unfortunately I only had time for 1 bbq joint. Chose Arthur Bryant's. Oh man was it good! And inexpensive, for a bbq joint I think. Had burnt end sammich, and potato casserole. It was excellent, and the ambiance, history, and photos on the wall of famous guests, made it well worth it. I've always made my own bbq sauce, but their sweet heat sauce was off the hook. Brought a bottle home, and fixin to order a case. If you order direct from them, you can get 12 bottles, mix and match of their three sauces for 69 bucks. No shipping. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You're on the right path on your setup for indirect. Yes, you do NOT need a "plate setter" aka - heat deflector in a KK. Wasted charcoal to heat up more material. I'd only wrap the drip pan in foil if you want to keep it looking pristine. Mine looks like crap after all these years, but I don't really care. I don't have a 32" (mine's a 23"), so I can't help with the exact vent settings to get you to 225F, but it's likely going to be very closed down - just off the seat. On mine, it's when I just barely see smoke coming out the top vent. Bottom vent doesn't matter much, just as long as it's open to keep the fire going - 1/4 open on the left dial or one of the medium holes on the right dial. Good luck & post pics of your cook!

@DennisLinkletter

The shipping companies won't let me ship any charcoal from Indonesia because they consider it semi hazardous cargo. At some point a bean counter decided that if ships were over X full they didn't want to take semi hazardous cargo. All ships are full and they won't take any.. That being said, I'm working with a company in another country that can still ship on one line.. Keep your fingers crossed.

Plus, you probably don't want grease permeating the pizza stone. Stick to a cast iron griddle or frying pan.

Beautiful steak, @MacKenzie!

That looks great !!!!!! I’ll have to visit that site 😁

Probably an interpretation issue with a font or incorrect character encoding. Do you have an example? Could be a number of causes but easier with an example to reference.

I know nothing.. I'm just going on previous timeframes I've read about here on the forums

Forrest, looks awesome. Rub with “f-bomb coffee. I’ll have to try that. Did you use your smoking pot? Which wood?

I agree with Mac. A really great looking meal. Enjoy it!!

What do you know, come on spill those beans LOL

I don't think we'll have to wait much longer for an update

A gorgeous meal, Tony, celebration or not, you are dining in style. 🥂

@tony b happy mask liberation day! Looks like a tasty meal. I’m up at the mother in laws in LA and ate at their Peruvian place here. Their green sauce is still the standard I aspire to. Gotta figure out their secret. Looks like you are enjoying a lovely meal. Cheers!

Pulled it after 20 hours when it was probing like butter 205-208 in the flat. Planning on a 5 hour rest. DBD pan got me a whole bowl full of tallow, the most underrated KK accessory imho.

@tekobo that is my plan. My parents, my wife’s parents, her two best girlfriends and their husbands and two kids each, my brother and my two best buddies that were in my wedding. 20 people including kids, a pool, a playlist. No masks required. Everyone’s vaccinated. Why not? I’m a bit nervous I’ll screw it up but I’m planning on staying up all night to watch it. 250 degrees with apple wood. Planning to season with salt and pepper for 48 hours prior. I’m mildly optimistic/confident I won’t screw it up going to make Cole slaw, corn bread, baked beans and a watermelon salad. Two homemade bbq sauces, one spicy and one sweet

I hadn’t cooked pork ribs in ages, the weather is just starting to cool off here so thought I’d chuck a couple of racks in the 32. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Chicken, flank steak and brisket taco bar tomorrow. Been at it all day. Feeling good. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good luck @Forrest how big is it? I never knew chad white had a rub I believe that’s the chef from San Diego who moved to Spokane. Have you used it before?

It’s about to go down.

Well, had been to Costco awhile back, and had a 6lb boneless lamb leg, decided it needed to succumb to the smoke! I rubbed it with a mixture I make out of Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning, and Walker & Sons "Slep Ya Mama" hot stye seasoning.. I like to take a 17oz can of Tony's and mix it with an 8oz can of Slap Ya Mama. To me a great mixture as the Tony's isn't quite hot enough, and I dont want to mix two things with salt, so it comes out perfect for me.. I named it "Slap Tony" LOL At any rate, I coated the leg with mustard, then very generous amounts of Slap Tony, and Lawry's Garlic Salt. Then sprayed it down with avocado oil. Fired up the smoker with Royal Oak lump and some hickory chunks, put the lamb on straight away, indirect @ 240. I know some folks like to get it up to temp first, but to me it soaks up more smoke & flavor, and one less time I have to open the lid ;)] Smoked for 2 hours, then boosted the temp to around 300 and it took just about another 2 hours to get to my target Internal temp of 135. Pulled it, double wrapped in foil, and let it set for 30 minutes, cut the net off and sliced it up.. OH MAN! I was good! Sorry the picture isn't better, I was tired & hungry and wanted to dive it. As you can see, when you cut off the net, is disrupts the crust quite a bit, and flings the crumblies around as you can see on the cutting board.. Next time I will discard the net and tie it myself to get rid of that issue, and can then also score it both inside and out to hold on to more seasoning It was most excellent with some mashed potatoes and green bean casserole While looking around on the net for lamb related stuff, saw a youtube video of a chef making boneless lamb leg, with a mixture of pomegranate molasses and spices.. That, is next on my lamb list OH DUH! it is here on the KK forum LOL... Nice job by the way, looks great and I am going to do one too!

Yeah, the "hair net" does mess up the crust a bit.