Leaderboard

Well, at least when your considering extra storage for wood or charcoal. I wanted something water proof or at least close to it so I built this box incorporating a ship lap top construction sealed with Gorilla glue at the seams for a weather tight seal. Handles had to applied just to move it, it was beastly heavy. The sides were seasoned pine boards tightly fitted and held with decking screws on to a sturdy frame. The whole box 6'x2'x2.5' sits a few inches above the ground to prevent decay with some 6x6 posts, remnants from the pavillion I built. Nothing fancy, fully functioal and could if needed possibly double as a casket for two. It does need some art work but that'll come later. Just an idea.

I was inspired. Had 3 buddies over on Friday night and we gorged on these big beef ribs. Sorry, no cooking pics, just the end result. Dry rub blend of Sureshot Sid's Gunpowder and Meat Churches Holy Cow. 6+ hours at 275F (Guru) over post oak and mesquite (smoker pot). Spritzed every hour after hitting 170F with equal parts apple cider vinegar, bourbon and water. Wrapped at 190F with Wagyu tallow. Pulled off at 203F. Rested in the cooler for 2 hours.

Some Huli huli chicken thighs stuffed with Ritz cracker schrimp and other things and then wrapped in bacon. Homemade pickles and pickled beets as sides, kind of a diet meal except for the bacon.

Well, if you recall, in our last episode, my Fireboard 2 had a failure, and was showing the battery totally depleted. The unit would turn on, but then itself off again in less than a minute. After about 20 tries, I got the unit to re-set and was able to charge the battery up fully. So I put it away until this last weekend, three weeks later, when I intended to do some babyback ribs. But guess what? No battery and it wouldn't charge at all this time. So I would have ride bareback, so to speak, go commando (where did that phrase originate from, anyway?)....go old school. Wing it. I had to control the temps myself, manually. AND I would need a new temperature gauge, since the Fireboard sensor had been providing that function for the last two years. So a trip to Home Depot.....and I was in business. Happily, I can report that although there were a few ups and downs, overall I managed to keep the temps within a decent cooking range, and got really good results: see photo. So the unit went back to Fireboard Labs in Kansas, and I am really happy to report that their service is just GREAT! Scott Myers at Fireboard stayed in touch with me by email throughout the process, acknowledging the receipt of the unit, informing me about progress, and finally when it was done. Best, the problem was just a bad battery, and the whole fix only cost $20, and it should be on its way back right now. Can't say enough good things about Fireboard Labs. Looking forward to doing some pork shoulder next.

What is better than one flat crispy KK cooked chicken? From KK to table. Delicious!

Dennis, so sorry to hear about the shoulder (I am a tennis player and am around a lot of rotator cuff patients). That particular injury usually has, I'm afraid, a pretty extended recovery and rehab period. The only wisdom I can pass along from my friends is hit the rehab hard and really work it in the early stages, do everything they tell you to do, and don't get behind in your pain medications.

Thanks Bill. This took about 7 hours including prep time. My whole day revolved around this one meal!

This will not be my last KK