DMAX

I'm sure I have no idea what you are talking about...

UMmm, that would be lamB not lamp, sorry.

How would you use a temp probe in such a small piece of meat as a lamp lolipop? In my oven I rely on touch, but I know I cant keep opening the KK to do that.

Or when they call and email and say "WHERE IS MY KK????"

I'm trying to organize the variations of how the KK works and what impact various factors folks here include in their hints have on the end results. One item I searched for and didn't see any discussions about is the dome volume and its relation to the amount of food being cooked. Similar to how my cigar humidor stays much more stable when it is full (holds about 200 cigars), I'm curious if anyone has observed any discernible differences in the performance of the KK when cooking say one rack of ribs versus ten. I would assume that the volume of moisture in the dome would be distinctly different with larger quantities of meat, thus impacting the function of heat. I guess I am over analyzing this, but there should be an algorithm to relate the mass of the food being cooked to the optimal temperature with the objective of retaining maximum moisture in the food. DMAX

Glad to hear it Dennis. It looked to be quite some ways from you, but its like friends from Europe that email whenever there are big tornado's here in the states to ask if we're OK here in DC when the storms were in Arkansas! DMAX

Thanks Trish, sounds interesting. The base wood should be white oak, or possibly french oak....could be yummy. Of course, being of the male persuasion, I am forbidden to enter BB&B, or risk losing my card! DMAX

Hey all! I want to try something different on the KK this weekend. I wanted to stick to an intense flavored meat, something that would stand to benefit from the low and slow, but hold on through it all with a concentrated boldness. I want to try a salt and rosemary rubbed rack of new zealand lamb, but am unsure of what (if any) smoking wood to try (i'm thinking maple). I also wondered if anyone has experimented with the results of using a big tannic red wine to finish off a cook. Will it char like the sugar in the mops I have tried? Maybe I should use no wood, just charcaol for the first try. I'm thinking 200 F for 3 hours, then remove the deflector, drop to a sear level and touch them off with a few minutes of high heat. Thoughts? DMAX

Looks to be quite a ways away from the epicenter.

Anyone know how far this is from Dennis' relative position?

Very important to include the photo of the independent observer. Yup. Academy Awards have PricewaterhouseCooper, you have Woofy. I think we know who is more reliable. Yup. Woofy! Nicely done, DMAX! Yeah, thats her "get the camera out of my face" look! WAY more interested in the ribs! DMAX

Geez! I am SOOOO sorry for not meeting everyones visual stimulation needs. Try this...

Today's Ribs: One and a half hours in a brine (membrane removed) - 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup rootbeer, 1/4 cup kosher salt, several grinds on the pepper mill, 2 tablespoons rub. Started KK, just added some lump and oak to what was left from Sunday (plenty of lump and several chunks of wood. Shut down the hat to a 1/4 turn with the inlet wheel closed when she got to 200. Took the ribs out of the brine, rinsed, dried and rubbed them down, left out on counter for 1/2 hour. Dome thermometer at 225, put ribs on, meat side down. It's been an hour, will check them at three hours. DMAX

Agreed. WF is awesome for all the goodies, but very limited on essentials. Although, the seventh generation paper products and detergents aren't bad. It's just staple things that are hard to find, forcing you to make two separate trips or stops. I usually do Wegmans or Harris Teeters once every two weeks and then WF twice a week. I'm in the process of building a greenhouse though, and hope to stop buying all but the odd veggies and fruits. DMAX

Gadget, I'm using the Wicked Good Weekend Warrior blend, cant find the Competition blend nearby. I have oak also, and have been using it with my chicken cooks. DMAX

Wegmans is nice, but kinda like a grocery on steroids here in NOVA. Whole Foods is my venue of choice, all non growth hormone, non antibiotic tainted meats, most grainfed or free ranged. Picked up two organic chickens, two racks of St Louis cut ribs and some frenched new zealand lamb chops last night. Planning on a busy several days of test cooking! DMAX

Ok, so a little more info and a few more hints... 1. I used just dry rub (no sugar in it), plus some yellow mustard for the first four hours, 2. The "mop" was root beer (a belgian, heavy nutmeg microbrew) 3. The 250 temp was at the dome, should I be at 225 here? 4. I didn't flip the ribs at all. just cooked the entire time with the bone side down 5. Totally indirect. Had the heat deflector in its metal pan on top of the fire basket and had the large drip pan on the lower rack with the ribs on the main grill. 6. Had about half a dozen medium chunks of hickory and three or four small chunks of maple in there. I'm itching to start another batch today, just to continue the experiment, so chime in as you can. DMAX

Well, thanks again all for the guidance. I did another spatchcock chicken, no worries there, and then did a low and slow set of ribs on Sunday. I did as directed, filled the fire basket, lit two or three larger pieces of my Wicked Good Weekend Warrior blend, left the intake wheel at about 1/8" open and the hat at a half turn. It took her a good 45 minutes to get to 200, I took the hat to a 1/4 turn open, waited until she had been at 250 for a half an hour and then put on the ribs. Checked her every hour or so and she didn't budge off 250. Awesome! I need though now, to figure out when to wrap my ribs in foil. The family wasnt a fan of the color and texture of the bark, but the meat was perfection! I'm thinking that at my first peek and mop at 4 hours, I will go ahead and wrap them for the final two hours. Thoughts? DMAX

Remote meat thermometer. My guess was more interesting...

Maverick as in old car?

Arugula. Go figure.

Re: Valentine's Dinner - bragging rights Sounds delicious! I miss the rocket! I spent a few weeks on Lord Howe last year and was so confused when they kept telling me my salad was coming with rocket! Dinner sounded awesome. Me and My Love did an awesome tapas lunch in DC after going to the 1000 Kisses exhibit at the Reynolds Gallery. DMAX

Beautiful!