mguerra

Re: Best vacuum packer? (FoodSaver alternatives?) The guac is still bright green. By the way, my recipe for guacamole is very simple: avocado, salt, garlic powder. If you put all sorts of other stuff in your guac, try this recipe once. The key to the flavor is the level of avocado ripeness; I like them just before they are too far gone. Or slightly less. Definitely softer and not harder. Nice tip on the ammo. BTW, Saturday I looked at an H and K compact .45, it felt SO good in hand. I don't really need another .45, but that little item is tempting.

Re: Best vacuum packer? (FoodSaver alternatives?) Per Cookshack, I got a Vacmaster. VP112 chamber unit. One cool feature is the ability to vac seal the special containers. I'm giving it a real test. I made a big batch of guacamole and sealed it up in the 0.5 L container. If it doesn't turn black, I know I found a winner!

Re: Pulled Pork Chili I have a pot of DBC just about finished right now. Ya'll talking about it got me fired up to try it. No beans. We used spicy venison pan sausage and pulled pork for the meat. Report to follow.

Re: Got Married, KK Front and Center! Way to go Larry. And I say that through the superficial man point of view, if you take my meaning.

Re: Rib Eye Steaks Luscious. Nice photography.

Re: Rye Whiskey Recommendations Just for starters, try Jim Beam Rye, Kentucky Straight Rye Whiskey. Yellow label.

Re: Rib Eye Steaks The vac chamber, the round roast in a vac bag, and the immersion set-up:

Re: pork butt and ribs Here is one slab of pork belly from my 4H pig, you see I cut it in half. There is another slab, same size. I just put the 4 halves in cure, using a recipe from "Charcuterie". Salt, brown sugar, maple syrup and the pink salt. After a few days I will smoke them. n67412

Re: First 3 available Ultimate Big Bad 32" grills shipped Make sure the day you get it you have a BIG party for a reason she really appreciates. All her friends, and yours, will go ape sh.. over the results, and she will love hearing all the kudos. And getting credit for an awesome party. And as I always say, do pulled pork... If time permits, try to have all the guests watch you pull the meat off the fire. That always gets riotous approval. The aroma will knock 'em dead, as well.

Re: Rib Eye Steaks Hmm, that pic is too small. I chose medium and it was too big, so I picked small and it's hardly bigger than a thumbnail. Rats.

Re: Rib Eye Steaks Here is the sous vide round roast, I sliced it tonight. It came out as a superb roast beef, very tender and very moist. I would say the cook at 135º F resulted in a nice pink medium or slightly less. It really couldn't be any better. I said I was just playing around, but I will be doing this again!

Re: pork butt and ribs You like big butts? I didn't get photos, but a little video:

Re: Just learning about our new KK The tiniest air leak will prevent your fire from going out. Check every possible opening. In particular check your bottom vent sliding door to see it is pushed firmly closed and flush all the way around. A tiny piece of ash can hold it open. After you remove ashes through this door, take a paint brush or similar, and brush the entire mating surface on the KK frame and the door itself to remove ALL traces of ash. Sometimes I will scrub these surfaces with a damp soapy rag to ensure a clean and thus tight seal. That bottom door represents a BIG potential leak.

Re: Just learning about our new KK Oh no, I never clean it!

Re: Just learning about our new KK Is the roti necessary? No. But it's fun!

Re: Just learning about our new KK I cook my chickens direct on the main grill with one flip, most of the time and it works great. But using the rotisserie is better! If you have the roti, try it, you will love it. If not, get a roti for sure. One little mishap a lot of us have had is not locking down the retainers tight enough and having the chicken (or other meat) fall in the fire. Lock them securely. Do a forum search for roti chicken or rotisserie chicken, loads of info.

Re: Johnnyboy Cover color for Cobalt Blue KK Your cover covers your KK. It doesn't matter what color your KK is. Pick a cover color to go with your KK's location. I have a neutral brown deck and got a taupe cover. Maybe a marine color if by the pool. Actually, there are many ways to pick your color. A color you just like, your school colors, whatever. But your KK's color doesn't really factor in, does it?

Re: Comet Saw it tonight. Cool as hell. Binoculars on tripod. First comet I have ever seen, might be a once in a lifetime deal. Will set up for it again tomorrow evening, supposed to be in conjunction w a crescent moon. I got a less than excellent photo w a DSLR through a spotting scope. Oh well, best I could do. For info for viewing, go to space.com

Did anyone see the comet last night? I had a clear sky, rural darkness and a clear view of the western horizon. I had a 95 mm spotting scope on a tripod and 8 power binocs on a tripod. I scanned the sky meticulously and saw nothing. I'll try again the next few nights. Anyone have better luck?

Re: Just learning about our new KK I did not fully understand your question. But for a low and slow I barely crack the top vent off its seat. For a 350º roast, I probably open the top vent about 2 full turns. For a really hot grilling fire, I just leave the lid open.

Re: Rib Eye Steaks I cooked it whole, it was pretty small, about the size of three fists. After 18 hours I pulled it out of the bath and threw it in the fridge. I will probably give it a quick pan sear in butter and then smoke it for a short while. I'm just playing around. If it comes out super awesome I might do it again. It's a bit of a pain in the ass to have that big plastic tub and immersion heater on the counter top for so long. Somehow I have to get that Volkswagen sized vac chamber off the counter and out of the kitchen before my wife gets back from Houston. Maybe the local rental center has a kitchen sized forklift...

Re: Rib Eye Steaks duplicate

Re: Rib Eye Steaks Just ordered a Vacmaster VP 112 on the recommendation of Cookshack, now I have to figure out where to put the beast! I'm pretty sure it will pay for itself in avoiding wasted, spoiled food. More than a Foodsaver but a lot less than some other chamber sealers. Best price I found was at webstaurantstore.com, better than Amazon. Plus I can use it for sous vide!

Re: Rib Eye Steaks Somebody laughed about the zip lock bag and straw trick but I tried it and it works pretty good for freezing stuff for a month or two. Far, far superior to just leaving all the air in a bag. I will certainly try it for sous vide to see how it works in that application.

Re: Just learning about our new KK For any cook at 350ºF or less you won't want the bottom vent open more than half an inch, just barely open for a low and slow. If you are really out there right on top of it, you could open the vent all the way for just a few minutes to get the fire going faster, and then narrow it down, but that's only going to save you a few minutes in the long run. Better to just start with a smaller opening.