tony b

Dennis chimed in before I saw this post, but as an owner of a 23" I was going to push back on the "can't do 2 zone cooking" notion, as I've been doing it for years. If Steven Raichlen can call his standard setup in a Weber Kettle, 2 Zone cooking, then a basket splitter in the 23" is the same thing. And, Robert is right, it's nice with the round basket that you can tailor the hot/cold half configurations to suit the cook. I often like to have the hot side in the back on a rotisserie cook. Just sayin' @Scott.W - So, all else being equal, pick the size that's going to give you the cooking space that you think you'll need for 90% of the cooks that you do. The other 10% you can juggle, as the cost-benefit says it's not worth the $$ for the bigger size if you only use it once or twice a year. IMHO

Curious as to how much you "disassemble" the cold smoker to soak in the PBW? I was just thinking about taking off the top and bottom, but leaving the air tube on it?

Duroc's are one of the "normal" breeds around here. I look for either Berkshire or Red Wattle. The other heritage breeds are Mulefoot and Black Swabian, but both are very hard to find retail, as most of it goes to high end restaurants.

Glad the glasses made it OK, even if the Dougie's took a hit! Happy you could salvage it. I'll double wrap it next shipment. Scored the Makers glasses while down in Kentucky on my bourbon swilling adventure. Didn't know if you preferred the round or the square, so I got both - ha, ha!! When I went to the local BBQ store to pick up a couple of things for you, the lady there had me try several new items; the pickle salt and the gunpowder rub were spontaneous purchases. I'll be curious as to what you use the pickle salt on - it really does taste like dill pickles!! I'm normally not a fan of rubs with charcoal in them, but this one (gunpowder) was actually pretty tasty. ENJOY!

I'll file that one away for a future experiment, maybe??

I'll second the 100% pellets route. I started with small wood chips and struggled like the dickens to make it work - almost to the point of ditching the smoker entirely. Then I went with the mix of chips and pellets - better, but still struggled sometimes to keep things lit. This time was the first attempt with all pellets - worked like a charm. I'll deal with an occasional disassembly and cleaning if it continues to work as well as it did on Sunday. YMMV

A good experiment, even if unintended.

YIKES!

Nice tribute, tekobo. I'd have never thought to put fried oysters on a hot dog. But, the adult beverage was a must have to be a full and proper tribute!

@tekobo So, inquiring minds like ours would like to know - what did your Mom think of the octopus? (I'm assuming that she tried it!)

Regular piggy. Scored a great deal at Costco - baby back ribs, 3 racks per pack for $2.29/lb and they took $4 off at the register because it was the last day before their expiration date! BONUS!!

I assume that you were going for the "colloquial" definition - A person from the state of West Australia - the largest and most important state in Australia. Sandgropers are well-known for being taller, healthier and better-looking than other Australians. Versus the literal one - Sandgropers are wholly subterranean larviform insects of the family Cylindrachetidae that may grow up to 7 cm (3 in) long.

A minor setback - package tracking says my Maggi cubes won't arrive today as originally promised, but now on Thursday!! WAH!! Looks like it will be Friday before I can mix up a new batch and do some skewers.

two thumbs up on the Baharat.

Glad you're liking it. It is a pretty amazing piece of gear for the KK. Dennis is just a genius! If you saw my post in another thread, I also did some baby backs tonight using the cold smoker. Your suggestion of 100% pellets was the trick! Best run with the cold smoker to date. Ran flawlessly for the entire 4 hour rib cook. I only filled mine 1/2 way and there was about 1/3 of the pellets left that weren't even beginning to light. I just hit the side air hole with the MAPP torch and off to the races! I started out trying the cotton ball in alcohol, but I was using vodka and it had too much water in it to sustain a flame. Should have gone downstairs to the bar and gotten the Everclear! (190 Proof grain alcohol!) LOL

Well, here's the results of tonight's cook. I probably should have laid down a thicker base of the Tabasco Sriracha, as I could just barely taste it. Better to ease into it than jump right into the deep end of the pool and be overwhelmed. Second part of the experiment was a much bigger success. Used the cold smoker on a hot cook for the first time. Worked great. Smoked some baby backs at 225F for 4 hours with the cold smoker loaded with 100% pellets this time. Will not go back to wood chips!! This worked so much better than any previous use of the cold smoker. Hat's off to ckreef for the tip! Plus, the local sweet corn is getting better every day! Tonight's was very sweet. The next 6 weeks or so will be awesome! And, Yes, there's pictures! Served up with some hushpuppies (air fried) and a nice side salad, with a tasty rose.

@Aussie Ora - I noticed that it was "mild" wing sauce! Actually looks like it's mustard based, which would make it very much like a South Carolina BBQ sauce, which is excellent on pulled pork; so you must be channeling your inner Sandlapper!

Funny, I resemble that remark! But, I totally agree. I have a couple of specialty spices coming that I hope are that missing taste. Plus, I've ordered Nigerian Maggi cubes in hopes that they are part of the equation, as well. If not, then this will have been an expensive lark!

What a shame, as it was a great way to get around the bay area; well, at least the East Bay and SF.

Trying something new today on my rib cook. Instead of slathering on yellow mustard as the base before the spice rub (Dizzy Dust), I used the Tabasco version of Sriracha (pretty tasty stuff as it turns out). However, I didn't use a lot. We'll see how much flavor it imparts.

You should see my pantry then!

I lived there from Summer 78 until Fall 82. I used to take the BART from the Fremont station up to Berkeley for classes 3 times a week for 9 months in Grad School. I worked in the south end of San Jose and we could smell the garlic when it was being harvested.

And not just the front end, but the back end, too!!