Bronze Behemoth, Game On!

[mguerra]

Finished Product

[mguerra]

I learned something

When I first got the Behemoth, I would remove the charcoal basket before each use. I dumped out the unused charcoal, partially refilled with fresh lump, and then put the old lump on top. It made a hell of a mess; ash and little bits of charcoal spilling around and flying in the air. So, I just started putting fresh lump on top of the old for each cook. Once in a blue moon I would pull out the damper door and stick a shop vac nozzle in there and suck out the ash from the "floor". I figured the ash was just falling down through the basket as it formed. WRONG! The other day I was about to throw some new lump on the old, as usual, but decided to check on a hunk of mesquite I had buried in the middle a few cooks prior. As I pulled off the top layer of partially burned lump, I encountered a solid layer of ash a couple inches thick that had not fallen down through the basket. The only available airflow to the top layer of lump I had been adding each time was along the small gap between the charcoal basket and the side wall of the cooker. It made sense, because I noticed the fire would not really get going with wide open top and bottom vents. Only with Stoker or Guru could I get the temps up. The solid ash layer was restricting air on a "natural" air flow. So, be aware of this. I'll probably just stir and shake the used charcoal, to get the ash to fall, and then still add fresh on top.

[Curly]

Yeah, I cooked a coupla big ole ribeyes labor day. I usually just stick the flame thrower in the a few seconds and it's off to the races, but this time the smoker was having a hard time lighting so I had to stick something down through the coals and make a few air holes. I never clean it out but once in awhile I have to jiggle something in there to get a good hot searing flame going.

To clean the bottom I just drag the ashes out into a pan that stays under the grill.

[Duk]

i use and old paint brush after starting the fire and before putting on whatever i'm cooking just to dust away all the fine ash etc that sticks to the side of the cooker when dumping in lump or stirring the coals--works great

[mguerra]

Maritime Delight

Here's a keeper. Marinate a hunk of salmon in pineapple juice for some hours. Lightly brush on some soy sauce. Rub on a mix of brown sugar and cayenne. Grill skin side down, don't flip it, until that white squoogy goo starts oozing out. Keep the lid shut as much as possible. Eat it. Absolute heaven.

[Conodo12]

Hey Doc - a grill temp and approximate time to cook would be nice!!!

Sounds good - I will try this one. No worries about the acid from the pineapple juice "toughining" the salmon?

[mguerra]

it's all feel

I just have two ways of cooking; low and slow, and "grilling". For grilling I start an entire chimney of lump, get it all burning, dump it out on top of a basket of lump, and cook close to the fire. What temp that may be I don't know. I put the sear grill on top of the charcoal basket handles, open the bottom vent all the way. Now comes my fire control method: I adjust the top vent to get smoke coming out at a flow rate that "looks right" to me. I don't want a raging blast furnace nor a bare smolder. What temp that is on the dome thermometer is of no concern to me, because the dome is way up high and the meat is way down by the fire. But, as a point of interest, my dome temp on the salmon was about 300. I think it took about 15 -20 minutes. To check it, I look for that white foamy goo to be coming out. I try to open the lid as infrequently as possible to look for that. When that stuff is oozing out, it's done perfectly! This was the best grilled salmon I ever ate, anywhere anytime. Kinda like cruzmisl's baby backs. And no it was not tough, quite the opposite! It was as moist and juicy as could be yet still fully cooked. I had said a while back I don't use my KK as a grill, I use my old Meco Swinger. But a couple people said to grill with the KK. Turns out, it works quite well. It is easier to use the metal grill, everything is up higher and more accessible, the fire and the food. And I will still use it. But the KK works great, albeit a little inconvenient. My preference in grilling is to have the meat done evenly throughout, not burnt on the outside and bleeding within. So my technique is to grill at moderate temps, achieve the right doneness, and then a quick sear for the surface flavor. I have learned to use the visible smoke flow rate for this.

[mguerra]

Weber forum technique.

Since getting such good results with chuck roasts, I'm kind of off briskets. But, I decided to try the weber forum high heat brisket method. The KK is chugging along at 290 with a big packer on, in a few minutes I'm going to foil it when it hits 160. My thought has been you don't need to foil anything in a KK, so I'm just trying this faster cook method out of curiosity. Those guys cook these briskets in about four hours more or less and say they come out super; we'll see... They check for doneness by feel, not temp, I'll try that too. Report to follow.

[mguerra]

link

Here's a link to their thread:

http://tvwbb.infopop.cc/eve/forums/a/tp ... 6360093154

Looks like they are going 350ish, not 290. I'll stick at 290 til done and see what happens! In foil now...

[mguerra]

Yeah baby!

Oh boy, do those Weber guys know a thing or two!!! This method of brisket cooking is so superior I don't know where to start. The flat came out as moist and juicy as any point, and the point was out of this world. One huge benefit of the foiling is you catch a pot load of juice. Chop/ shred some of that brisket, put it in a bowl and pour on some of the juice, scarf it down with a fork, that's the tops!! I used to think the Weber guys foiled because their cookers flowed so much air it dried out the meat. But I think that's not it. Foiling from 160 degrees on just does something open cooking doesn't. This brisket is about as moist and juicy as a pulled pork! The cook was 5 hours, period. I did bump up the temp from 290 to 325 after foiling. There's no real plateau, just foil it at 160 and start checking for tenderness about an hour later. If it's not tender at first check, check at half hour intervals thereafter. You don't need to be popping the lid open every ten or fifteen minutes. I was surprised 5 hours totally tenderized this meat. If you are having a party, you can absolutely be assured that you can start your cook 6 hours before serving time. Pull it off when it's done, wrap in a towel, and serve when ready. No need for an overnighter. Everything you need to know is in that thread I linked to above. Read it, do it, you'll appreciate brisket in a whole new way.

[johnnyboy]

Very interesting Doc!!! I never considered foiling brisket, but what an idea! I never considered an oven over 220 F either. I do however use the fork test for doneness.

I tend to dry out the flat a little more than I like; foil may be my answer.

I'm giving one a shot today!

Thanks for your post.

[LarryR]

When I tried my first high heat brisket I was blown away too, what about all that connective tissue that needed low temps and time to break down? Produces a damn fine brisket with very consistent results. There are only two downsides, if you're a bark person you don't get as nice of bark and two, not as much time to drink beer. Other than that its a great method. In fact, I think a high heat brisket cook was one of my first posts on this site. I too got it off the WSM site.

[johnnyboy]

Hell Yea! I'm sold!! Best brisket I've ever done.

Thanks again for the post Doc!

11.5 lb full packer cut from Sam's Club. Salt, Pepper, garlic powder, EVOO, and all purpose seasoning. Oven temp 300 F. indirect with drip pan, place brisket fat cap up, two hours later brisket internal 170 ish F., wraped in foil, kicked oven up to 350 F., brisket back on for another 2-ish hours, removed foil (saved juices in foil), removed drip pan, brisket back on grill 1/2 hour more, removed, wrapped in foil and towell, in micro 45 minutes to rest. Perfect!!! I couldn't believe the results.

Brisket went on at 1:00 and we were eating BBQ brisket sammies with scalloped potatoes at 6:00pm.

[mguerra]

Round Roast

Would a round roast cook well by the high temp/ foil method? Previously, we have discussed how a very lean roast, like a center cut shoulder, or round, does not fare well when cooked low and slow, to a finish temp of 180 or more. Try this, and they come out way too dry. That method should be reserved for briskets and butts. (Well, maybe not briskets anymore!)So tonight I tried this: I took a very cold bottom round, rubbed it with a Weber steak rub, and put it on a 200 degree fire to get some smoke. After about four hours, I foiled it and bumped the temp up to 325. A round roast is not going to get as tender as a brisket, so I did finish it by temp, not feel. I took it off at 170. It was slightly more done than a lot of people might like, but it was not dried out! I like my beef medium. Anyway I consider this a good success. Also, I collected a lot of juice in the foil and poured it off into a separator. The basic concept is to cook unfoiled for a while, then foil til finished. The details of how long to cook unfoiled, and how to determine finish after foiling, will vary by cut of meat. We now know how to do it with a brisket. By continuing to experiment with other cuts, like tonights round roast, we can perfect this! When I first got my KK, I was convinced there was no need to foil anything, but I believe foiling has a place. Note that the four hours before foil gave a good smoke ring and bark.

[mguerra]

Another high temp brisket

Did another round roast yesterday, at 325, with a Fall spice rub, and some Worcestershire in the foil. I pulled it off at 160 this time. I'm going to keep pulling these off at 10 lower temps each time til I find the right finish temp. 160 was a solid medium plus. It was very moist, and probably as tender as a round roast gets.

Also, while I was at it, I did another 325 brisket. Cooked at 325 til it hit 160, and then foiled; cooked until tender. Same excellent results as before, the flat not dried out at all. It took a little longer than it otherwise might, I think because I left the entire huge fat cap on. And I left all the intermuscular fat and connective tissue between the point and the flat. A little trimming would probably shorten the cook. It was about 5-1/2 hours total. It occurs to me that a hybrid low and slow/ high heat cook can work for a brisket. If you need to go do something else or want to start your cook at night, start off at 200 to 225. Then, when you get home or get up, kick up the temp to 325 or 350, and foil at 160, to finish. This could give you a lot of flexibility in your time planning.

[mguerra]

stew

I had a lot of leftovers from the above two roasts, and made beef stew. I sauteed a big load of garlic and rosemary in olive oil. Then, I cubed the leftover roast into about 1/2 inch cubes, and browned it in the garlic and rosemary oil. I transferred the meat, oil, garlic and rosemary to a dutch oven; and added 1/2 a bottle of Bordeaux, the previously collected juice from the roasts, 28 oz. of crushed tomatos, a can of sliced black olives, some oregano and basil. With the lid on the dutch oven, I cooked this for four and a half hours at 240 degrees on the KK. It was fantatstic! The sauce thickened up nicely, most excellent. This is a variation of Italian Pork Stew, from the Primo forums:

http://primogrillforum.com/forums/showt ... +pork+stew

[mguerra]

The Stew

Here it is:

[mguerra]

to clarify

That photo above is actually of the second batch I made, with whole pitted Kalamatas, not sliced black olives. It also came out super delicious.

[mguerra]

Have you had this?

I do a lot of low and slows, with the top damper just barely cracked open. A tremendous amount of gooey, tar-like gunk builds up on the gasket, and its' mating surface on the damper. There is no longer a gasket to ceramic contact, but goo to goo. This stuff is so gummy it is nearly impossible to open the damper top after shutting it from the previous cook. Once it took over ten minutes of struggling with it, and heating it from the inside with a torch, to get it open. And DO NOT ever put a block of wood on one of the metal tangs, and try to bang it open with a hammer! Big mistake. I can clean all this gunk off the ceramic mating surface, but it is embedded through and through the porous gasket. No way it's coming off/ out of the gasket. For now, I remove the damper completely after each cook and put a big square of aluminum foil on the cooker lid mating surface, and then poke the damper top stud through the foil and screw it back on, and shut. Then I can spin the damper top off without too much trouble, since it is only bearing on foil, not goo. But it's a pain in the ass to do it. What are you all doing?

[Syzygies]

How does this associate with burning wood chunks for smoke, etc?

The KK is much tighter and better insulated than my previous cooker, with air flow at more of a trickle. I've seen something like what you describe, not as extreme, where using my smoke pot turns the KK into a wood tea "still" with a brown trickle from the damper. I do not see this, just burning charcoal.