The Barbecue Thread

[cramx3]

mmmm more home made pizza!  I'lll have to upload the pizza we made last weekend although that will go to the food thread since I have no confidence in being able to grill a pizza at this point.

[goo-goo]

mmmm more home made pizza!  I'lll have to upload the pizza we made last weekend although that will go to the food thread since I have no confidence in being able to grill a pizza at this point.

It's easier than it looks and a lot of the experience comes from trial and error. Last weekend's smoked brisket was the 3rd time that I had done it and it was the best I've smoked. The 1st one was barely eatable. The 2nd one was decent. The 3rd was awesome compared to the 1st one (low bar haha). But I've been also doing the same brisket in the oven and that comes out way better and it's easier...anyways, don't be afraid. You win some, you will loose some..but the reward is very gratifying (and tasty!). Drink a couple of beers and the if it doesn't come out good, you'll have at least the beer to water down the flavor 

For pizza, I wouldn't start from making your dough. I would buy a pre-made dough or the pizza crust already made. And then you escalate it from there.

[cramx3]

Oh yea, we've been buying premade dough and rolling it out myself which is always interesting since I can never make a perfect circle.  I just never really thought to grill it until seeing the picture.  The sad part is though, we're struggling to find the dough now.  It seems others are catching onto this fun home made pizza stuff so we were able to get a large pack of frozen dough but I'm worried it won't be as good as the fresh stuff. 

[Chino]

Oh yea, we've been buying premade dough and rolling it out myself which is always interesting since I can never make a perfect circle.

That's why my pizzas are squares 

[cramx3]

Oh yea, we've been buying premade dough and rolling it out myself which is always interesting since I can never make a perfect circle.

That's why my pizzas are squares 

  I can't even do a square, it ends up being mostly round with some sharp edges.  Ive shared pics every week to my friends in our group chat and one finally said "I bet those pizzas are really good but the shapes really really piss me off" 

[Harmony]

That's the part I struggle with too!  I don't care if they are perfect circles (or rectangles) but when I roll the dough, it just shrinks back into place.  A few YouTubes I've watched suggest that "hand tossing" and stretching the pie is the best way to go.  But I think I must lack some vital part of my brain that can catch onto how to do that.   

[New World Rushman]

Oh yea, we've been buying premade dough and rolling it out myself which is always interesting since I can never make a perfect circle.

That's why my pizzas are squares 

  I can't even do a square, it ends up being mostly round with some sharp edges.  Ive shared pics every week to my friends in our group chat and one finally said "I bet those pizzas are really good but the shapes really really piss me off" 

As you can see in my pic, same. I usually go with an oval-ish rectangle, it's Rustic!

That's the part I struggle with too!  I don't care if they are perfect circles (or rectangles) but when I roll the dough, it just shrinks back into place.  A few YouTubes I've watched suggest that "hand tossing" and stretching the pie is the best way to go.  But I think I must lack some vital part of my brain that can catch onto how to do that.   

I used to struggle with this too, until I read to just wait 5-10 minutes, let the gluten rest, and you should be able to stretch it more.
It works for me.

[lonestar]

I suck at pizza (and all other) doughs. Even got some flour and roux to practice a bit, going to give a shot at pretzel rolls in the coming days.

[Chino]

Homemade pretzels are one of my favorite things.

[cramx3]

I'm such a sucker for a good soft pretzel, never had home made ones though.  I'm sure they would be bangin

[Chino]

I'm such a sucker for a good soft pretzel, never had home made ones though.  I'm sure they would be bangin

Give them a shot. They're actually super easy to make. I usually make sticks or pretzel wrapped hotdogs. Just need to be patient and let the dough rise like it's suppose to.

[lonestar]

At my last job, the pastry chef made pretzel croissants, which were a bazillion times better than they sound. I thought about it, but upon looking through the process, figured I'd be better served with baby steps 

[TAC]

My wife makes homemade pretzels, and they're really f'n good. The doughy kind, not the crispy kind.

[Chino]

Made a pair of prime grade NY strips on the Kettle last night. Slow cooked them next to some lump coal and pecan chunks and then hit them with a reverse sear. I have to say, I think I might like NY strip more than ribeye. I don't know what it is. Flavor wise in a blind test, I'd honestly have a hard time telling one from the other, and the NY strips are like half the price.

[lonestar]

The NY has always been my preferred cut, it just has the perfect amount of fatiness while still having such a good meat texture.

[Podaar]

I'm a big fan of the NYS as well, for the reasons you gents have already listed. In addition, they are the perfect size for me and the Missus to share for a meal. Neither one of us needs, or desires, to eat an entire steak and the NY divides easily and fairly. It's kinda difficult to divide a porterhouse evenly.

[Stadler]

Even in high end steak restaurants, that's where I go.   I just like the taste, the texture, and for me (I like a full-bodied red wine and grilled onions with my steak) it makes for a very satisfying bite.  Filet mignon is sometimes a little... soft, though that's not the right word.

At home, it's a very tolerant cook, in my opinion.  I like my steaks a little less done than my wife and kids, so to try to get filets to be to taste for everyone is a little more effort than I'm willing to put in for the price. 

[Stadler]

I'm a big fan of the NYS as well, for the reasons you gents have already listed. In addition, they are the perfect size for me and the Missus to share for a meal. Neither one of us needs, or desires, to eat an entire steak and the NY divides easily and fairly. It's kinda difficult to divide a porterhouse evenly.

Two words:  chop saw.   

[Podaar]

Gee, thanks, buddy! 

[lonestar]

Even in high end steak restaurants, that's where I go.   I just like the taste, the texture, and for me (I like a full-bodied red wine and grilled onions with my steak) it makes for a very satisfying bite.  Filet mignon is sometimes a little... soft, though that's not the right word.

At home, it's a very tolerant cook, in my opinion.  I like my steaks a little less done than my wife and kids, so to try to get filets to be to taste for everyone is a little more effort than I'm willing to put in for the price.

I always laugh at people who go to high end places and order a 70 dollar filet, knowing full well that they couldn't taste the difference between a 30 dollar one and a 70 dollar one.

And your use of soft is actually very fitting for what I was trying to describe. The NY has a certain mouth feel, it's tender, but still has texture. The filet is like meat cotton candy on the mouth.

[Podaar]

Bacon wrapped, applewood smoked, jalapeno & cream cheese stuffed, chicken thighs.




Sooooo, good! 

[TAC]

I'd hold the jalepeno and cream cheese but other than that, it looks amazing.

[Podaar]

You would be surprised, Tim. I scraped out all the seeds and veins from the jalapenos so they were really mild. Plus the cream cheese helps with lowering the heat and adds a nice peppery flavor.

[TAC]

They look perfect and I know they'd be fine without any jazzing up. But that's me. 

[Podaar]

I thought you'd be more upset about the green beans! 

[TAC]

No, I'm fine with green beans. I eat them almost nightly. My wife made some nice asparagus last night, and I can eat that.

I can't do broccoli, zucchini, cabbage, peppers, onions, etc.  But green beans, no problem.

[lonestar]

I thought you'd be more upset about the green beans! 

I am...what'd you do to those poor things?

[Podaar]

I thought you'd be more upset about the green beans! 

I am...what'd you do to those poor things?

 

I like lots of black pepper!

[Podaar]

Today’s cook

[cramx3]

yummy chicken and veggies

[Podaar]

So, that chicken above was good and all, but I was somewhat disappointed in a couple of areas. 1) The injection (butter, broth and thyme) wasn't that great--it kinda created pockets of flavor but left entire areas untouched. 2) the white meat was a bit TOO smokey tasting, especially at the outer edges. The dark meat was perfect though.

Mrs. P wants me to smoke another chicken tomorrow and I've decided (in order to address the issues above) that I'm going to brine the chicken overnight and only smoke it for half of its cook cycle.

lonestar,

If you read this, I'm going for a Mexican flavor profile which I think will pair well with the smoking. I've mixed up a water and salt brine with some chicken stock, garlic, a dried ancho chili, oregano, cumin, cayenne, brown sugar, lime zest, and lime juice. I've got it chilling in an ice bath right now and it smells wonderful, but I'd like your opinion on this mixture before I put the bird to bed. Is it over the top? Right now, I've got a little over a quart of brine, I could easily dilute it before using it if you think it would be wise. Or just start over if you have a better idea.

[lonestar]

Sounds good to me, just make sure you do some proper tacos with it. I bet they'd be hella fucking dope.

[Podaar]

That was kinda the idea! 

[lonestar]

Excellent...



And here was tonight's goodies....yeah it's grilled and not BBQ'd, but honestly these were prime grade porterhouses, so for me that just needs S&P and high heat. The smoke would just bury the flavor. Sorry, no after pic, I totally spaced it, but it was killer. Got a gnarly case of the meat sweats now.

[Podaar]

They look awesome