The weather is warming up, and it is time to start thinking about outdoor cooking ... unless you are like me and have already been braving the cold for smoked and grilled foods. I can’t help myself; I love lighting the grill or turning on the smoker even when there are freezing temperatures and snow. I just can’t wait for warm weather to have brisket, pork butt, ribs or anything with a smoke ring or the taste of charcoal and flame.

I bought a charcoal grill one year for my birthday. I have taken good care of it, several thousand pounds of food have spent time on it and I have many years of grilling to look forward to on it. Several years ago, I also acquired an offset wood smoker. It is fun and makes great food, but it takes a lot of time to manage the fire for long cooks. My schedule is always too full to use it as much as I would like. Recently I purchased a cabinet pellet smoker, and it has already been used for more cooking hours than my wood burning smoker.
 
The pellet smoker requires almost no effort to maintain the heat, which allows me to focus on the science of meat without the distractions of difficult-to-control variables, like inconsistencies in heat. Getting the same results with confidence each time can be a little more difficult than many people realize. It’s often thought that all you have to do is trim the heavy fat off, give it a little seasoning and then put it on the smoker until it is tender. That sounds so easy.
 
Well, my kids learned that there is a little more to the process than that, and the details are what carries the results. Two of my sons bought a couple of briskets while we were out of town. I sent them a checklist of details and had a couple of quick phone calls to talk them through their first solo smoke without me. It turned out okay, but they were not happy with it. We picked up another brisket, and this time they watched my efforts with a more-knowing and observant perspective.
 
I trimmed the meat more aggressively and seasoned carefully, with better distribution. We smoked it at 225 degrees for 12 hours. I then wrapped it better than they had. From there, we moved it to the oven at 225 degrees and cooked it until the brisket reached 205 degrees. It rested for an hour before we sliced it. They had done most of the same things. They had increased the oven temperature to 250 degrees at one point. But it was the way I improved the details of the methods that made a huge difference in the outcome.
 
For the sake of relevant conversation, I prefer to use the oven after the meats are wrapped to not waste pellets. Once it is wrapped, the smoke is not going to affect the meat, and an oven has better heat control.
 
There is just something wonderful about well-executed smoked foods. We spent many hours in the truck driving to experience regional barbeque. Each one is unique and always delicious. But they all follow the same rules of science, which are in the details of the methods.
 

Smoker seasoning blend

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup coarse salt, no iodized salt
• 1/2 cup ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 ½ tablespoon celery salt
• 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
• 2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions

1. Mix everything together.
2. Taste a tiny amount. Adjust a little if you want to make it your own. A little white pepper, brown sugar and chili powders will make this a BBQ blend. Have fun!
3. Place in a shaker. You can use it for everything. Enjoy!

Smoking details

1. Trim heavy fats. Don’t be afraid to trim aggressively. You will learn a little every time you practice.
2. Season aggressively, but don’t get carried away. Season the entire outside of the meat, consistently.
3. Pre-heat the smoker. I like 225 degrees, it has a “cleaner” smoke flavor.
4. Smoking does not use timers; it uses thermometers. If you are in a hurry, cook something else.
5. Wrapping with butcher paper or aluminum foil helps maintain moisture and stops smoke flavor from increasing.
6. Resting a minimum of 1 hour is required for quality smoked meats.
7. Brisket is cooked to 195-205 degrees. Pork shoulder is cooked to 195-205 degrees. Turkey and chicken are cooked to 165 degrees. Ribs are cooked to 190-205 degrees. Sausages are cooked to 160 degrees for most, 165 degrees for turkey and chicken sausages. Salmon is cooked at 200 degrees until it gets to 145 degrees.

About

Lincoln Land Community College offers credit programs in Culinary Arts, Hospitality Management and Baking/Pastry, and non-credit cooking and food classes through LLCC Community Education.

Cooking or food questions? Email epicuriosity101@llcc.edu.