Smoked Pork Ribs
Ingredients
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St. Louis Cut or Baby Back Ribs
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Vegetable Oil (exclude if the ribs are sweating).
- NOTE-WE VARY SEASONINGS WITH EVERY CLASS. CLASS STUDENTS USE THE SEASONING & SAUCE COMBOS FROM THE CLASS.
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Smoking Guns Hot
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Meat Church Honey Hog
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Cimarron Doc’s Sweet Rib Rub
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Blues Hog Original BBQ Sauce
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Blues Hog Tennessee Red BBQ Sauce
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Apple juice
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Brown Sugar
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Honey or Agave
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Tiger Sauce
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Parkay Liquid Margarine
Directions
Cooking temperature 250 to 275.
Approximate cooking time: 4 to 5 hours for St. Louis, 3 to 3.5 hours for Baby Backs
Start the ribs one to two hours before you expect to serve
Preparation
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Remove the membrane from the backside of the slab.
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This is best accomplished by taking a knife and just slide it under the membrane to lift a piece that can be grab by your fingers. Use a paper towel to hold onto the membrane.
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Remove any excess fat from the front and back.
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(Remove the riblet if you have spare ribs.)
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Rub vegetable oil on the entire slab (this helps to “glue” your rub to the meat).
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Apply a light coat of the a medium layers of Smoking Guns Hot followed by Meat Church Honey Hog a 3rd layer of Cimarron Doc Sweet Rib Rub
Cooking-
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Start your fire and stabilize the temperature at 250 to 275.
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Add a few chunks of hickory, oak or apple to the charcoal (no soft woods!). On a gas grill Hickory pellets or chips (read this article for gas grilling). You can use smoke generators such as GrillKickers, BBQr’s Pellet Pot and Amazing Pellet Tube.
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Wait for the wood to catch fire (see our article on “Good Smoke Bad Smoke”).
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Place the ribs in the cooker right from the fridge or cooler with the bone side down.
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Close the lid and leave it closed.
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Smoking of the ribs will take place in the very early stages of cooking.
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At 2 hours, remove the ribs or when you get a nice mahogany color, place on two sheets of heavy duty foil, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of brown sugar, 1/4 cup of apple juice, light coat of Tiger Sauce, a coat of Parkay and 2 tablespoons of honey or agave on top. Note: at this point you have the option to put them in the oven to finish cooking if you want to save propane or charcoal.
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Wrap the ribs in the foil and put back on the cooker.
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At 3.5 hours (for St. Louis, 2.5 hrs. for Baby Backs), check the thinner racks of ribs for tenderness (each will cook at a different rate). If there’s “pull back” from the bone and check the temperature in the middle of the rib. St. Louis cut will be done around 206 to 208 degrees (also bend into a sideways “L” when picked up with tongs). remove the ribs, open the foil and apply a 50/50 coat of Blues Hog Original BBQ Sauce and Tennessee Red to the topside and place back on the smoker uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes to set the sauce. After the sauce is set you have a choice to slice them up and serve or close up the foil and place the ribs in a cooler to keep warm.
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Fill the air space in the cooler with newspaper so the ribs retain heat.
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If you are cooking multiple ribs (and cooking at different rates) keep taking ribs off as they are done and place in the cooler.
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Sitting in the cooler will make the ribs nice and tender and will return juices to the meat.
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The ribs will stay hot for a long time while in the cooler.
That’s it! Have a feast!
Lard have mercy!
Smoked Beef Brisket
Indirect cooking or offset smoking such as on our PR, TS, SQ units, Kamado Grills and Gas Grills (click here for smoking on a gas grill)
Ingredients
- 1 whole brisket (point and flat) 10 to 15 lbs.
- Butcher Prime Injection
- Vegetable oil
- Seasonings Listed Below
- Parkay Margarine (Sqeezable)
Directions
Cooking temperature 250 to 275.
Approximate cooking time 8 to 10 hours.
Preparation-
- If you can do the following the night before the better:
- Remove the “fat cap” leaving virtually no fat on the brisket.
- At the thinnest edge of the flat cut a small chunk off cutting across the grain this way you know which angle to cut when the brisket is done.
- Mix Butcher Prime Injection in accordance with the label and inject fat cap side about every square inch ( in a grid pattern) going into the meat ¾ of the thickness and inject on the way out (mix the injection 24 hours ahead if possible for better results and keep agitated when injecting).
- Rub vegetable oil on the entire brisket. This helps to “glue” your rub to the meat.
- Rub the meat with your favorite rub. We like to layer our seasonings on brisket and enjoy a 1st layer of Obie Cue’s Double Garlic Pepper topped with Smoking Guns Hot and Meat Church Holy Cow. Another option is Obie Cue’s Double Garlic Pepper topped with Lotta Bull’s Red Dirt.
- Wrap the brisket in loosely in foil or in a foil pan and place back in the fridge fat cap up.
Cooking-
- Light a charcoal fire and stabilize the temperature at 225 to 250 (this lower temp allows for the heat that will be generated when you put the on).
- Add a few chunks of hickory or blend of pecan and cherry to the charcoal (no soft woods!)
- Take the brisket out of the fridge or the cooler and place on the smoker or grill COLD (see our article on smoking).
- Place the brisket with the fat cap up.
- Place a digital thermometer probe in the thickest part of the flat (it is wise to also measure the cooking grate temp for greater accuracy).
- Close the lid and leave it closed.
- Smoking of the brisket will take place in the very early stages of the cooking process (1 ½ to 2 hours).
- When the brisket reaches an internal temp of 160 degrees take it off and place it on two layers of tin foil.
- Squirt liquid Parkay Margarine on top of the brisket.
- Wrap the brisket up in the two layers of tin foil and put back in the cooker.
- Place the probe back into the meat.
- Note-Don’t freak out if the cook time stalls at around 160 degrees. This is normal.
- Bring the meat temp up to 195.
- Take the temp probe and push it in sideways into the meat in a few places. If it’s done, you should feel very little resistance when pushing the probe.
- If not, continue cooking until tender until the probe passes through the brisket like going through butter. The brisket will be probably done somewhere around 198 to 210.
- Once done, remove the brisket from the smoker or grill and open the two layers of foil and allow the steam to escape for 5 minutes. Once done wrap the brisket in a 3rd piece of foil.
- Wrap the brisket up with beach towels and place in a cooler to rest for two hours if possible.
- Unfoil the meat being careful to retain the juices in the foil. Pour the juices in a bowl. Mix the juice and if needed extend with BBQ sauce such as Eat Barbecue’s The Next Best Thing or Smokey Mountain Smoker’s Original Sauce.
- Slice in the same direction as your cut off (meat across the grain) and if needed lightly sprinkle the slices with the juice mixture.
Pulled Pork
Next to pork ribs, pulled pork is one of the most popular BBQ dishes in the country.
Indirect cooking or offset smoking such as on our Meadow Creek PR, TS, SQ units, Kamado Grills and Gas Grills (click here for smoking on a gas grill)
Ingedients
- 1 Pork butt (also known as Boston butt) 7 to 9 lbs. bone in or out is OK.
- ¼ cup of Apple Juice
- ¼ cup Honey or Agave
- ¼ cup Brown sugar
- Butcher Pork Injection
- Vegetable Oil
- Obie Cue’s Double Garlic Pepper
- Smokin Guns Hot
- Meat Church Honey Hog
- Blues Hog original BBQ Sauce
Directions
Cooking temperature between 225 and 275.
Approximate cooking time 7 to 9 hrs.
Preparation-
If you can do the following the night before the better:
- Remove the “fat cap” leaving virtually no fat on the butt.
- Mix the Butcher Pork Injection according to the label and let it sit. Even overnight if possible.
- Inject through the fat cap side penetrating ¾ of the way into the butt and inject on the way out. Inject every inch to inch and a half in a grid pattern. Keep injection agitated.
- Rub vegetable oil on the entire butt. This helps to “glue” your rub to the meat.
- Layer the seasonings in the order above in a medium coat. Do not mix, layer one on top of the other.
- Wrap the butt in foil and place back in the fridge injected side up.
Cooking-
- Start a charcoal bed fire and stabilize temperature at 225 to 275.
- Add a few chunks of apple, pecan, peach or our favorite blend 60% pecan and 40% cherry to the charcoal. For a gas grill use pellets or chips of the same.
- Remove the butt from the fridge or cooler and place on the smoker or grill COLD (see our article on smoking).
- Place the butt in the cooker with the injected side up.
- Place a digital thermometer probe in the thickest part of the butt. It is always wise to also measure the grate temperature with a digital grate thermometer for better accuracy.
- Close the lid and leave it closed.
- Smoking of the butt will take place in the very early stages (first 1 ½ to 2 ours) of the cooking process.
- When the butt reaches 160 degrees take it off and place it on two layers of tin foil.
- Cup the foil around the butt and pour in the apple juice, sprinkle the brown sugar and the honey or agave on the top.
- Wrap the butts up in the two layers of tin foil and put back in the cooker.
- Place the probe back into the meat.
- Side Note-Don’t freak out if the cook time stalls at around 160. This is normal.
- When the butt reaches an internal temp of 190 you need to pay attention.
- Take the temp. probe and push it in sideways into the meat in a few places. If it’s done, the probe should feel like it’s being pushed through soft butter.
- If not, continue cooking for another 20 minutes and check again. Continue this probing until the meat is tender.
- Once done remove the butt from the cooker and wrap in a third layer of foil and put in a small cooler. Fill the open air space with crumbled up newspaper, beach towels etc.
- Let the butt sit in the cooler for a minimum of two hours, longer is better. This process allows the fluids that have gathered in the foil to return to the meat.
- Unfoil the meat being careful to retain the juices in the foil.
- Place the juices in a bowl.
- Now it’s your choice to pull the meat or chop it.
- If pulling, the best tool is a pair of bear claws used for lifting cooked turkeys. If chopping a mezzaluna works well.
- Shred or chop the meat, paying attention to remove any fat.
- After shredding, make a mixture of 1/3 pork juices (in the bowl), 2/3 Blues Hog BBQ Sauce.
- Lightly mix this in with your pulled pork to taste.
Serve on a potato roll along with our signature coleslaw recipe and you will be loved by all!!
Smoked Meatloaf
“If you look through cookbooks you will find 100’s of ways to cook meatloaf but nothing comes close to cooking a smoked meatloaf on your smoker. Fairly uncomplicated and once prepped it is an easy recipe for the family or guests”.
Ingedients
- 3 lbs. ground beef (80/20)
- ½ medium onion, minced
- ½ medium bell pepper, minced
- 1 small jalapeno pepper
- 6 eggs
- 1 ½ stacks Ritz crackers
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan and Romano cheese mixture
- 1/3 cup of Harley’s Texas Rub
- ¼ cup of Meadow Creek Apple BBQ Sauce
- ½ size aluminum pan
Directions
- Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.
- Spread the mix evenly in the pan.
- Cut 3 slits halfway up each side of the aluminum pan to allow smoke to enter and to let grease escape.
- Cook uncovered for about 2 ½ to 3 hours at 225 degrees.
- Remove from the pit and pour the BBQ sauce on top.
- Put the pan back on the pit for about another 15 to 20 minutes.
- Cook until the internal temp is 170 to 175.
BBQ Chicken Wings
This is a recipe that everyone seems to really enjoy when we serve it at the store. We normally cook the wings on a Meadow Creek BBQ 26S or 42 but they can just as easily be cooked any grill.
Ingedients
- Split Jumbo Chicken Wings (base quantity on # of guests)
- 1.1 lbs. Oakridge Game Changer All Purpose Brine
- 13.5 oz. Willingham’s Original Mild Seasoning
Directions
Grill direct heat.
25- 30 minutes (dependent on grill temp)
Preparation-
- Mix Game Changer according to label instructions.
- Let wings brine for 2-3 hours.
- Rinse wings and dry.
- Put wings in a plastic bag and add enough Willingham’s Original Mild to sufficiently coat the wings (for a little “kick” add a small amount of Willingham’s Hot Stuff).
- Let wings sit in the fridge for about an hour.
Cooking-
- Place wings on a hot grill.
- Turn as needed to keep from burning.
- Wings are ready when the internal temp reaches 165 to 175 degrees.
- Remove and serve.
Enjoy.