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Thanks for bringing this recipe to my attention. I had overlooked it and, at any rate, would not have thought of it as solving the "potato problem." I have run into just the situation that you describe more than once. I have usually resorted to boiled potatoes with parsley and butter. This sounds so much more adventurous. We are about to make a run to "The Bay Tree" in the cemetary and this looks like a good place for some nice fresh bay leaves. (Excerpt from my blog here.)

Oops. Cross posted with nathanm. What he said. I think what was going on in the Weber that day was that with the lower temperature there was more time for the nitrous oxides to penetrate the meat. I use wood chunks pretty liberally along with the charcoal.

Well, Doc-G . . . Now you know what all the fuss is about. I am going to make a guess about the smoke ring. The first clue is that it only went 9 hours. You didn't say what temperature the smoker was operating at. The deepest smoke ring I ever achieved was one day when I had some trouble maintaining 225F (107C) at the grate in the Weber bullet. That is my typical smoking temperature. It rocked around more like 210F (98C). It took the tip portion almost 18 hours to cook. I think I pulled the flat portion after about 15 hours. The brisket was about the same size as yours. This confirms what I saw at a little BBQ joint in, of all places, Pahoa on the Big Island of Hawaii. This guy hauls out this little brisket flat to slice some for our sandwich. That sucker was deep pink all the way through! I offhandedly accused him of using nitrate on it. He almost came after me with the slicing knife. After I got him calmed down, he told me that the secret was to do it really slow. He thought that the smoker temperature was about 180-190F (82-87C) and it went almost 24 hours. He used lots of Kiawe wood, which is related to our mesquite here in Texas. Oh . . . It wasn't dry at all. The juices ran as he sliced it. The meat almost melted in your mouth. I haven't tried to duplicate that flat but I do aim a bit lower on the temperature for brisket. Here in Texas, we call the rather dry parts the "ends" and sometimes the guy slicing the brisket will ask if you want "ends or middles." One of the fun things about brisket is the range of textures you can get. I can't wait to hear about Wagyu brisket.

Oh good grief! It has happened again! The great eGullet mystery prevails. As I was waking up this morning, my mind was wrapping itself around the concept of hash for lunch. I have a chunk of the best beef chuck pot roast I have made in a long time. There are some red potatoes that were cooked with it. I have an onion. I was mulling over the finer points of cooking technique as I turned on the computer. Voila! An older topic of hash has floated up to the top of Cooking. And I am grateful. I had forgotten about the cream idea. I actually don't have any cream. (How did that happen?) But I do have some Mexican crema so that will have to do.

That... is... brilliant!! Lesfen's "to do" list: 1. Make friends with an Arby's Manager. Do what you must. 2. Buy Lil' Smokies and toothpicks. 3. Get rid of husband and child for the evening. ← When I have served this at parties, I have been begged for the recipe. I was too embarrassed to confess. And I am normally generous with recipe sharing.

Welcome to the WSM bunch, Mellisa. Go for the wood chunks. Take a look at the Minion Method of firing on the Virtual Weber Bullet web site. The wood chunks work very well in that method. I think that a variation on this concept is what snowangel uses so successfully in her Weber Kettle. If you do a lot of grilling, the Kettle may be worth considering. But I can't fault the bullet for flawless smoking.

Susan . . . There is something so compelling about those pictures in the snow with a Weber Kettle going. Talk about an intrepid cook! Damn, that outdoor fridge looks handy. Today's high here was 65 because we had a "cold front" come through.

In past years, I have been gifted with the fancy schmancy spiral sliced hams. (Most are quite good, actually.) Other than the ubiquitous, but good, Ham Bone Bean Soup, I have made stock with the leavings. It is great for cooking cabbage and other greens, green beans, whatever. You do have to be aware of the salt level and adjust your recipe accordngly.

I have kept it for several months, in a glass canning jar in the fridge. You could also freeze it and it would keep forever. I did do what jackal10 said. I heat it slowly and gently in a heavy little pot and pour the pure fat off. You want to get the water and other gunk out of it before you store it.

Yep to the sides. I would maybe add potato salad with a mayo-mustard dressing. NO to the mopping business. It really won't do anything but disrupt the temperature profile in the smoker. In my Weber Smoky Mountain, I can maintain 225 F at the grate (250 F at the top vent) for many hours without much fiddling and that is what you want. Let it be! I typically put the rub on and let it sit overnight. I put it in the smoker really cold so that it gets the optimum smoke absorption which supposedly stops at about 140 F. I don't know about that but that is what "they" say. I can't wait to see how a Texas brisket translates down under. That is a mighty fine looking piece of meat, BTW.

CLICKETY! Now that is a picture of Bambi to remember!

My "new" favorite sauce is this one that they make at my favorite seafood "joint" in San Leon TX, Topwater Grill. It isn't exactly a recipe but you can get the idea and work with it.

Ooooo . . . I don't really want to know the details. But I did think about it. My Kitchen Aid stand mixer is in storage so I used the Bamix for some baking chores over the holidays. I thought that it might be wise to unplug the thing before digging the cookie dough out of the blade thingy.

This can't possibly be right. No sugar or cloves. This one is closer. But I will swear that I taste cloves in there. Maybe from the Lea & Perrins? Anyway, nothing makes those little cocktail sausage things like Arby's sauce. I got to know my local Arby's manager, brought in a jar and he filled it for me. Damn. Now I have to have an Arby's. Yes . . . I confess to taking extra Horsey Sauce, too.

The LC labels are one of my pet peeves. Why do manufacturer's use labels that you can't get off? Don't even get me started on the little buggers on produce. I like the SSS idea. Over the holidays I found out from a friend that rubbing alcohol, the 91% version, works pretty good as well.

I was soooooo glad Alinka brought her camera. Actually, Topwater is undergoing some major renovation. They were closed a few weeks after hurricane Rita in order to accomplish the most of it. The patio is gone and has morphed into this big roofed area. New restrooms are going to be really nice. Then they had to reopen before the local populace brought out the torches and dogs. The weather here has been unseasonably warm so the demand has been higher than usual. I was there again Monday, January 2, and it was 78 F and clear blue sky. We had gone fishin' with our favorite guide and put in there for an after-trip late lunch. The water was pretty, the day was pretty, but the fish were hung over or something. We only caught a keeper flounder and a sand trout. We gave the fillets to Brandon and he had them grilled up with a mushroom and shrimp sauce. That is fresh fish! The menu changed over the summer. The favorites are still there and quite a few additions. Probably the most fun addtition is the "create it yourself" section. You select whatever fish you want, get it cooked to your preference then add sauces and toppings. I agree with Alinka about the stuffed shrimp. The stuffing is designed for holding together while frying. It doesn't do well texture-wise under the broiler. Tastes good, though. The latest news is that Robert bought Wreckers (they didn't last long) and has turned it into Panga's. The menu is still developing and is headed sort of south of the border but a focus on seafood. Brandon swears that their shrimp en brochette is better than Topwater because of their awesome grill. I doubt that but I will try it and let you know.

My nephew hit the "singing bowl" (sort of like a gong) as an entre to my unwrapping . . . The Le Creuset yellow pepper! That was really fun. We used to watch the original Iron Chef together.

I dunno. I cook Basmati, Texmati, Pecan rice and others in my National on the white rice setting. It is perfect every time.

Oops. Better go change the water. The clock is ticking. Plans have changed. I won't be back to a computer until Monday evening. Pictures then.

Just an update. Elmer Fudd has been rocking along nicely. I didn't have to add much more salt. I got about three or so basters full of liquid a day . . . not really a lot. After a bit more than a day, I did notice a distinct change. The beast was no longer "squishy and floppy" but had become a really firm hunk-o-pig. I will take it out tomorrow morning, rinse and put in cold water. It will have been corning for 8 days. I think that will be all right since he is just a bit over 11 pounds, shank portion, and has cut surfaces at both ends and the slits in the skin. It goes in the oven early on Sunday for Sunday afternoon serving. We will be cooking it to pulled pork stage so I will be dropping the baking temperature, maybe push it to 275F, and relying on the remote thermometer. It is a good thing that I checked the recipe in Bill Smith's book. Originally, I didn't catch that it is cooked covered, then the cover removed to brown at the end. We have one of those big Magnalite roasters at my sister's house, where Elmer meets his final glory, so that seems pretty fittin'. Pictures later.

I'm glad this came back up. I need to add that book to my wish list. I am sure that I am underusing my rice cooker. About 6 years ago, I bought this National from Williams-Sonoma. It was more like $200 at the time. It was my traditional insane gift to myself after the holidays. Some of my family laughed their butts off when they found out that I spent $200 for a rice cooker. I did retort that it has a retractable cord and that made it worth it. Actually, I haven't found it to fail at any type of rice yet. But the best thing in the world is how long it can hold the rice at serving temperature. I have gone as long as 6 hours and it was still as good as when it first finished.

Ah ha! I was scanning and missed that. The review is indeed interesting.

This is really funny and I can't say I ever thought about it. My mother was an excellent from scratch cook. However, that recipe must have intrigued her when it first came out. She was known to try things from packaged stuff once in a while if she was curious about it. We did use the frozen green beans from the get-go. You can get fresh ones down here at this time of year but they aren't at their best. My mother's rule was that if she didn't get the vegetables out of her or someone else's garden she used frozen. Well, the darn thing stuck! Now we have to have it every Thanksgiving. Even my kids and my nephew demand it . . . and they are all foodies. I think my sister was the one that started adding some soy sauce and sliced water chestnuts. Oddly enough, the only time the demand surfaces is at Thanksgiving. That says to me that it is a nostalgia thing. Actually, I like it ok. White and 59. (Some Native American in there but I don't think enough to count. )

Hey LDLee . . . that link sends me to Sports Illustrated. I kept trying to figure out if the NFL had invaded Mark's.

Excellent comparison! I will print this off for my next trip out that way. Please tell me that you hauled a lot home with you. I take it that there was you and one buddy. If you ate all of that you should have driven straight to your friendly neighborhood cardiologist! Thanks for taking one for the team!