Cooking with a Pellet Grill

[gfweb]

On 2/7/2023 at 12:22 PM, paulraphael said:

I'd love to hear more about how someone would choose pellet vs. charcoal vs. wood.

 

Hmmm. Pellets are much easier to store than wood and easier than charcoal too.  They don't seem to need the tending that a wood fire does.

 

I do pellet smoking in a small pellet tube.  A cup or two burn forever...many hours. 

[rotuts]

@paulraphael 

 

as @gfweb has suggested 

 

using pellets in a PID controlled setting 

 

w the hardware being accurate and well made 

 

is more or less effortless .

 

esp for very long cooks , at low temps.

 

it is important to get quality food grade pellets 

 

and have a convenient source.    

 

the WHPS  20 lbs bags cost ~ $ 15 a bag.   and are top quality .

 

eventually WHPS will restock by the 1/2 , or possibly full pallet 

 

20 bags for the 1/2 pallet.

 

getting pellets should not be an issue if you choose to go the Pellet Way.

 

as mentioned before

 

https://www.youtube.com/@RumandCook/videos

 

gives one a fair assessment pf the Yoder.

 

although as time goes on , sites like this do have a commercial interest 

 

in the number of views.

 

the WHPS is not disappointed w its hardware.

Edited April 1, 2023 by rotuts (log)

[rotuts]

the WHPS has done hot smoked salmon :

 

 

this was the Methode as I understand it :

 

'''''    the quick easy method, dry cure with 2:1 brown sugar/kosher salt, in pizza dough box overnight, rinsed, air dried with fan for 4 hours, Yoder to 150, washed with maple syrup starting at one hour, raised temp to 170, took off at 2 1/2 hours with temp 140 with thermopen.  Good bark, smoke, still somewhat moist in interior  ''''

 

 

 

 

[&roid]

Well, @rotuts, you’ve got a lot to answer for…

 

I’ve just won an eBay auction for a year old Yoder 640 competition! 
 

These things NEVER come up over here but someone needs to make space for a pizza oven so is selling his. They are only about two hours away from me so I reckon this is my best chance of ever owning one of these beauties!

 

Brand new I was looking at over £4,500 which was way out of my league unfortunately. I’ve managed to pick this one up for just under £1600 so am delighted 😁 Only downside is that it’s the more sedate grey colourway but mrs roid is pleased with that so it seems a fair compromise 

 

Just the small matter of finding a suitable vehicle to hire to bring it home now…

[rotuts]

@&roid 

 

very pleased .  I was hoping something like this

 

might come your  way.

 

I know you will appreciate it

 

and take care of it 

 

and , most importantly

 

enjoy  putting it through its paces ..

 

once your PS ( Pellet Society ) if forms

 

please consider posting here .

 

the WHPS CEO // Maintenance  dept 

 

doesn't post enough here .

 

too much gorging on the results ?

 

Greasy iPhone ?

 

several weeks ago 

 

good quality St.Louis  ribs were 

 

vac's  , were $ 1.99  a pound .

 

I unde stand the WHPS got 4 racks ?  6 , maybe went back for

 

a total of 8.

 

wonder stuff is right infront  of you 

 

pushing a button , and 

 

while you wait for how ever long it takes 

 

a Personal Beverage is in order.

 

 

 

[&roid]

6 hours ago, rotuts said:

please consider posting here .

Oh I certainly will - can’t wait for this to arrive 😊

 

6 hours ago, rotuts said:

while you wait for how ever long it takes 

 

a Personal Beverage is in order.

And really this is what it’s all about!

[&roid]

Quick update, I’ve just got back from an 8.5 hour round trip but am now the proud owner of a Yoder 640S Competition!

 

managed to hire a van with a tail lift and roped in eldest son for some muscle. We blocked a road in the tiny quaint village where we collected it from and spent far too long trying to properly lash the thing down, but eventually we did it and were on our way. 
 

my first time driving a van that big, it was good fun on the way down but back up I was more than a little nervous that we’d open up the back and find the new arrival in pieces… thankfully nothing of the sort, it was all exactly as we’d left it, just a couple of stray pellets from one of the bags the previous owner threw in. 
 

it comes with pretty much every accessory - grill grates, half depth top shelf, an extra set of stainless steel grill bars, the stainless steel shelves and the grease trap. So once I’ve got it cleaned up I should be good to go

 

thanks again @rotuts for putting my down this particular rabbit hole, it’s going to be fun!

 

will share some pics once I get tomorrow’s on call out of the way - have a nice couple of days off after that to get scrubbing/smoking 

[&roid]

So a day of cleaning and cooking has been in order

 

I soaked the grills in horrible caustic oven cleaner overnight, it did a great job on them. Need to find something similar that’s suitable for grill grates now - I suspect the aluminium would have been eaten by the cleaner. 
 

Im so pleased with this purchase - it’s in really good condition, just a bit of cleaning and light touching up needed. 
 

First cook was smoked burgers (nice and simple!). I’m LOVING the fireboard - it’s such a great bit of kit. Being able to set custom programs with multiple steps that run for a set time or to a target temp is a game changer. 
 

Can’t wait for my first proper low and slow cook on this thing!

 

 

Grills before:

 

 

and after:

 

 

 

my combustion inc wireless thermometer is even able to get its signal out!

[rotuts]

@&roid 

 

nice !

 

what's your pellet situation there ?

 

Themapen  ( USA )  is a GB product originally ?

 

https://www.thermoworks.com/signals/

 

https://www.thermoworks.com/smoke-x/

 

https://www.thermoworks.com/smoke/

 

prices have seriously jumped.

 

figure out how many channels you really need.

 

then save up and get the next unit ' up '

 

you won't regret it.

 

looking forward to your ' cook '

 

especially having different 

 

if not very different items to work with.

[&roid]

Pellets, I can get traeger and pit boss fairly easily though they aren’t as cheap as they could/should be - about £22 per 20lb bag. But I’ll search harder and see if I can find in bulk somewhere. 
 

I’ve got a ThermoWorks signals/billows setup for my kamado. I really like it but the fireboard in the Yoder seems better in a couple of important ways:

 

- custom multi step programs (no way to do this at all with the billows)

- better graphing

- an Apple Watch app that actually works!

 

for now I’ll manage just great with two channels and the pit that the built in fireboard can do. But if I end up needing more I’d be tempted to get a second FB unit I’ve been that impressed with it

[&roid]

The brisket has just gone on - cos you’ve got to jump in with both feet when you get a new toy, right??

 

[rotuts]

@&roid 

 

excellent 

 

Im sure cuts are different there and here :

 

is that mostly 'flat ' w some ' point '  upper L ?

[&roid]

I get it from a butcher who specialises in American style cuts. This was meant to be a point end half but I think it’s a flat. It’s a lot thinner and more uniform than the point half that I had last time off him. Weighs about 9lb

 

its from a Spanish producer that does amazing grain fed beef. So much better than British brisket which is useless as it’s got so little marbling 

[&roid]

For a first stab that was some really good brisket 😋 

 

Will definitely go a little hotter next time, I tried to do 200F all the way on this and it took an age! 22 hours in the pit at the end! But it was a lovely piece of meat. And a great smoke flavour, just the right level for me. 
 

We have a big party coming up in a couple of weeks, can’t wait to Yoder everything for it!

[rotuts]

@&roid  

 

I see you wrapped in plain butcher paper 

 

I don't think you need to go higher on the temp

 

some good videos out there

 

and a lot of junk

 

look for  Aaron Franklin 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmTzdMHu5KU

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGZ39yYxeBk

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMIlyzRFUjU

 

 

Rum & cook

 

very unusual result for GB 

[&roid]

Thanks @rotuts, I’ll have a dig into those videos. 
 

I got the brisket from an online butcher that specialises in American bbq cuts, their brisket actually comes from a Spanish producer who does lovely grain fed meat. I’d have had no chance doing this with British beef! 

[chromedome]

I would also recommend Craig "Meathead" Goldwyn's site, Amazing Ribs. Underneath the "good ol' boy schtick" he's a serious food writer who delves into the science of barbecue, and has lots of excellent information on technique etc. 

 

https://amazingribs.com/

[rotuts]

Rum & Cook

 

https://www.youtube.com/@RumandCook/videos

 

excellent Yoder stuff

 

esp upkeep , introduction to pellet smoking   

[FeChef]

If you want the most amazing Brisket, smoke to 190F IT then wrap in BP with some butter and beef tallow, then foil, and place in a SV cooler just above the water line and set it to 150F for 15-18 hours. Best brisket you will ever have.

This guy knows whats up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RlnrqM7Kis

 

[&roid]

3 hours ago, FeChef said:

If you want the most amazing Brisket, smoke to 190F IT then wrap in BP with some butter and beef tallow, then foil, and place in a SV cooler just above the water line and set it to 150F for 15-18 hours. Best brisket you will ever have.

This guy knows whats up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RlnrqM7Kis

 

Interesting idea! those briskets look delicious. My oven can hold 150 really solidly so I’m guessing resting in that would be the same… might give this a try. 

[rotuts]

@&roid

 

make sure you notice that the 150 is in F  , not C 

 

a similar method is a top like cooler

 

Yeti is one

 

https://www.yeti.com/coolers

 

but expensive.    change the hot water , in bottles 

 

fromtime to time if necessary 

 

at some point  , ' tenderness '  may be over tender 

[&roid]

11 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@&roid

 

make sure you notice that the 150 is in F  , not C 

 

a similar method is a top like cooler

 

Yeti is one

 

https://www.yeti.com/coolers

 

but expensive.    change the hot water , in bottles 

 

fromtime to time if necessary 

 

at some point  , ' tenderness '  may be over tender 

Yep could be disastrous mixing those units up here!

 

It’s ok though, I’ve got a fancy pants Miele oven that will happily hold anything from 50°C upwards (122F) so should be good to go with minimal fuss. 
 

I note the Yoder will go to 150 too but not sure how stable it is at those temps? Guess if the meat is wrapped there’s little point in wasting pellets over 18h if my oven will do the job. 

[&roid]

So… big weekend coming up. We’ve got about 35 people coming for our annual “summer” bbq. Quotation marks as the weather forecast is pretty abysmal - rain, maybe some lightning, plenty of wind… never mind, we’ll have fun. The house might suffer a bit more than normal but it’s all cleanable!

 

On the menu we have, two whole pork butts (11lb each), a plate of beef ribs (about 7lb) and a whole grain-fed brisket (11-12lb).
 

The Yoder is going to earn its keep here! They’re all going on overnight and will get wrapped as each hits the right point then pulled to rest once they get done. When they’re all done the Yoder will go down to 150 and they’ll rest until we’re ready to eat - hopefully just before I’ve had one too many cocktails. 
 

Wish me luck!

[rotuts]

@&roid 

 

sounds excellent.

 

Pics if you can manage them .

 

cheers

[&roid]

Here we go then!

 

just loaded up the Yoder, weather forecast is getting worse - this is going to be fun!