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meat smokers

Posted: Sat Sep 09, 2006 12:14 pm
by Rotgut
I got this old keg so i think im gonna make it into a meat smoker because the one i have now is much to small. Anyone ever do this or have heard of it? Ive seen some pretty wierd smokers whats the wierdest one you have seen?
One i saw was actually an old chevy van I wish i took pics of it. It could smoke alot of meat.

Posted: Wed Sep 13, 2006 2:15 am
by LONEEAGLE155
Sorry I know way off topic but I used to use my old van as a smoker also but it wasn't meat we were smokin but it did make you feel just as good as drinkin a bottle of spirits :lol:

Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2006 7:55 pm
by Rotgut
LONEEAGLE155 wrote:Sorry I know way off topic but I used to use my old van as a smoker also but it wasn't meat we were smokin but it did make you feel just as good as drinkin a bottle of spirits :lol:
am always willing to talk about fogging up a van or better yet an entire basement

Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 5:39 am
by Tater
heh They have 420 fourms guys. :wink:

Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 6:17 am
by Big J
What are some of your guy's 'recipes' for smoking meat? I mean what kind of wood, how long, what kind of meat do you like to smoke etc. Never done it, but would love to try it out.

-J

Posted: Sun Sep 17, 2006 1:12 pm
by Rotgut
recipes that is a good question
i either use hickory or oak for wood meat is normally ribs and brisket sometimes ill throw in some brats or hotdogs maybe some sausages w/e sounds like it would taste good for flavor i add some bbq sauce on top i use this one made by mckennas i think its called blues booze and bbq something of that nature i normally leave the meat on for about 3-4 hours or until it looks like its done it is time consuming but the end product is definitely worth it

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 1:32 am
by sherriff Buffoerd pusser
thought i would share our saucse for smooking. 1 cup yellow musturd
1/2 cup white balsamic vinager
1/3 cup brown sugar
2T butter
1Tworestershire
1t lemon juice
cook all over low heat for 30 mins add red pepper to taste.

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 2:15 am
by hornedrhodent
="LONEEAGLE155"
Sorry I know way off topic but I used to use my old van as a smoker also but it wasn't meat we were smokin but it did make you feel just as good as drinkin a bottle of spirits :lol:

I wonder what sort of product you'd get if you did have some meat hanging in that van?

Has anyone tried smoking meat with 'alternative' substances - or is it too expensive?

Mightn't last long though - if it gives you the munchies.

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 6:47 am
by Tater
Old freezers with the porcilin liners make good smokers.There insulated and hold smoke well.Door allready has seal. Ive used this type for several years.Will do 4 deer hams or beef briskets.Or several trout .Or 1 side of pork/bacon 60lbs stuffed sausage.

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 7:18 am
by TRANSPLANTED HILLBILLY
Pardon me, but I was always under the impression that smoking meat is something that took like 12 to 24 hours and is done painfully slow. I to do what your talking about. I just call it good ol slow cooking.
Not tryin to nit pick. I guess, like many other things in life, it depends on where your from as to what you call different things.

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 8:38 am
by rezaxis
My Grandpa had one made from an old refrigerator. Had everything stripped off of it and he used a log propped against the door to hold it closed. It was all rusted up, had a definate lean to it, and looked kind of out of place out there behind the shed at the edge of the garden, but some good stuff came out of it.

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 9:13 am
by junkyard dawg
round here the wood to use is mesquite. SOme of the best brisket cookers will build a big fire of mesquite and shovel just the coals into a firebox. The meat goes on grates about 2 feet over the coals and the lid closes over that. They can smoke a brisket in 4 to 6 hours. When done right its been some of the most perfect Q I have had. These fellas used to be the kings...

http://www.coopersbbq.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

They have grown too large and aren't nearly as good as they were a few years ago. Too bad, but it happens to lots of businesses. Check out the picture of the pit under the tour section. They have about 10 of those big things outside and a huge fire box thats always blazing. That whole side of town smells like smoked meat...

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 9:40 am
by sherriff Buffoerd pusser
We smoke pig an only pig memphis style bar b q . never eaten brsiket or bar b qed beef.

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 10:47 am
by Tater
TRANSPLANTED HILLBILLY wrote:Pardon me, but I was always under the impression that smoking meat is something that took like 12 to 24 hours and is done painfully slow. I to do what your talking about. I just call it good ol slow cooking.
Not tryin to nit pick. I guess, like many other things in life, it depends on where your from as to what you call different things.

Guess it counts on what kind of smoking your doing theres hot smoking [meats poultry sometimes fish and shell fish] cold smoking [ fish shellfish and cheese] Mines set up with a 120 volt elect element on a t stat. burner is in a ss bowel that i fill with pices of wood cover with another ss bowel and set tstat on 160 to smoke with most meats i smoke 16 to 24 hrs.when wood has started to coal heater wont come on. I usally use charcoal and pices of wood to cold smoke with .On trout I smoke on fruit woods usally apple or wild black cherry 4hrs to 8 hrs or what ever time they get done.I like mesquite on about every thing else but will use hickory and oak to get a certain flavor.Freezer also has a 6 in hole at bottem on side and same at top with a pice of round ac duct with damper in them so i can set air flow. One of these days Ill get me a 280 gallon round oil drum and build a proper smoker with remote smoke source :)

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 11:03 am
by sherriff Buffoerd pusser
We got two 1 has shelves that turn slow that we smoke ribs and tenderloins on.Then we got ole big boy he will cook two hole hogs with room for snacks like sticks 50 lb boloagna.

Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 1:09 pm
by TRANSPLANTED HILLBILLY
Mines set up with a 120 volt elect element on a t stat. burner is in a ss bowel that i fill with pices of wood cover with another ss bowel and set tstat on 160 to smoke with most meats i smoke 16 to 24 hrs.
Thats what I was thinkin about. Like a good ol VA smoked ham.

Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2006 7:50 am
by possum
Around here there is BBQ style smoking (hot smoke), and there is cold winter smoked ham or bacon. Some folk smoke venison, lamb,pork, and beef for imediate consumption, but for hams (in southern PA region) the Dutch style is done cold. this is usually called country style ham.

We use a brine soak, followed by a sugar/salt pack on the outside.
The smoking is done cool, hanging in the smokehouse, the salt drives the water out, and the smoke gives flavor,keeps off some mold, and drives the beetles away.
Of course comercial style hams don't get that treatment.

It is sort of like proscuto ham (Parma region italian) because of the low water content.

Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 4:08 am
by hornedrhodent
="sherriff Buffoerd pusser"

We smoke pig an only pig memphis style bar b q . never eaten brsiket or bar b qed beef.

Is that like the 'ribs' in the movie 'Fried Green Tomatoes'?

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 6:54 pm
by Rotgut
anybody ever use a 55 gallon drum as a smoker? i think im gonna buy one with both ends and set on its side so i can use it as a charcoal grill and a smoker would it rusting have any taste effect?

Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 7:48 pm
by junkyard dawg
naw, a little rust won't hurt. Just don't build big raging fires in it and it'll last a lot longer. Those drums are pretty thin for holding fire. Make a great smoker if you have another firebox.

Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2006 7:28 am
by TRANSPLANTED HILLBILLY
I got a 55 gal drum for smokin/slow cookin'. Works really good,but after the fire goes out, do yourself a favor and get ahe ash out. The ash will attract moisture and that will turn into a hole in not very long.
anybody ever use a 55 gallon drum as a smoker? i think im gonna buy one with both ends and set on its side so i can use it as a charcoal grill and a smoker would it rusting have any taste effect?
There are kits available to make this conversion, but anyone with some skills can easily do it themselves. One tip I would like to send out is, when makin the grate take the extra time to make the rails run front to back rather than side to side. Reason is when using a spatula to turn things, it wont tend to go under a rail and cause undue stress on the buzz you have aquired while enjoying a pastime. :wink: The one I have was given to me and whoever built it didn't take the time to do it right. It was free so i aint complainin'.

Posted: Mon Nov 20, 2006 6:05 pm
by Rotgut
TRANSPLANTED HILLBILLY wrote:I got a 55 gal drum for smokin/slow cookin'. Works really good,but after the fire goes out, do yourself a favor and get ahe ash out. The ash will attract moisture and that will turn into a hole in not very long.
I always take the ash out of all my smokers how would i make the secondary firebox thing? wouldnt i need something like an exhaust outlet so the smoke would go through the smoker?

Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 2:57 pm
by Rudi
Am interested in building a smoker hot and cold anyone have any pics? :D

Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 4:28 pm
by arkansas
Hey rudi, will try to get some pics for you in a couple of days of each of the ones I have, one thing though, the cold smoker is much like the one Tater described but as it is cold here now, I have shelves in place holding my mashes at temp. The slow smoker or what ever you want to call it is a 200gal. fuel tank with a 55gal barrel welded to the end. It took lots to burn, clean out the fuel tank but works wonderful now.

Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 5:32 pm
by mtnwalker2
Arkansas,

I am very interested also. I have wanted to build one for over 25 years, but never could find the time, and I was always thinking of a brick structure. We have mostly done ours with sugar, salt, and red pepper, slow cured on a bench in a tight room. Ribs and sausage canned, lard and cracklings rendered on the wood stove, and a neighbor makes hogs head chease, and souse for half. Usually, 3 or 4 neighbors will bring their hog(s), and its quite a 2 or 3 day event. Fresh liver the first night, tenderloin for breakfast, squirrel brain gravy for biscuits and grits, and so on.

I've never been able to stomache store bought bacon for the last 25 years. Its like trying to drink the cheapest store bought scotch, when you have enjoyed the very best.

Still, I want to do some cold smoke Old timey Smithfield type hams, and I have a sausage stuffer I have never used, just awaiting.

Please be as descriptive as you can in the building process.

You will be very appreciated!

Posted: Sat Jan 20, 2007 8:39 pm
by Tater
http://www.texasbarbeques.com/support-f ... rplans.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 3:12 am
by Rudi
Thanks Tater looks like I got some more readin to do and Arkansas lookin foward to seeing some pics 1 pic = 1000 words sounds like a good excuse to buy a new welder :)

Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 5:50 am
by arkansas
Great stuff there Tater, will have camera tommorrow, and should have some pics. up in a couple of days.

Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 7:18 am
by Ricky
when im smoking meat i like to use pecan wood. the flavor is milder than the hickory, not quite as bitter. also the fact that i have 2 pecan trees in the yard that always have some low branches for trimming doesnt hurt none either.