First time smoking on the grill

[JHolmes763]

I got a nice big Weber for my anniversary, so I figured I'd try my hand at smoking a few things to see how they turned out.

First up was a pork shoulder and some chicken legs. I made a rub with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic, onion and cayenne pepper. It went on a little thick, so the chicken was a little too spicy for everyone else. The pork was fine since it was just on the outside, though. Everything came out perfectly cooked, imo. Took about 3.5 hours, I think (was a few weeks ago). Wood was hickory and I was able to keep the temp around 200-250.

Here's the "before" pic as they went on the grill.

And the after:

This past weekend, I decided to try a meatloaf. Bacon-wrapped, cheese stuffed meatloaf. I only had ground beef this time. Next time, I'll mix in some pork or something else along with the beef. It came out perfectly cooked, but was a little dry even though I let it sit for a bit. Tasted awesome, though. I used a sharp cheddar cheese. It didn't really melt much, so maybe I'll use a different cheese next time, too. Wood was mesquite this time. It took about 3 hours again. The temp crept up to 300 a few times, so I think it cooked a little fast and there was only a small smoke ring.

I also came across a cod fillet in the freezer, so I thawed that and put it in a brine for a few hours, then threw that in the smoke for about an hour. It came out awesome. Nice brown colour on the outside and a very nice smokey flavor. (Weird... my spell check doesn't like color but flavor is fine...flavour...that's okay, too, I guess.) Brine was an adhoc mix of water, salt, garlic, brown sugar and balsamic vinegar, if I remember correctly. I adapted a recipe that I found online with what I had on hand.

Here's the results pic of the meatloaf. You can see some of the fish in the top right, too.

All in all, it was a pretty good experience / experiment. A couple of successes makes me think this is pretty easy. I'm ready to try some other things now.

 

[kona1000]

Tasty! Looks good!

 

[jfields]

Looks good John!

Not to rain on your party, but was the shoulder fall off the bone, don't need a knife tender? Reason I ask is I've never cooked a pork shoulder or butt roast even close to three hours. Usually about 9 - 10 hours at 225 to 250 to break down the connective tissue in the meat.

 

[drunkfish3]

Looks good John!

Not to rain on your party, but was the shoulder fall off the bone, don't need a knife tender? Reason I ask is I've never cooked a pork shoulder or butt roast even close to three hours. Usually about 9 - 10 hours at 225 to 250 to break down the connective tissue in the meat.

Same here 3.5 hours is not long enough for a should.

 

[4cbln3]

Way to go John! Hope you got to smoke a nice cigar while waiting.

That's the fun of smoking meat, we eat all my mistakes until the family says, "THIS is the one dad!" :laugh:

 

[Bayamos]

Any leftovers??????

 

[JHolmes763]

It was a small piece of pork and no bone. It was done is all that I know. Not pulled pork done, but slicing done. I'll have to do some more research before the next one, maybe.

Only a single slice of meatloaf left, but that won't last past tonight.

 

[Tall Paul]

John I have the same grill and love it. I have smoked ribs many timers on it. Time for me to try something else.

 

[sweepthelegnate]

Looks great. I'll have to try a cheese stuffed meat loaf...