Smoking Meat Questions and Discussion

[cyfanatic13]

Got a deal on the Traeger Woodridge Pro that I couldn't say no to, despite having absolutely no idea what I'm doing. Made a pork loin this past weekend and just looked up an internet recipe and hot damn was that good. If anyone has recommendations/suggestions/recipes on things to make next let me know. I'm looking to start using it a lot more after how easy the pork loin was

 

[BACyclone]

If you want real good pork patties? Grind up the whole 1/2 hog into patties. Ham, loin,bellies, included.

Feels like sacrilege to include the belly. Usually I always ask the cut person if they can make the whole thing into bacon, sometimes they laugh. Usually I have to purposely laugh so they know I was joking.

We never get the hams and do just have them ground into fresh pork.

Loins have to go to chops. Cut those babies thick and smoke them and you'll look forward to doing that every time you can.

Usually I take some of the ground pork and mix up my own breakfast and Italian sausage. I've got a couple spice recipes I've dialed in pretty well for that. But pork burgers -- with some Famous Dave's Rib Rub for seasoning -- I could eat those several times a week all year long.

 

[BACyclone]

Got a deal on the Traeger Woodridge Pro that I couldn't say no to, despite having absolutely no idea what I'm doing. Made a pork loin this past weekend and just looked up an internet recipe and hot damn was that good. If anyone has recommendations/suggestions/recipes on things to make next let me know. I'm looking to start using it a lot more after how easy the pork loin was

Loin chops




I use BBQ sauce as the binder for rub. Smoke them to ~135ish and re-coat with more BBQ sauce to finish at 145. Make extra so you have a chance at leftovers.

Best feature: these are QUICK. You can fit this into your schedule almost any day.

 

[Clonehomer]

Thinking about getting a 1/2 hog for the first time. Someone wanna help me out with what to get and what not to get? Can I get just shoulders, hams and the rest in brats and sausage, am I missing out on something else?

 

[kirk89gt]

Thinking about getting a 1/2 hog for the first time. Someone wanna help me out with what to get and what not to get? Can I get just shoulders, hams and the rest in brats and sausage, am I missing out on something else?

You can but you would miss out on chops (or loins and ribs) and bacon - and who doesn’t like a good old fashioned head cheese?

May need to get a whole hog if you want brats and sausage too.

 

[cycloner29]

Thinking about getting a 1/2 hog for the first time. Someone wanna help me out with what to get and what not to get? Can I get just shoulders, hams and the rest in brats and sausage, am I missing out on something else?

No loin/chops, spare or baby back ribs?

 

[Gonzo]

My old charcoal rig officially bit the dust a few weeks ago, after a lot of soul searching and back and forth, I pulled the trigger on this. Very similar set up as I've had with my last two, nice and big, plenty of space, adjustable charcoal/wood tray, side vents for temp reg. I thought seriously about a pellet, thought about a big Weber ranch kettle, thought about a Masterbuilt gravity series smoker, but in the end, I have a system that works so I stuck with it. Plus it was only around $400, that made the wife happy. Already did a couple pork shoulders on it and turned out great.

 

[ghyland7]

Got a deal on the Traeger Woodridge Pro that I couldn't say no to, despite having absolutely no idea what I'm doing. Made a pork loin this past weekend and just looked up an internet recipe and hot damn was that good. If anyone has recommendations/suggestions/recipes on things to make next let me know. I'm looking to start using it a lot more after how easy the pork loin was

I also bought a Traeger a couple months ago.

So far I’ve done:
Pork ribs (3-2-1)
Beef Ribs
Pulled pork
Chicken thighs
Pork belly

Honestly it’s all been fantastic. Whichever meat, I’ll use a bit of some combination of: apple cider vinegar, apple juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, BBQ Sauce as a binder, and then a dry rub (either a pre-made mix or my own with combination of salt, pepper, brown sugar, paprika, cayenne, cumin).

Pork ribs at 225 for the 3-2-1 method.

Beef ribs at 275 for ~7 hours (to temp).

Pulled pork takes all day at 225-275.

Chicken thighs are really fast and easy and cheap; I do like 300 for roughly an hour or so (up to temp).

Pork and chicken I do more apple flavors, beef more black pepper. It’s basically an EZ-Bake oven for middle aged men…

 

[Blackhawk6515]

Looking for a wireless thermometer that won't break the bank. Anybody have any good ones they've used over the years and like. TIA.

 

[BACyclone]

Thinking about getting a 1/2 hog for the first time. Someone wanna help me out with what to get and what not to get? Can I get just shoulders, hams and the rest in brats and sausage, am I missing out on something else?

The thing I've found I sometimes don't like about getting breakfast sausage or bratwurst from the locker is that you may not like the seasoning mix they use to make these things. So for the trim I just get everything into ground pork and I make it myself. If you want bratwurst, the easiest is to just mix up bratwurst and put it into patties and have brat burgers. Or you can go to the work of filing casings.

I'll pick a day and thaw out 5-6 lbs of ground pork and mix it into seasoned sausage, then re-freeze it in ziploc bags for future use.

Lots of seasoning recipes online that will help you try out what you like best.

For the locker cut list, from memory I usually get:

Smoked Bacon
Shoulder roasts ~3.5lb (then you can either smoke them or crock pot them)
Baby back ribs
Spare ribs
whole tenderloin (Smoke this whole)
Loin chops
"Iowa" Chops cut 1" thick
Ham => fresh ground pork
Ground pork in: 2/3 of it in ground 1lb pkg; 1/3 in formed pork patties.

My locker for pork recently went to vac-sealing everything but the ground pork (plastic tubes) and it's so much better than paper packages.

 

[GBlade]

Looking for a wireless thermometer that won't break the bank. Anybody have any good ones they've used over the years and like. TIA.

Hard to beat the Meater line, but they don't have great range unless you get the block too. I've got a Meater 2 I use for grilling and a Fireboard Pulse I use when smoking which pairs to my Yoder and integrates in the same app I use for temp control. The Meater has more probes and higher max temps (searing).

Thermoworks RFX just released and is getting good reviews.

Most options for wireless probes run in the $100-150 range

 

[JP4CY]

Thinking about getting a 1/2 hog for the first time. Someone wanna help me out with what to get and what not to get? Can I get just shoulders, hams and the rest in brats and sausage, am I missing out on something else?

Do you happen to know locker location?
Always good to know their capabilities.
I've gone away from shoulders and am now getting pork steaks because shoulders frequently go on sale at grocery stores.

 

[mkadl]

Looking for a wireless thermometer that won't break the bank. Anybody have any good ones they've used over the years and like. TIA.

I have a 4 probe Guichon.

Amazon product

It wont break the bank. My gas grill goes over 700° and these cables handle it. I have had this several years and use it probably 60 time a year.

 

[Agclone91]

Hard to beat the Meater line, but they don't have great range unless you get the block too. I've got a Meater 2 I use for grilling and a Fireboard Pulse I use when smoking which pairs to my Yoder and integrates in the same app I use for temp control. The Meater has more probes and higher max temps (searing).

Thermoworks RFX just released and is getting good reviews.

Most options for wireless probes run in the $100-150 range

Have had an RFX since Christmas. It's expensive, but fantastic. Highly recommend.

 

[Agclone91]

I'll pick a day and thaw out 5-6 lbs of ground pork and mix it into seasoned sausage, then re-freeze it in ziploc bags for future use.

Getting fresh ground is definitely the way to go. We have started mixing up a batch of each seasoning (Breakfast, Italian, Brat,) and keep it in the cupboard. Then I'll just add whichever I want to use when I cook. Can choose on the fly what direction you want to go. I honestly just love a good plain pork burger once in a while too.

 

[FLYINGCYCLONE]

Feels like sacrilege to include the belly. Usually I always ask the cut person if they can make the whole thing into bacon, sometimes they laugh. Usually I have to purposely laugh so they know I was joking.

We never get the hams and do just have them ground into fresh pork.

Loins have to go to chops. Cut those babies thick and smoke them and you'll look forward to doing that every time you can.

Usually I take some of the ground pork and mix up my own breakfast and Italian sausage. I've got a couple spice recipes I've dialed in pretty well for that. But pork burgers -- with some Famous Dave's Rib Rub for seasoning -- I could eat those several times a week all year long.

10 years ago, or so, there was a benefit for a young gal in Algona. A couple hogs were donated, all they put everything into pork patties. The Pork Producers did the grilling. The guys grilling questioned the pork patties they were cooking. They said they never grill patties like that before. Very good. Ya, not for every occasion, but this was a good place for it.

 

[hiltonisheaven]

Got a deal on the Traeger Woodridge Pro that I couldn't say no to, despite having absolutely no idea what I'm doing. Made a pork loin this past weekend and just looked up an internet recipe and hot damn was that good. If anyone has recommendations/suggestions/recipes on things to make next let me know. I'm looking to start using it a lot more after how easy the pork loin was

Enjoy it! I smoked a Brisket overnight last weekend for the first time on my pellet grill/smoker. It was awesome and super easy. Love smoking overnight with the pellet smoker.
Best part about a pellet grill/smoker is the versatility. I also use it as an outdoor oven in the Summer to avoid heating up the oven in the house. Take your We Will frozen breakfast pizza and chuck it on there. Remove the drip pan to get direct heat on the bottom to crisp the crust. Pro tip: if you just smoked a fatty butt/brisket you need to clean up the drip pan before or the smoke will be dirty and make the pizza taste bad.
Follow grandma’s standard meatloaf recipe but cook it on there and it’ll be about the best meatloaf you ever had.
Here’s an easy BBQ beans recipe that’s a winner at my house. Chuck it on there along with whatever else you’re smoking/grilling/baking.

 

[AgronAlum]

Got a deal on the Traeger Woodridge Pro that I couldn't say no to, despite having absolutely no idea what I'm doing. Made a pork loin this past weekend and just looked up an internet recipe and hot damn was that good. If anyone has recommendations/suggestions/recipes on things to make next let me know. I'm looking to start using it a lot more after how easy the pork loin was

We do ribs quite a bit. There are a lot of opinions on how to do them right. They are good for getting used to your smoker and figuring out what you like.

An underrated favorite of ours is smoked ham loaf. Buy the Fareway ham loaf (HyVee sucks), form it, throw on some rub and cook at 325 until it's done. It's awesome and only takes like an hour.

Lunch meats are pretty simple. Eye of round for some roast beef. Smoked whole turkey breast.

If you're into ham these are absolutely phenomenal and have gotten probably the best reviews of anything I've ever made. I used a different glaze because I'm allergic to fruit but the process is still the same.

Smoked Pulled Ham with an Apricot Glaze [with Video] - Hey Grill, Hey

This Smoked Pulled Ham is ham is slow smoked and glazed with a tasty apricot jam/BBQ sauce combo for the most amazing bite of pulled pork.

heygrillhey.com

We also do a lot of pulled chicken because quarters go on sale pretty regularly. Smoke it, pull it and vac seal some for later.

Pork butts are probably that hardest to screw up but they still leave room for improvement or testing methods in every cook.

I love smoked bone-in pork chops. Smoke for like 45 minutes and then I sear them quick on the gas grill. Cheap and easy.


The only other thing I'd highly recommend is a vac sealer if you don't have one already. It's makes leftovers a breeze to freeze and reheat.

One more note. Don't ignore rest times after you cook. They really do make a huge difference.

 

[BACyclone]

I pimped the boneless chops above, but my first smoked pork chops were some huge thick Iowa chops I did on a few years ago. I'm telling you it was phenomenal -- 'why didn't I think of this BEFORE' amazing. Now I almost hate doing pork chops any other way, but grilling chops is still pretty good for a super quick meal.

But smoking chops is probably the best combo of outstanding flavor and relatively small time invested you can get on a pellet smoker.

We adore ham loaf (ham balls) but I had not considered this on the smoker, so thanks for that rec!