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Smoking 101
By John H | June 28, 2010
After working at Camp Chef for over 2 years, I finally decided I needed to learn how to use a Smoke Vault. I got a smoker last weekend for father’s day to my great surprise, so I figured that now was as good a time as any to learn. I have never smoked anything before, and I have to tell you I was a little nervous about what goes into smoking. I only knew the theory, not the technique. So now was the time, and I plunged ahead.
After searching the internet for a great recipe (http://www.smoker-cooking.com/smoked-tri-tip.html), I went to the store to buy the meat.
After doing some online research, I found out that prep for this or any other smoked recipe is pretty simple. For all smoked meats you can use a dry rub or a liquid marinade for the meat. I used a dry rub that came from the aforementioned link and went like this:
TRI TIP RUB INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Combine the tri tip rub ingredients.
Season each of the tri tips with salt…kosher if you got it. Use about 2 teaspoons of salt per each roast, one teaspoon per side. Let the roasts sit salted for a few minutes, then season with the tri tip rub. Go ahead and pack all of it on.
When I finished, this is how it looked.
I let that sit for a while in my fridge just flavoring the meat.
When it came time to do the actual smoking I realized that I had no idea how to use the smoker. This is a little embarrassing since I work at Camp Chef, and I am around the Smoke Vaults quite a bit and have even seen them being used by other employees on occasion. So since I was hesitant, I thought it would be a good idea to go into detail about what I did for my first ever smoked tri-tip.
Step One: Prep the meat. As I explained, for my tri-tip I used a dry rub.
Step Two: Prep the smoker. To get the smoker ready you need to place the chip tray in the smoker with the preferred wood of choice, there are many types of wood to smoke. Depending on what type of meat, your recipe may give you a suggestion about what type of wood would be the best with it. I also found that many people say, ‘use what you want!’ I had some cherry wood hanging around the yard so I used that as my smoke putting it on the bottom cast iron chip tray.
Next, I added some water to the drip tray thinking to create some steam and help keep the smoker and the meat moist. I was not positive about the water dip tray and what or how much liquid if any was needed. I ended up just guessing and had to put some extra water in half way through. I guess that just depends on how long you are going to smoke your meat. Last, place the racks where you want/need them for your meat.
Step Three: Start smoking! The Smoke Vault makes this super easy. Chip tray? Check! Water Basin/Drip Tray? Check! Meat Shelves? Check! The Smoke Vault started right up on the first click with its matchless rotary ignition. It got to temperature quickly and the meat was ready to absorb the smoke.
My tri-tip smoked for a relatively short time of 2 hours at about 225 to 275(about 1 hour per pound) and was plenty done for me. I am usually a rare to medium rare kind of guy. I would suggest that a Camp Chef meat thermometer is essential to have on hand, to know when your meat is finished to your liking!
From my experience I found out that smoking was super simple once I got everything rolling. A little temperature control and a little patience and you will have yourself some delicious smoked tri-tip.
On a side note, I added a mustard/vinegar BBQ sauce and thought it was delicious and would share:
1/2 cup of prepared yellow mustard
1/4 cup of cider vinegar
3 tablespoons of brown sugar (dark)
1/2 teaspoon of paprika
1/2 teaspoon of Worstershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (powdered)
1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
All in all the tri-tip came out delicious. It was easier to do that I would have guessed, even for a novice, and everyone at the BBQ sure thought it was a tasty dish.
Topics: General Discussion, Recipes, Smoking | 3 Comments »
June 28th, 2010 at 2:11 pm
I’m liking the looks of that Vinegar based BBQ sauce.
June 28th, 2010 at 6:31 pm
Looks good for a first time. Now you need to really christen that smoker and make some pulled pork.
I find on my gas smoker that leaving the water pan dry or filled with sand helps to develop a better crust on the meat. If the meat looks dry, I’ll foil it or do a mop of butter, Apple juice, and a little cider vinegar.
Also, chips are great for short cooks but are really better for grills. Try wood chunks instead. You’ll get a longer burn time and a thin blue smoke. (one fist sized chunk about every 2 hours)
The sauce looks good and I also have one that I can’t get enough of.
Roxy’s S.C. Mustard Sauce
(thesmokering.com)
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup Yellow mustard
1/4 cup onion finely minced
2 cloves garlic pureed
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
Combine ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
For a smoother sauce, blend on high for a few minutes.
July 1st, 2010 at 10:16 am
Now, I’m going to give you a “pass” for having such a clean smoker since you just started using it. But you need to build that “smoke patina” inside already.
Looks good. On my pulled pork, I don’t really worry about a crust. Once you pull that baby apart, a good majority of that pork won’t have a crust anyways. I just did 250#’s of pulled pork in my Smokevault for the Jimmy Green Memorial Flyfishing event. They were done with a drip tray with a 50/50 beer/water with floating lemons and oranges in the tray. Turned out great, and couldn’t tell about crust at all. I also completely agree with the chunks. I don’t use chips unless I absolutely have to. But I have alder and apple trees, so usually have a good supply of chunks on hand.