I have already tried to smoke pork shoulder (Boston butt) twice. Here are the data:

First time it was an elongated 3.5 lb piece with a bone. I marinated it for a day and smoked overnight. Final time was 13 hours and the temperature reached 197 degrees F. It was perfectly tender and not too dry.

Second time it was a 4.8 lb boneless piece, but I cut off 1.3 lb for other purposes, so again it was 3.5 lb of pork that was smoked, but it was more rounded and no bone. I marinated it overnight and cooked during the day. Initially temperature was 42 F, after 3.5 hours temp was 149 F, and after 9 hrs 15 min the temp was 174 F. That's when I got it out of the smoker. The fibers were totally tender, and seemed to be juicier than the first time, but it seemed to be harder to pull apart with my fingers.

Either way, I don't consider this to be presentation food. Myself I would eat it just fine, but I would not offer it to my dinner guests.

It is amazing just how easy it is to BBQ if you have an electric smoker. I got the most basic model of Brinkmann electric smoker at Home Depot for $70. It does not have a thermometer. It does not have a temperature regulator of any kind. All you can do is plug it in and wait. And it works!

This is my first attempt at making BBQ pork ribs and it came out so good, I'll never need to buy barbequed ribs again!

Chips:

1. I used Jack Daniels oak whisky barrels chips that I got at Academy.
2. Soak them overnight.
3. Drain water into the water pan of the smoker
4. Put chips on the electrical element
5. They'll last for about 45 min, which is enough for basic smoke flavor.

Rub:

1. 4 tsp of sugar
2. 1 tsp of salt
3. 2 tsp Spanish paprika
4. 1 tsp ground cloves
5. 1 tsp dried garlic
6. 1 tsp dried onions
7. 1 tsp black pepper
8. 1/3 tsp chili powder
9. A generous handful of coriander seeds (probably about 2 tsp), crushed. Don't use coriander powder - it has no flavor. Seriously.

This is plenty more than enough rub for 1 slab of pork ribs.  Rub it generously and leave pork in the fridge overnight. Next day put the ribs into the smoker and turn it on. Come back 5 hours later and enjoy great food!

How do I know it should be 5 hours? I bought 2 BBQ books and both of them agree that BBQ baby back ribs needs to be cooked for 5 hours. They were right.

The main deal with this recipe is that the pork stays super moist and juicy thanks to the protective layer of molten cheese that forms on the top. It prevents the moisture from escaping and keeps the meat tender. It is still possible to overcook it, though, so use the recommended temperature and time.

Start out by sauteeing the onions.

Read the rest of this post »