Brrr... it's cold!!

The temperature at the time I sit and type this is zero degrees! Reminds me of the few years I lived up in Alaska. Brrrrr.

However, the cold does not need to stop you from using your grill or smoker. In fact, more people smoke during the winter season than summer.

The challenge is keeping your smoker to hold it's temperature during these very cold days and nights. Unless you have an expensive smoker chances are you are going to lose heat or go through your heat resource faster. Here are a few ways to help with this:

1. A welder's blanket. Yes, many grill companies make insulation blankets for their products but they tend to be expensive. Sure, they look nice but who cares. It's purpose it to insulate your smoker, not win a beauty pageant. There are a few that exist. The cheapest is a fiberglass blanket. They can run anywhere from $19.99 up to over a hundred dollars. Harbor Freight has them very cheap HERE. Just make sure the blanket does not have asbestos in it. Some say stay away from fiberglass but I have not seen hard evidence to that. I only recommend using the blanket for low and slow cooks. I do warn against cotton treated flame retardant blankets as the retardant can "cook off" over time and the blanket could catch fire. Also, washing them could wash the retardant off. There is a brand called Tillman that is made of thermofelt. Here is the LINK. Some people will cut them up and install them in pieces on the smoker.

2. Gaskets. There are gasket products on the market (we carry some at the store) that will allow you to seal up gaps and such on your grill and/or smoker. These can by cut to size and run around the edge of your smoker lid/door. Some are self adhesive and some use the high temp adhesive.

3. Fire bricks. These will retain heat and help keep the temperature more stable.

4. Aluminum foil. Some claim that simply lining the inside of your smoker with heavy duty aluminum foil will help hold heat in the smoker and keep the heat more stable as well.

None of the above mentioned ideas are really that expensive and will save you a ton on fuel over the winter.

Stay warm everyone and happy smoking!

Dan

Happy Thanksgiving!

I know it's been awhile since I have posted a blog and I apologize. The good news is that Daren and I have had our hands full at the store with classes and pre-holiday sales!

Whew, what a day at the store today. Very busy and have had a chance to talk to many customers about the upcoming holidays; especially Thanksgiving this Thursday! It's that time of year to reflect on everything we are thankful for whether it be good health, family, fortune, or whatever you can appreciate in your life. I know I am very thankful for having the business, such a great business partner and wonderful family and friends. I would say my health but at my age, that can go at any time! :)

So many of our customers smoke their turkeys for the holidays. One question that we get asked quite a bit this time of year is what type of wood works best around the holidays. By far our most popular wood is apple. Apple wood works great with pork and poultry; especially poultry. Mix apple and pecan and you have, in my opinion, the perfect smoked wood combination for smoking a turkey for Thanksgiving. Really any kind of wood works as long as you enjoy it. Many people enjoy maple or cherry which can be more robust flavors. About the only wood that might be different for turkey is mesquite. That is a stronger and harder wood. You either like it or you don't. 

As far as smoking a turkey, as simple as roasting a turkey. My favorite video on smoking a turkey is this one:  

  It is based on the recommendations of Meathead on the Amazing Ribs website. Very simple to do. Really the only difference is not to fill the cavity of the bird when you smoke it to allow the heat to penetrate the middle evenly. 

However you decide to cook your turkey (just please be careful if you decide to deep fry your turkey as that is by far the most dangerous), we here at CBO want everyone to have a safe and joyous Thanksgiving!

As a reminder, we will have a Black Friday sale the day after Thanksgiving. Come on down to stock up on some of your favorite items at great prices! 

Dan

Slow down and barbecue!

One of the benefits to owning a small retail store is the interaction I get to have with customers. I had an older gentleman come in this morning who had been in one of our classes earlier in the year.

He was what I would call a "good ol boy".  We shared some stories and opinions back and forth for quite a while.

We had a great conversation about how our society has become not only a disposable one but more and more in a hurry. Today if something takes 5 minutes to cook I know I have caught myself groaning. Over 5 minutes!

Have you ever been in line somewhere and the wait is maybe 10 minutes and the people in front of you are complaining about it. For 10 minutes. Are our lives really spinning that fast out of control that 10 minutes becomes an eternity?

As the owner of a barbeque supply store, I know some people will never appreciate the patience it takes to make good barbecue. Yes, it takes a few hours to make a good brisket or a rack of ribs but the outcome is fabulous. And while it is smoking, you can be doing something else!

I hate to think in years to come that people will lose their minds over something taking 10 seconds to complete. Eventually we will need to slow down or life will pass us by way to fast. Maybe that is what everyone wants. Who knows.

Our country is one of the youngest out there. Galen (the older gentleman) pointed out that in our country if a building is 100 years old we consider it a historical landmark.  Earlier this year he had been on a visit to England and touring a castle. He struck up a conversation with one of the employees of the castle and inquired about a recent renovation the castle had been through. She replied that they indeed had a recent renovation of the castle... back in 1625!

I was in India for 2 1/2 months for business. I saw forts and temples that were over 2000 years old. And we consider a building that is 100 years old a historical landmark! Amazing.

Take some time to slow down once in awhile. Enjoy what is around you. Try some barbecue now and then. You won't be disappointed.

Dan
Colorado BBQ Outfitters
6850 N. Academy Blvd
Colorado Springs, Co. 80918
719-465-1041

To brine or not to brine...

One thing I have noticed about barbecue is that there is about 100 ways to get the same result. Everyone thinks their way works the best. The thing is, whatever works for you, works the best. By the way, I am referring to wet brining for the purpose of this blog.

To brine or not to brine has been as old an argument as whether or not to soak wood chips for smoking or cooking the brisket fat cap up or down.

Here is the answer to whether or not you should brine your meat: if you like how it comes out, then do it. It's as simple as that. Everyone has their own way of doing things.

We are getting to that time of year where the media and retailers make us start to think about the holidays coming up.

A very popular meat to smoke during the fall and holiday season is turkey. The brining question doesn't hold more true for this bird.

You see, brining is simply soaking in a salt water solution. As many know, salt is made up of sodium chloride. When meat is subjected to heat the moisture in it starts to evaporate. Sodium chloride binds with the meat proteins and keeps moisture from evaporating so quickly. Hence, salt can help keep meats juicier when barbequing. The problem is, salt draws moisture out of the meat so the natural meat juices are replaced by salt water which is not a good thing. The most simple brine solution is to take a 2 cup measuring cup and pour 1 cup of hot water into it. Then add enough salt to bring it to 1 1/2 cups. Then pour that salt water solution into one gallon of water. You need enough gallons of water to completely submerge whatever you are brining.

Salt not only helps tenderize the meat but adds to the flavor. Salt takes away any bitterness from a food that our taste buds pick up.

Many people like to add to their brining solution. Sugar, spices and using other liquids than water are wildly popular. Poultry does very well with sweet; so sugar and the use of orange juice, apple juice, pineapple juice, etc work great. We carry a prebrine solution by Urban Accents at the store. No hassle, no fuss, just follow the instructions to use the preblended brine. 

This takes all the guess work out of the process and make brining so simple. 

All this being said and done, people ask me what I prefer to do. Well, I actually prefer dry brining. Rubbing salt and spices on the meat without liquid. We carry so many rubs to choose from that there are just about endless possibilities. 

Stop in the store sometime and let us know which you prefer: to brine or not to brine. 

Dan

New class added!!!

I was informed by a customer today that my blog was very outdated so here I am putting one up. :)

For this blog, I am really just informing everyone that Daren and I have added a new class to our repertoire at CBO.

This one is called the BRP class which stands for Brisket, Ribs and Pork Shoulder.

We will go over how to smoke the best brisket, ribs and pulled pork.

The class not only walks you through each of those items step by step but also will go over food safety, some handy accessories that will make your bbq life easier, and how to set up your grill/smoker to make these.

Our first one will be September 14th, Saturday, starting at 6:30 pm. I am hoping to keep these to about 1 1/2 hours.

If you are interested, call us at 719-465-1041 to get a seat before it fills up.

Dan
Colorado BBQ Outfitters
6850 N. Academy Blvd
CSC 80918

Green BBQing!!

Many people tell me that barbecuing isn't "being green" due to the use of woods for the smoke, use of lighter fluid to start charcoal, the smoke that is emitted from the smoker/grill, etc, etc.

We here at Colorado BBQ Outfitters believe in "green barbecuing". What the heck does that mean you ask? Well, let me tell you...

1. Own a good grill/smoker! According to Popular Mechanics, replacing a grill every 3 to 4 years does far worse for the environment than purchasing a good quality grill/smoker for the simple fact those crappy cheap made grills end up in landfills more often than quality grills do. Grills don't need to be tossed away when something goes wrong. There are many places that sell parts for grills and repairing is cheaper than replacing.

2. Never light your charcoal with petroleum based products such as lighter fluid, etc. Always use natural ways to light your charcoal such as all natural gels, or Primo Quicklights, or a chimney charcoal starter.

3. Use all natural hardwood lump charcoal instead of briquettes. I know what you are thinking: "but Dan, they have to chop down rain forests and trees to get that charcoal". Not necessarily. Many companies have government contracts to extract what they call Slash from the forest floor (fallen trees, etc) to use to make the charcoal. Many charcoals that come from South America are produced on private farms so as not to cut down natural growth. Our charcoal line, Wicked Good, is a perfect example of this.

4. If you are a pellethead (own a wood pellet grill), make sure the pellets you are using are all natural and do not come from cut trees. Our line of pellets, Lumberjack, also have a government contract to clear out fallen slash from forests which promotes better growth in the forest.

5. If a branch falls from your apple tree and decays, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it puts off the same amount of carbon as it would if you burned it.

6. Want to pollute the environment? Grab the family, jump in the car, drive to a restaurant, over spend for prepared food, then drive back home. Instead of doing that, buy fresh meats and vegetables from the store and make it yourself. Grilling/smoking in the summer decreases your use of your oven and stove which, in turn, saves on your utility bill.

7. Even so much as rubbing an onion on your grate to season it instead of spraying it with harmful chemicals or non stick spray from a can will help.

Barbequing and smoking are better for the environment than most think!!!

Dan
Colorado BBQ Outfitters
6850 N. Academy Blvd
Colorado Springs, Co 80918
719-465-1041

The ABCs of Charcoal

Charcoal is still a very popular way to grill and/or barbecue so I thought I would jot down some dos and don'ts, etc about the use of charcoal. 

First of all, what is charcoal? Charcoal is simply wood that has been subjected to heat with very little oxygen turning it basically into carbon depleting it of moisture. The result is called CHAR. 

By processing hardwood this way it causes the resulting Char to burn at a hotter temperature and more consistently and offers a wonderful flavor for cooked food. 

First thing I want to point out is that there is a huge difference between the cheaper briquettes you see in most stores and all natural hardwood lump charcoal. Briquettes is a four letter word in the world of barbeque unless they are all natural. Most briquettes contain anthracite coal, mineral charcoal, starch, sodium nitrate, limestone, sawdust, and borax among other chemicals. We here at Colorado BBQ Outfitters never recommend the use of briquettes that are not all natural. 

Also, never, ever, ever use chemicals to light your charcoal such as lighter fluid. Not only can it damage your grill it will impart a petroleum flavor to your food. It is considered a deadly sin in the world of barbecue.

Now that you know what NOT to buy, let's talk about what you should use. Only use all natural hardwood lump charcoal. Although the brand isn't very significant, Colorado BBQ Outfitters carries the Wicked Good Weekend Warrior Blend which has been voted number one by The Naked Whiz website http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lump.htm. We also carry Primo all natural hardwood lump charcoal. When it comes to charcoal, you get what you pay for.

So if you shouldn't use lighter fluid, how do you light your charcoal? There are many ways you can do this:

1. My personal favorite is a charcoal chimney starter. We carry the Steven Raichlen chimney starter.

These work very simply. You fill up the starter with charcoal, stuff newspaper underneath, light the paper and let it burn. Air is pulled up through the starter along with the fire from the paper burning lighting the charcoal within about 10 minutes. Better yet, if you have a side burner on your gas grill, set it on there for a few minutes. Then you simply pour the lit charcoal into your grill. Simple as that. 

2. The use of all natural fire starters such as Primo Quick Lights. These are similar to the logs you use to start fires in a fireplace. Always remember to only use all natural fire starters. 

3. Electric charcoal starters work very well also. These do need an electric power source. They are basically a heating element that you place in the charcoal and it ignites the charcoal to cause it to start burning. 

There are other products out there but the above three are what I would recommend for most average grillers/barbecuers. 

How much charcoal you need is directly related to what you are cooking or grilling. A small handful is enough for a steak or two or a few burgers. If you are smoking a big brisket, you will need more to keep it at the temperature you want for a longer period of time. 

Come visit us at Colorado BBQ Outfitters at 6850 N. Academy Blvd Colorado Springs, Co. (Northwest corner of York and Academy) or call us at 719-465-1041 and we can show you some interesting ways to barbecue with charcoal. 

Dan

Colorado BBQ Outfitters