How do you guys overcome the ability not to master good BBQ?

CarlWayne said:

My wife enjoys my BBQ quite a bit but doesn't want to eat smoked que every weekend. I normally get a rack of ribs for myself or smoke some fatties when I feel the need to fill my addiction.

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Make a salad to go with it.... or some veggies. I hear that they're good for you too.

"You" could lower your standards or keep better records to chronicle your successes and failures to learn from your mistakes!
I've finally beaten brisket with great success it's the pork that is giving me he'll.
Best of luck

As far as cost go, I buy whatever I want to cook and figure out how many it will feed. Then I invite that many people over and tell them to bring a side dish and some beers. My garage fridge is always full of beer and I eat the left over side dishes all week long. It's a win/win!

runnoft said:

Slide it in real hard through the back door, that is the meat I mean.

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I tried that once on the wife while she was sleeping after a good night of drinking. Not a good idea took about a week for the black eyes to go away. lmfao

I also, get my wife to help. She loves to cook and that helps, but when she tasted the smoked goodness that I made the first time she went nuts.
I also have trouble at times with affording different cuts of meat...but if you can't afford those ribs now, work with chicken or make a brisket, whatever might be on sale.

I got a job.

Put some meat in her mouth

I go to the store and buy what we refer to as "Sketchy Meat". Its the meat that is about to expire at the store and they discount it. Sometimes deeply. Then I smoke the hell out of it. That way I can practice my craft while keeping costs down at the same time. My wife likes not having to cook, so I lucked out.

I'm lucky I guess. SWMBO likes it when I smoke meat. She likes to eat it, and especially all the goodies we make with the leftovers. That is almost more fun than the first go round, "just" on the bun. :tongue:

But then again, we're kinda "foodies" and really like to cook. Probably why I weigh 250 lbs! :tsk:

If you are looking for more reasons to cook in a quest to master BBQ, start doing BBQ competitions.

I had no difficulty not mastering BBQ...at all.

As for equipment, I use the alternative close.
"Baby, can I root your sister?"

"NO!!!!!"

"Oh.Okay..... Can I buy a BigSteel Keg BBQ?

"Yes, but don't go near my sister"

"I got it, geez, you don't have to nag..."

This is just my opinion:

I believe 9 out of ten people have found their way to this website through either a friends recommendation or a season of BBQ Pitmasters. The latter is probably more likely. (Myself included).

I didn't set out to master BBQ, but to see if it was something I could add to what I already love to do, which is cook. I've always liked ribs, pulled pork, brisket and chicken, but now, I love them.

Start out with small goals. It's hard to mess up a pork butt, but believe me, I've done it. The first one I smoked and brought into the house my wife literally said "You have to get that thing out of here." It reeked of nasty smoke. I didn't realize you have to wait for the bad smoke to clear before you put the meat on. I was overly confident with my cooking skills in the kitchen and they didn't translate well to BBQ.

Really, really, really do your homework on this website. Everyone here has messed up a rack of ribs, a brisket, chicken or a butt and it is documented here somewhere. Don't be the guy that joins a 10 year old website and asks "How do I smoke ribs?"

I really respect the comp guys and I've learned a lot from them, but comp is not for me. I really prefer cooking what tastes good to me.

I think you have to have a passion for cooking period before you can master BBQ.

Good luck,

Dave

K-Train said:

Drink

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I second that emotion.

One thing that helped warm my wife up to the idea of me cooking all the time was a rainy weekend we spent watching a marathon series of BBQ Pitmasters episodes. She got really hooked on the drama of watching the contestants face up to the judges and hear the results after watching the different things each cooker did to the same cut of meat. She started trying to figure out how we could make a run up to Austin to try Aaron's Que and see what makes it so much better than ours. We'd have to leave the house about 5:30 to get there in time to get in line, so we haven't made it yet.

i just do my thing and as long as she don't have to cook she is happy ..By the way i am also single . But that to will change in october

I started smoking 9 years ago with a cheapo Charbroil Silver Smoker from HD. I had worked at a BBQ restaurant in high school where I sometimes ran the pit, but I was a little lost on how to run a backyard smoker (plus it was a LONG time ago). I was looking for help and I found the BBQ FAQ on the Internet. It became my bible. It is old (last updated in 1998 I think), but it has a lot of good info. I have a printout of the FAQ in a binder with lots of stains.:grin:

With the FAQ, I learned how to properly modify the SS to minimize hot spots and improve airflow. I also learned a lot of other techniques and recipes. I have my own recipes now, but the base for them was from the FAQ. Using this info, the BBQ I have made has been praised by my wife and friends. In fact, one friend from Bama claims my ribs are second only to Dreamland in T-Town. That is high praise from a Bama boy!

I have recently found this site and it has been a big help as I am now moving up to a BWS Party (being delivered next week). The FAQ does not have anything about this type of smoker, so I am leaning heavily on threads here to learn how to cook with it.

Oh yeah, my wife was the one who insisted on me replacing the SS with the BWS Party. She loves my brisket (and I am talking about what I cook on the smoker :laugh . My recipe for the marinade is based on one in the FAQ. So the trick is to make sure your wife loves what you produce and you get free pass.

The link for the FAQ is http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/.