UDS MkII
So - I have completed UDS Mk II - same idea as last time, with some modifications:
- new handles (the MkI has cheap and nasty handles that feel too lightweight)
- smaller main ball-valve - uses a 3/4" and not a 1.5" which is just too awkward to source the fitting parts for.
- Directional exhaust - this just turns, so you can move it depending on where the breeze is blowing from. It seems to make quite a difference.
I did a Brazilian Cupim on Saturday - this is the 'hump' from a Bramha bull, and it's a cut of meat with fat marbled through it, that benefits from a low & slow. I rubbed it with Dijon mustard first, then added some dry onion flakes and salt, and popped it in for 10 hours. Temperatures seemed fairly stable between 230F ~ 260F with my unreliable meat probe measuring ambient temps, and my overly-wide charcoal basket.
I foiled the meat for the last hour - the finished product:
The meat was pulling apart with a fork, and still really moist. There was a good smoke ring too:
Lessons learned for next time:
- I need the proper thermometer. I have an ambient one to fit this weekend, and a Maverick on order from Germany which will arrive in July.
- The new charcoal baskets will be 14" diameter (down from 18") as it needs to be more narrow to ensure the burn moves downwards nicely.
- The directional exhaust makes a difference if cooking outdoors without wind shelter - if the wind changes, and is blowing down the flue, it impacts the temps.