Educating the In-Laws

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JEStucker

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A little background here-
I was born and raised in Missouri, did a lot of traveling as a kid (Grandparents had property in Colorado and summer trips to see them often involved side camping trips to any number of states) by the time I was 21-22, I had been to every state west of the Mississippi in the lower 48. I turned 23 and decided to head east, with my sights set on New England. I had a friend that was in the Coast Guard and was stationed in Boston, Mass., and he had extra bedrooms in his base provided housing.

I moved, I got a job, I wandered and I loved it, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont, Maine (I love Maine.) So, I met a woman, divorced, kids, fell in love, discovered how expensive it is to live in the North East, and convinced her to move back to Missouri (my old job was always a phone call away, I made sure of that)

We've been married now for 17 years, the kids have grown up, we have grandkids (scary at times) and we try and go back to see her family in Maine at least once a year.

The whole point of this...
Outside of a few restaurant chains trying to edge into the region, these people have no concept of Bar-B-Que. To them a BBQ is when you throw burgers and hot dogs on the gas grill. My brother-in-law is finally grasping the concept, but no one seems to really grasp the art that cooking is...

Now I'm working on sorting out how to get real BBQ to our next family event (reunion in August.) Making it ahead of time is questionable, as it's a 30 hour drive if you go straight through, we usually break it up into 2 days. Don't have a portable smoker (or anything to tow it) and not sure if I could get there and build a UDS in time (or find everything I need)...

Thoughts or Ideas?
 
You say they grill. What cooker do they have? Many here turn out great food using a kettle or other charcoal burners.
 
Buy a Truck or SUV and a trailer pit........come down here and buy Paul’s/PJTexas Shirley trailer - it’s too Big for him.......
 
I'm not sure how many you'll be cooking for, but you could buy a kettle when you get to Maine...do some free "classes", cook a ton of quality food; then leave the kettle behind for your bro-in-law.

Not too expensive for a kettle, easy to cook on for him moving forward.

Obviously, if you're cooking for a ton of people, a kettle probably doesn't work.
 
Option #1:
There are two routes through PA on your way to Maine. Route 80 across the middle of the state and route 76 across the southern part of the state. The southern route will run you within 30 min of my place. I'd gladly meet you somewhere and help you strap my UDS to the roof of whatever you're driving. That way you'd only have to haul it half way there and half way back.

Option#2:
Make your Q at home. let cool then vacuum seal and refrigerate. pack in a cooler and make the trip. reheat sous vide style in 190 -200F water till heated through. The taste is just like fresh Q minus some crunchy bark.

OPTION#3:
Have someone back east buy or build a smoker for you to use when you arrive. A craigslist COS can be found pretty readily in my area ($25 example below) with a little tune up and a good thermometer you're in business.
https://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/hsh/d/smoker-2-chamber-offset-style/6412474219.html
 
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Are you trying to get them to experience the food, or the whole process of BBQ? If just the food, smoke a brisket and a butt. After they rest and cool down, cut in to chunks, vacuum seal, and freeze. Load up a good cooler with ice and meat chunks, travel. When ready to serve, put bagged chunks into pots of cold water, bring to a boil, turn off heat, cover, wait 30 mins, slice and serve.
 
I bought a 14" WSM for $70 (no haggling either) that looked brand new. 20# of ham is a full load but, it turned out nice even though airflow was a bit compromised. Broken down, it is about the size of large gym bag that can be broken down into separate pieces to 'fit' a packed car trunk. It would fit on a trailer hitch carrier 'box' pretty easy too.

A 14" WSM isn't the best option for most people but, it certainly is nice for 'car camping' and travel in general. It also is great for small cooks for a single person or young couple. YMMV but, at $200 brand new it certainly provides a great entry point into real smoked meat BBQ for most people.
 
Straight up M******* here! I too, love Maine. Had a condo on Sunday River ski resort years ago. Have friends on Sebago lake too.
Back on topic..... I have a couple kettles, WSM and other toys. Your welcome to borrow any one of them. Either stop by my house (20min from the Pike, 20min from rt 495)
and we can strap it on your car, or you can cook in my backyard if you want, use my vacuum sealer, and finish your drive (about 3 hrs to Maine border).
 
Alton Brown (Good Eats) made a BBQ smoker from a cardboard box and an electric hot plate with a cast iron skillet to hold the wood chips.
Google cardboard box bbq smoker.
 
THoey1963 said:
Are you trying to get them to experience the food, or the whole process of BBQ? If just the food, smoke a brisket and a butt. After they rest and cool down, cut in to chunks, vacuum seal, and freeze. Load up a good cooler with ice and meat chunks, travel. When ready to serve, put bagged chunks into pots of cold water, bring to a boil, turn off heat, cover, wait 30 mins, slice and serve.
Click to expand...

This is an excellent point. If you just want to get food to their mouths, vac seal and transport is your best option. But your original post says you want them to "grasp the art". The only real way to convey that is with a smoker, spray bottle, a few lawn chairs, a cooler fulla brewskies and a day with the family.
 
cholloway said:
Alton Brown (Good Eats) made a BBQ smoker from a cardboard box and an electric hot plate with a cast iron skillet to hold the wood chips.
Google cardboard box bbq smoker.
Click to expand...

I think I'm actually wanting to try the Ceramic Pot Smoker he also built in Good Eats:
https://makezine.com/projects/clay-pot-smoker/

And yeah, I'm kinda wanting them to experience the whole process done right. Hence the planning for August in January to maybe build something at home that I can replicate there (or collapse for transport.) We have two cars, 1 - 2004 Buick LeSabre, 2 - 2004 Mercury Grand Marquis, neither have a hitch/receiver on them and generally the Buick is the road trip car (easier on gas than the Merc, though due to it being all highway, the Merc can pull low 30's with it's 4.6L V8 )
 
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JEStucker said:
I think I'm actually wanting to try the Ceramic Pot Smoker he also built in Good Eats:
https://makezine.com/projects/clay-pot-smoker/

And yeah, I'm kinda wanting them to experience the whole process done right. Hence the planning for August in January to maybe build something at home that I can replicate there (or collapse for transport.) We have two cars, 1 - 2004 Buick LeSabre, 2 - 2004 Mercury Grand Marquis, neither have a hitch/receiver on them and generally the Buick is the road trip car (easier on gas than the Merc, though due to it being all highway, the Merc can pull low 30's with it's 4.6L V8 )
Click to expand...

I second the idea of a kettle, or a smaller WSM, which can be broken down and put in the trunk of your car.
 
If it were me, I'd purchase a drum smoker and have it shipped to them prior to your arrival. After the big event, you could choose to, based on how the whole exercise turned out, leave it with the family so they can embark upon the hallowed Barbecue Road in style, and with a capable unit (that you could use the next time you were visiting), or just ship it back to MO if her relatives can't figure out why you tried to poison them with smoke-borne carcinogens after forcing them to swig beer for hours while delaying dinner. This option would give you a drum smoker, which we all want, all of us....

In the end, either way you win. Good luck with it!
 
IXL said:
If it were me, I'd purchase a drum smoker and have it shipped to them prior to your arrival. After the big event, you could choose to, based on how the whole exercise turned out, leave it with the family so they can embark upon the hallowed Barbecue Road in style, and with a capable unit (that you could use the next time you were visiting), or just ship it back to MO if her relatives can't figure out why you tried to poison them with smoke-borne carcinogens after forcing them to swig beer for hours while delaying dinner. This option would give you a drum smoker, which we all want, all of us....

In the end, either way you win. Good luck with it!
Click to expand...

Genius :clap::clap:
 
There are plenty of cheap, but adequate for beginner smokers out there. Have one shipped to them from the retailer as a Christmas present. Ready to go when you arrive. It will not be their "forever" smoker, but it will be a great intro and a lot 0f fun.

Just be sure this is something they actually want to do
 
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