A Packer Brisket (aka Whole Packer Brisket or Packer Cut Brisket) is a cut of beef that includes both the flat and the point of the brisket.

The point and flat are separated by the point muscle.  After cooking the brisket it is easy to separate the two parts by slicing through this layer of fat.

The BBQ community is a close-knit supportive group.  If you’ve ever been in a BBQ competition you know how teams will help each other out.

Operation BBQ Relief has taken that support to a new level.  OBR is a group of barbequers that show up at natural disasters and prepare meals for those affected and those that are working at the disaster area.

On May 22, 2011 the second deadliest tornado in U.S. history caused massive destruction in Southwest Missouri. Competition BBQ teams from eight states came to Joplin, MO to help feed displaced families and police, fire, National Guard and emergency personnel. The group served over 120,000 BBQ meals in less than two weeks.

As a result of efforts in Joplin, Operation BBQ Relief (a 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation) was born.

Since then OBR members have prepared and served meals at disaster sites in Kansas, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Illinois.

To learn more about Operation BBQ Relief and how you can help visit their website at operationbbqrelief.org.

Pig Candy is bacon that is covered in brown sugar and spices then smoked.  Basically… candied bacon!

I like to throw some Pig Candy on the smoker to have as a snack when I’m doing longer smokes like ribs or brisket.

The basic pig candy recipe calls for bacon, cayenne, and brown sugar.  Some people will also put a coat of maple syrup on toward then end of the cook.

Making Pig Candy is simple…

1. Start with thick sliced bacon

2. Sprinkle the bacon with cayenne or other seasonings.  Often I use some of my favorite rubs.

3. Put a generous coating of brown sugar on the bacon.

4. Let the brown sugar melt a little on the bacon then flip and repeat steps 2 & 3.

5. Smoke the bacon until it’s cooked how you like it.  I usually smoke around 250 for 1.5 hours.

Notice in the photo above that the Pig Candy is smoking on a Frogmat.  The frogmat keeps the bacon from sticking to the grates.

6. Enjoy the Pig Candy with your favorite beverage!

Taste testing is the best way to tell if the pig candy is done.  When it looks good, pull a piece, let it cool for a minute, then sample.  There’s a sweet spot in the cooking timeline where it melts in your mouth when you eat it.  Under cook and it will still be stringy but over cook and it becomes tough.

The Cadillac Cut is a technique for cutting ribs.  It is also known as the Hollywood Cut.

Instead of cutting the ribs by slicing the middle of the meat between the bones the meat is cut all the way to the adjacent bone on either side.

The result is a rib with a lot of meat on each side of the bone.

Using the Cadillac Cut technique will result in fewer ribs per rack because every other bone will have all its meat cut off.

The Cadillac Cut is used by some teams in BBQ competitions to provide ribs that look really meaty.

A Fat Cap is the white layer of fat on top of the meat.

The fat cap serves many purposes.  It can add flavor to the meat during the BBQ process.  It can help keep the meat tender while cooking.  It can be used to protect the meat while over direct heat.  And some people like to eat it.

For BBQ discussions we are usually referring to the fat cap on a pork butt/shoulder or brisket.

When trimming meat we like to leave about 1/4 inch of the fat cap on.

Some people will score the fat cap to allow the rub and juices to get down into the fat.

Fat Cap UP or DOWN When Cooking?

A big question about the fat cap is “should the fat cap be on top or bottom while cooking?”.

Some people put it down to protect the meat from burning while others swear by keeping it on top to help baste the meat.  And some will start it up or down then flip it during the cook.

Just like many other BBQ topics, there are many opinions on this subject and we recommend trying it both ways and deciding for yourself.

Hot and Fast or Hot n Fast is a cooking technique becoming popular with many BBQ cooks.

The traditional low and slow barbeque method of cooking meat  for long periods of time at temperatures involves keeping the temperatures around 225 F.

The Hot and Fast method involves smoking the meat at temperatures around 325 F.

Pork butts or briskets that would take 12 or more hours at the lower temperatures can be cooked in around 5 hours.

The Money Muscle is a prized piece of the pork butt because of its taste and tenderness.

It is located parallel to and opposite the blade bone.

The money muscle is located on the outside edge of the pork butt so it forms a nice bark.

BBQ competitors have nicknamed this piece the “Money Muscle” because they feel you need to turn it in to the judges to take home the winners check.

A water pan is used in BBQ smokers to add moisture to the cooking chamber.

Some people think adding different liquids (beer, wine, juice, soda, etc.) will help with flavoring the meat but we don’t think it adds much if any.  So don’t waste the good beverages… just use water. The BBQ flavor will come from your rubs and the smoke.

Water pans also help to maintain an even temperature in the cooker.  By boiling at a constant 212 degrees the steam from the water pan will help to keep temperatures constant.

And finally, water pans can be used for indirect cooking.  In BBQ smokers like a UDS or WSM the water pan creates a shield between the heat source and the meat.  If this is the goal, a water pan can be filled with sand to be used as a diffuser.

Tip:  Wrap your water pan in foil prior to using to make clean up easier.

BBQ, Barbecue, Barbeque, Bar-B-Q, or just simply Q…

It’s called many things. Means different things to different people.  Is used as a noun, verb, or adjective.  And has a language all its own.

Our basic definition of BBQ is…

Meat that is slow cooked over wood or charcoal for a long period of time.

To us here at BBQ Nuts, BBQ is a lifelong journey of learning and experimenting with this cooking style and enjoying good food (most of the time) with good friends.

In a basic offset smoker the heat and smoke move from the firebox through the cooking chamber and exit out the chimney at the opposite end.  The result is that the cooking temperature near the firebox is greater than it is near the chimney.

With a Reverse Flow Smoker the heat and smoke travel the length of the smoker under a metal plate then “reverse flow” and come back across and under the meat and exit out a chimney at the same end as the firebox.