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.

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Pellet grills and pellet smokers operate on the same principle: a digital controller regulates pellet delivery through an auger feed and forced air via fan to the fire pot which produces both heat and smoke at the temperature you have selected.  Electricity is required to run these units but it is very minimal; about 50 amps or so for the igniter to start the pellets on fire which only takes a few minutes and then 3-5 amps to run the fan and auger motor for the remainder of the cook.  It couldn’t get any easier than that.

The higher end pellet grills seem to be the ones made in the USA by MAK Grills, Haerthland’s Memphis Grills, and even Cookshack has a grill in their Fast Eddy’s product line.  At the lower end you’ll find grills being made elsewhere in the world; Traeger and Green Mountain Grills (made in China), Danson’s Louisina Grills and Country Smokers (Canada), and some other manufacturers have parts fabricated overseas and do the final assembly in the US.  This is not to say you can’t get a great functioning grill from outside the US but there is definitely a higher quality aspect in materials and workmanship and more frills that come with the pellet grills that are made in America; of course higher quality brings higher prices as well!

Note:  Only BBQ grade pellets should be used when cooking food.  NO heating pellets should be used at any time for smoking or grilling food. Why? Although there is no official “BBQ Grade” or “Food Grade” certification wood pellet manufacturers will mark their packaging as such – please research your pellet source before cooking with it.  BBQ pellets are made from raw hardwood materials that have never been used in any product previously, have no fillers or binders in them and if a lubricant is used in the manufacturing process it is a food grade oil such as vegetable oil.  Heating pellets are manufactured from any mix of  raw and waste material and can have any number of harmful ingredients included such as chemical binders and petroleum lubricants.  You wouldn’t throw an old piece of your pressure treated deck or particle board furniture in your smoker would you? So don’t cook with heating pellets!

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Pellet grills and pellet smokers operate on the same principle: a digital controller regulates pellet delivery through an auger feed and forced air via fan to the fire pot which produces both heat and smoke at the temperature you have selected.  Electricity is required to run these units but it is very minimal; about 50 amps or so for the igniter to start the pellets on fire which only takes a few minutes and then 3-5 amps to run the fan and auger motor for the remainder of the cook.  It couldn’t get any easier than that.

Currently the Cookshack Fast Eddy’s FEC100 is the most popular pure pellet smoker; it does NOT grill.  The FEC100 has been very successful in restaurants and on the BBQ competition circuit.

Some popular pellet grills that both smoke and grill are MAK Grills pellet smoker grills, Hearthland’s Memphis Grills, Green Mountain Grills, Danson’s Louisiana Grills and Country Smokers, and Traeger Grills.  Again, read more about the pellet grill.

Note:  Only BBQ grade pellets should be used when cooking food.  NO heating pellets should be used at any time for smoking or grilling food. Why? Although there is no official “BBQ Grade” or “Food Grade” certification wood pellet manufacturers will mark their packaging as such – please research your pellet source before cooking with it.  BBQ pellets are made from raw hardwood materials that have never been used in any product previously, have no fillers or binders in them and if a lubricant is used in the manufacturing process it is a food grade oil such as vegetable oil.  Heating pellets are manufactured from any mix of  raw and waste material and can have any number of harmful ingredients included such as chemical binders and petroleum lubricants.  You wouldn’t throw an old piece of your pressure treated deck or particle board furniture in your smoker would you? So don’t cook with heating pellets!

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When smoking fish it is often brined or cured.  The next step is to dry the fish and let the pellicle form.

The pellicle is important for several reasons… it helps seal in the moisture, it keeps the fats in the fish from rising and spoiling the fish, it keeps contaminants out of the fish, and it provides a surface for your smoke to adhere to.

To dry your fish place it skin side down on a rack or pan in a cool, dry, breezy place.  A fan, set on low, can be used to help the drying process.  It usually takes from 1-3 hours for a good pellicle to form.

Letting the pellicle form is an important step in smoking fish.  Skip it and your smoked fish will be dry.

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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.  And it is easy to pick up all the pig candy at one time to move or remove from the smoker.

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.

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Post Oak

Most people outside of Texas may think of mesquite, hickory, or pecan when they think of the standard BBQ smoking woods but if you leave out post oak wood, you’re leaving out Central Texas barbecue.

Texas BBQ brisket properly smoked over post oak is one of the finest indulgences known to man, Texan or not!

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Making pulled pork can be as easy as putting some rub on a pork butt and smoking it until it is ready to fall apart (usually around 200 F-205 F).

The process can be much more complex and includes injections, BBQ rubs, and wrapping the pork.

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