Welcome to this week’s casual kōrero thread!
This post will be pinned in this community so you can always find it, and will stay for about a week until replaced by the next one.
It’s for talking about anything that might not justify a full post. For example:
- Something interesting that happened to you
- Something humourous that happened to you
- Something frustrating that happened to you
- A quick question
- A request for recommendations
- Pictures of your pet
- A picture of a cloud that kind of looks like an elephant
- Anything else, there are no rules (except the rule)
So how’s it going?
I snagged an OKJ Bronco for a great price a couple of weeks ago as a damaged packaging product. Turned out it was pretty much perfect inside except for a couple of small scratches which I covered up with enamel paint very easily.
Managed to hang a lamb leg in there last weekend which turned out delicious. Might try to do some ribs in there if the weather is decent this Sunday.
I’ve had my Bronco for a few years now and it is so good to use. Have done briskets, pork shoulders, ribs, chickens so far everything’s been delicious.
Early on a cold morning it can be a little tricky to get the chimney drawing air well - so one trick i’ve recently learnt is to switch my vacuum pipe to the blow side and to force air into the inlet which seems to get it cranking pretty quickly :)
Oh, and as you mention Lamb, you really should treat yourself and try some West Kentucky style Mutton BBQ. It can be hard to get actual mutton, but it works with hogget too, its delicious and makes too much sense for NZ BBQ to not start adopting it!
Haha yes I actually figured out the same, I used my small battery workshop blower on low setting to force air into the inlet and it gets it going really quick. It has a flexible rubber nozzle so I can basically squeeze it into the inlet.
I don’t think I’ve seen any mutton around, but I haven’t really been looking. I’ll have to keep an eye out.
Sadly I was too lazy to spritz my ribs yesterday and they ended up way too dry. They weren’t the meatiest ribs either which didn’t help, or I left it at too high a temp. I’ll have to practice more!
I meant to post this earlier - its an explainer on how West Kentucky ended up with Mutton BBQ and you’ll see why I was instantly hooked that it was something New Zealand should be doing too.
https://www.foodrepublic.com/2012/03/13/a-year-of-barbecue-kentucky-mutton/
Honestly, that sounds pretty tasty, I’d definitely give that a try if I find some mutton!
I tend to wrap ribs pretty early in butcher paper (my butcher wraps everything, even if its in a vac bag in butcher paper so I get a supply without trying :) and that really helps to keep them moist. I do the same for bigger chunks of meat to get through the stall as well.
I wrapped in foil near the end, but had them hanging without the heat diffuser for too long I think. The meatier parts weren’t too bad, the thin parts were too dry though. I’m going to look for some meatier ones next time.
Wow, that thing looks amazing!
I’ve been thinking about getting a drum smoker for awhile, but was expecting not to get one until next year sometime. I was kind of tossing up between this and a Pit Barrel Cooker, then the Bronco popped up on one of my saved sellers on Trademe and I had to jump on it.
Pretty happy with it so far!
I was so impressed with the quality of the Bronco that I bought one of their Rambler’s as well. I use that when I just want to grill a couple of steaks for dinner, but my partner also bought be one of the Espeto Sul rotisseries, and I use that with the Rambler as its just about the perfect length for it. I got my brother to fabricate a baffle which lets me hold the lid open, but still keep the box closed for proper air draw & whatnot - its been great for chicken roasts!
I’m quite keen on their offset smokers too, but part of the deal with buying the Bronco was I had to get rid of one of my other BBQs (sold an old Weber Kettle) so I doubt i’ll get the thumbs up to add another even bigger one to our collection!
The Rambler looks great but I currently have a Weber kettle as well, which serves most of my grilling purposes. Mainly setup with a vortex to do chicken wings and other pieces. I have an Espeto Sul too, but it’s a bit annoying to use on the kettle. No one makes a riser for it, so can’t do lid on. I’ve thought about getting a cheap second hand Weber Go Anywhere so I can get a riser to use with the rotisserie. But then I’m also wanting a tabletop hibachi so we can do korean bbq or yakitori for the kids…
I like the concept of an offset (and I’ve watched a lot of videos on them lol), but I don’t really have time for fire management and long cooks :( I love the idea of cooking over wood too, sometimes I’ll do sausages or something on the little firepit. Maybe when the kids are grown up I can get an offset.