Everything seemed to work out great today. I was tasked with making a brisket but after seeing that we were only going to have three briskets, I decided to make two. This worked out great in that Wife happened to be given one earlier this week and then one of her coworkers told her she could have his since we were going to provide them to the banquet. This allows me to keep the two I have in the freezer for another day. Anyways, I still had to get these made along with some ribs and sausages.
I started the briskets at 11:00pm last night and went out every 2 hours or so to check on things. I slept, I guess, but I still felt like I had to be sort of alert at the same time. I was a little worried to rely on a brand-new grill I had only used the week before. The grill performed like a champ, by the way. It has the grill surface and a secondary level. I placed both briskets on the upper-level rack and it worked great. I feel like I learned a secret, according to a couple of Youtube guys, a brisket gets its smoke ring when one applies salt, so I try to add salt every time. Other than that, I smoked them at 250 degrees for 12 hours. I went out and wrapped them in butcher paper around 4:30am. I am still mixed on thoughts when it comes to wrapping, some guys say it matters, some, not so much. I have had similar results with butcher paper and or aluminum foil, but butcher paper makes you look like an expert, I think. I then opened the four packs of ribs around 5:00am, when I was done working the briskets into their wraps. I sprinkled my seasonings on the ribs, but then let them sit in the fridge until 7:00am. At that point, I put them on the bottom shelf of the grill and smoked them for three hours, along with the briskets. I then wrapped the ribs in foil and added Dr Pepper to the package, it has been suggested for the flavor and to keep the meat moist. After two hours, they looked quite moist and done. I then took them out along with the briskets and raised the temperature to 400 degrees. I wrapped the briskets in foil and put them in the cooler to "rest". I braised the ribs for 30-40 minutes at the higher temperature and then put them back in the foil, minus the Dr Pepper liquid.
Everything was done and wrapped in foil and resting in the cooler by 12:30pm. I then jumped in the shower and got ready for the event. While Wife kept getting ready upstairs, I turned on the car, to cool it off, and had Mijo help me to load everything in, two coolers, and all sorts of junk, like water guns, and tortillas, condiments, and stuff. We got there right before 2:00pm when it was set to start.
I got compliments from pretty much everyone for either the brisket or the ribs. One kid told me I should open a restaurant; another said this brisket was better than what was offered at the football banquet, which was huge praise because that brisket was done by a guy who did open a restaurant. One mom said the ribs were better than what her husband could make at home. It was all good for the ego. At the end, I noticed the other briskets were still there, and mostly only mine had been consumed. The ribs finished, I was happy there were enough even for the one mom who showed up late, she told me they were so good too.
In the end, the kids had a blast, they ran around, chased each other with water balloons and water guns. We also had a huge bag of cascarones which got used up in a few minutes. Mijo still had confetti in his hair when we were leaving. This, along with the food and then the coaches handing out some awards filled up the time. Our boy was recognized as the best male wrestler and was also nominated and selected as a National All-American in Wrestling, which the coaches were really proud of and excited. I couldn't have asked for a better ending to the party.
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