At First Light...

After putting together the egg, I realized I had no lump charcoal. These things run on Lump charcoal, and in my hurry to get home and get the kids settled, I forgot to get some. I had bought a platesetter, which allows for an indirect cook. But with no fuel, no BBQ.
So Saturday, it was off to the Butcher to get some ribs, and off to the dealer to get some lump. I got both, and Saturday night I prepped them. The Butcher had a full and 1/2 rack, so I took both to try something I had been meaning to try for years. Mustard. I always wanted to try to get a bark. So I slathered the half with Mustard, then used some Rudy's Rub. Rudy's is a chain in Texas. The Full rack got Butches Smack Your Lips, which I ordered off the food channel. They were both left overnight.
Sunday came, and at 2:00 I lit the egg for the first time.

It was great to see smoke. It had been 2 years since I last tried to make Q. Long time gone! But the smell brought me back. Oh, did it bring me back.



One of the best thing about a ceramic cooker is its ability to hold heat, while using little fuel. I got the tempt to hold at about 250 dome (which means the dome thermometer, which is about 4 inches off the grate). The saying is that whatever the dome says, subtract 25-30 degrees and you roughly have your grate temp. I had a thermometer on the grate, which told me the saying was true. i had the thing pegged at 230 for about 3 hours, then bumped it to 275-300 for 2 hours.



The last 30 min were putting some sauce on the ribs for show.





The full rack turned out great. I think i could have got them off about 30 min earlier. The half was a disaster. they were over cooked and the Rudy's Rub was way to spicy. I was so proud. For the first time, I had a smoke ring.



My wife had bought me a cookbook called Grill It, from Bobby Flay, for fathers day. She whipped up his potato salad, and it was fantastic. Add some beans to the mix and I was in heaven.