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Topic: Oh jeez, leftovers again! . . . . From: Pete,
Subject: Re: My smoker is too small to do all the meat at once

Smoky,

Thanks for providing this service.

Weekend after next, I'm barbecuing (actually smoking) chickens, pork and beef cuts for about 40 people we are having over. Problem is, my smoker is too small to do all the meat at once and I'll have to do it in three shifts, I think. That means starting Thursday, and cooking more Friday, for a Saturday noon wing-ding.

I'll have to refrigerate the cooked meat, but how do I properly store it and reheat it Saturday morning (over an open firepit and coals at our ranch, far from electricity and natural gas) and keep it from tasting like leftovers (what it technically is) and have it taste like freshly BBQ'ed meat. There has to be a secret. And is there a cut of meat or type of meat that keeps and reheats better? I'm open to anything. I'll cook all fowl, all beef or all pork if it'll keep and reheat better.

Muchas gracias, amigo,
Pete Szilagyi, here in the West Texas mountains.

Como esta, Pedro?

Tienes unas problemas pequena. Fat is the taste problem and mass is the heat problem.

I presume, being West Texan, that you are cooking brisket. If so, you have two options: 1. Cook it until all the fat is gone and refrigerate or 2. Leave some fat intact and freeze.

What pork cuts you cook will have a compelling influence on how to handle it. I'd recommend pork loin rather than shoulders. - less mass and less fat.

Poultry should be the last thing cooked. But you are going to have to get up early to serve barbecued chicken at noon.

If I had your situation, I would cook the briskets Thursday, wrap tightly in two layers of aluminum foil, and store overnight in the freezer. Move it to the 'fridge afterwards. Remove on Sat. am, early, slice, apply finishing sauce and re-heat on the grill. I would cook the pork to finish (well done) late Friday night, double wrap in aluminum foil and store in a very good ice chest. It will stay warm during the night. Open it up and put it on a corner of the grill, early Sat. Baste with your finishing sauce as it warms up.

But, if you are cooking over a fire pit, why not enlarge the pit to accommodate all the warming. With a gargantuan grill, you still couldn't serve barbecue at noon Saturday without working all night, but you could warm it up easily.

Good Luck,
Smoky

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