Smoking Meats, Smoked Buffalo, Smoked Salmon, Smoked Ribs

We bought a smoker, the cheap one, after fumbling through websites trying to find out exactly what to do I realized if you have the Brinkmann Smoke and Grill that we do, you have just set yourself up for a day of babysitting.  Not a bad smoker for a beginner, which is what we are....beginners! I am guessing 2 seasons of Pit Masters was all we needed to think we were ready to take on smokin!

Here is what we learned, not saying it is right, just how our first attempt went.
First get your meat thawed and seasoned, recipes to follow.
Next start your coals, keep them nearby and something to "prestart" them in, like a can or a chimney starter, as you will need more if you are smoking larger pieces of meat.
Soak your smoking chips.
Put something under your grill or place on concrete, unless you like dead grass and possible grass fires.

Use instant light charcoal or just use a good wood (usually fruit woods)
One thing we caught on to from Pit Masters was the addition of lighter fluid leaves a taste.

Keep your soaked chips in a handy container as you will continue to add these also.
Add water or other liquid to water pan. (We used apple juice for the pan as well as soaking the chips)
As your temp rises into the ideal area of the gauge you are ready to add meat.
Every time you open your vent door or lid you will drop you internal temp. This becomes a balancing act that  takes time to learn, When your temp drops  add coals, when you smoke stops add chips, We ended up using a small metal can with holes in it fashioned from a small coffee can to place wood chips in and placed it over the coals.
Use caution when adding either, it is hot! You may also have to add more liquid into the smoke pan, this usually means removing the meat and racks to access it in a way you will not burn yourself, use this time to test your internal meat temperature.

Smoked Buffalo Roast

3 pound buffalo roast
Inject with mixture of
1/4 c white wine
1/2 c apple juice
2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
Rub with spice rub of your making, or purchase a ready made rub.
Let meat rest with injection and rub about 30 minutes.
Place on smoker, this roast took approx 6 hours for us, using our Brinkmann
We used apple juice for smoke pan and soaking chips in.

Salmon

Inject one large trimmed salmon fillet with
1/8 c white wine
1/8 c apple juice
1 Tbs lemon juice

Season with salt, pepper, lemon and dill.

On the top rack this large fillet (typical size you find at a Sam's club) took 2 hours.

Smoked Ribs

Trim ribs
inject with
any injection mix you like.
Example
1/2 c juice, cider, cider vinegar ( use any one or combination)
1/4 c water
1 Tbs oil, (opt)
1 Tbs. maple syrup
Spices to taste
      salt
pepper
Cayenne pepper
thyme
There are many ready made marinades and injections available at most grocery and retail stores.

Season outside with spicy rub and let rest 30 - 60 minutes.
 Our ribs took about 2 1/2 hours.