This smoker has never seen a Carolina BBQ competition as far as I know. But that’s what it was built for – the most tender brisket and ribs that side of Texas (I joke!).* It was built for the Modernist Cuisine lab to do exactly this – make the best pastrami I’ve ever eaten. It yielded at the prod of a fork, and was incredibly juicy, and the brown sugar and spice and rub coating was dreamy. The sauerkraut underneath was a cute bed, the brussel sprout leaves were a bit sweet and sour, and the pickled mustard seeds helped cut through the sweetness and richness of the meat. Montreal would go out of smoked meat business if this dish came here. That’s a very extreme sentence, and I stand by it.
So, here’s a video of Chef Sam Fahey-Burke explaining the origins of the smoker, how it works, and why it’s so amazing:
*For those unaware of the southern US BBQ rivalry and tradition, read Jeffrey Steingarten’s “The Man Who Ate Everything,” specifically the chapter on being a BBQ competition judge – a position he took extremely seriously.
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