Infusion Roaster on the Kettle

 So ... I've had this "Turkey Cannon Infusion roaster" since right before I smoked my first turkey in 2018 (see Cherry Wood Smoked Thanksgiving Turkey).

I've used it a couple times for Turkey, and until this past weekend, I've used it once for chicken (see Smoked Chicken on Infusion Roaster).

You've probably noticed that I've been using my Weber Kettle for most of my grilling / smoking. It is easier to use than my off-set smoker, and I can shut down the vents so that the charcoal can be saved for the next cook.

Last time I cooked a whole chicken, I noticed that the beer can stand made the bird stand up so that the top of the kettle lid hit the bird. It was ok, but I not really ideal.

On one of my facebook forums, I noticed that someone placed their chicken in a pan on the charcoal grid rather than on the cooking grate.

This got me thinking ... my Infusion Roaster could rest on the charcoal grid and would allow plenty of room between the top of the bird and the kettle lid.

4th Everest of 2021

Since 3rd Everest of 2021, I've climbed another 29,032 feet on my bikes. Another Everest. 

According to Strava, I've cycled 1,896 miles so far in 2021 with 116,175 feet climbed. This puts me on track for 5,000 miles with 300,000 feet by the end of the year.

Shoddy Pale Ale (Batch 288)

I am a big fan of the Brülosophy's podcasts. I am endlessly fascinated by the experiments they perform.

One of my favorite concepts from these podcasts are the "Short & Shoddy" series. 

Basically "Short & Shoddy" involves taking whatever brewing shortcuts a brewer can to save time on brew day and/or getting the beer from grain to glass faster.

The idea is to figure out what shortcuts can be made and still produce a high-quality delicious beer.

The most obvious and most-used shortcuts are mash time and boil time.

Ever since I got my Foundry, I've really been thinking about shaving time off the brew day. As I use the system at 120 volts, heating water takes much longer than when I used my propane burner.

Playing around with the mash-times, I've decided that I don't want to cut my mash time very much because I don't want to reduce my brew house efficiency too much.

Groovy Groomsmen Gifts: Personalized Growler

Do you remember Groovy Guy Gifts? Groovy Guy Gifts from Groovy Guy Gifts: Big Slug Mug / Groovy Guy Gifts: Louisville Chugger / Groovy Guy Gifts: Viking Beer Horn?

I got an email from their "brother site" ... Groovy Groomsmen Gifts, asking if I'd like to pick a gift to review on this blog.

Out of the suggestions in the email, I thought I'd most like to try their ...

Angry Amber Growler

Big Brew Day ... Lithuanian Lovin' Wheat

Saturday, May 1st was another Big Brew Day. First Saturday in May.

The Beer Model and I traveled up North to brew a with my buddy "Du". We decided to brew a Lithuanian Lovin' Wheat.

Friday, I made a yeast starter that had been harvested last time I brewed with the Lithuanian Farmhouse yeast ... about 6 months ago. That is a longer time than is generally suggested to re-use yeast (by a bunch), but I was pretty sure it would be ok with a starter.

I also packed up brewing equipment based on the list I made last time I traveled with my brewing equipment (see Traveling Brew Checklist). If I'm honest, it was nice to have the checklist. (Don't tell the Beer Model )

Fatty!

Remember my Easter BBQ? 

Along with my Ribeye Roast, I smoked a bacon wrapped fatty.

What is a fatty? 

Well ... a fatty is ground meat surrounding a filling wrapped with bacon.

In my case, the filling was a mixture of cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and onion with spices. 

The ground meat was 1 pound each of ground Italian sausage and ground beef.

The bacon was ... well bacon.

This past weekend, I thought I would like to make another fatty. 

So I did.

Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager (Batch 286)

As I type this, my beloved Blackhawks are in 6th place in the Central Division of the NHL.

At this point, they are 7 points out of the playoffs, and I have not seen anything that makes me optimistic that they'll make up that gap.

I'm doing my part, but I'm just one person, and years and years of being a Blackhawk fan have proven that my efforts are not enough without a great team out there on the ice.

I miss those years when the Hawks won 3 Stanley Cups in 6 years.

Sigh.

But, never say never. I won't give up quite yet.

This last Sunday, I helped the team by brewing up my wonderful beer ...

Chelsea Dagger Pre-Prohibition Lager