New interview with Aaron Franklin

Botch

Interview posted 4 days ago with a barbeque expert in Great Britain:
 
https://youtu.be/SEDJpn40mB4
 
Three interesting main topics: how he "tuned" the hardware of his for-sale "family-sized" offset smoker, and how you can't perfectly replicate larger smokers, they have to be "tuned" individually.  Two sentences on why a BGE can't get as good a bark, and it makes sense.  (I seem to remember that folks here who own both, claimed the stick burners gave better smoke flavor, not better bark; comments welcome)
 
Second topic: his new book (oddly its on Amazoid but not on his own website yet):
https://www.amazon.com/Franklin-Smoke-Wood-Fire-Cookbook/dp/1984860488/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2XFT86CU17S8L&keywords=aaron+franklin&qid=1685747147&s=books&sprefix=aaron+franklin%2Cstripbooks%2C125&sr=1-1
When COVID hit, he started concentrating on cooking one hunk of meat, for his family, after spending years concentrating on cooking pasture-loads of brisket every day, so this book may be the best of his three for us home cooks.  He also said he'd updated many of the recipes from his first two books because of...
 
The Third Topic:  There is not, nor ever can be, the "ultimate" barbeque recipe, because things are constantly changing.  He said that his restaurant is constantly tweaking their rubs, cook temps, hold times, etc to respond to how the beef itself is changing.  I remember someone on this forum wrote down his cook temps from the newspaper/magazine articles lining the walls, while waiting in line, and the temps were always changing.  I figured Aaron just didn't want to give up his "magic number", but maybe he had been tweaking it over the years.  Makes sense.  And with climate changes' more severe weather (worse winter blizzards, summer droughts, and major rivers dying in the West) those changes in beef can only accelerate.  
 
Anyhoo, it was 15 minutes well-spent, for me.  I don't think I've cooked a single brisket since retiring, as I'm now cooking just for myself (need to look into feeding the local FDs like @lousubcap does).  I also don't have any of Mr Franklin's books, but will be reading the reviews on his new 3rd book, that may be the one.  

lousubcap

Thanks @Botch for that.  Where did you find it??

That aside-Lots of great points but I found the most salient comment amongst the insights to be "You gotta let the brisket tell you what to do." Minute 13:24 for the reinforcement of the "Cow drives the cook."

I will be visiting the Pope's establishment in October '23.  Always worth the line and the brisket. 

Ozzie_Isaac

The myth of @Botch has been damaged a little by this post.  Why did it take 4 days for you to find this interview?  Or did you hold out on us for 4 days?

Either way, thank you for finally sharing it.

RRP

Ozzie_Isaac said:

The myth of @Botch has been damaged a little by this post.  Why did it take 4 days for you to find this interview?  Or did you hold out on us for 4 days?

Rumor has it that @Botch was busy buying up all the “futures” contracts on briskets on the Chicago Board of Trade…and they say watch out for pork belly contracts to soar next!

Botch

Dammit Ron, shush!  
https://www.agriculture.com/news/livestock/how-dairy-farmers-can-get-high-quality-forages     
That interview popped up on my farcebook two days ago, and I hadn't watched it until yesterday.  

ksmyrl

Not me...a buddy who met the King yesterday in the ATL. He sent me dozens of photos. 

lousubcap

I prefer Pope...

CGS

You asked about stick burners and smoke vs. bark. For a good number of years I've been doing an impromptu poll with stick burner families who come in the store looking for a pellet or kamado grill. The basic reason for moving to a new grill is time.....spending way to much time babysitting the pit. 

I don't ask the pitmaster but rather the family members tagging along....Simple question, how do you find the smoke flavor of the meat coming off the stick burner.....to little, just right or a bit to much. It's about 70-80 percent respond a bit to much. 

When I tell them the kamado and pellet grill is on the lighter side of smoke flavor the family members perk up and the pitmaster starts to lumber some......

It all makes for great conversation........

t

lousubcap

@CGS - that is playing to the ultimate decision makers.