Well, now I own one.

What changed, what did I get, and how have I liked it so far? Here’s why I got a pellet smoker.

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SPECIAL: A discount for CGD subscribers.

The good people at KosmosQ are offering 10% off for CGD readers. Click here and use code TEAMCGD at check out! My recommendations? Start with wing dusts, clean eating rubs, rib glazes and some sauce.

Why I got a pellet smoker

“I have an oven in my kitchen, why do I need one on my deck, too?” Have I said this before? Yes. Is a pellet grill a bit like an oven? Also yes.

It plugs in. You set the temperature. You leave it alone until the food is ready. Sounds like a familiar process!

Here’s why I flip-flopped on this issue:

I don’t cook professionally — I cook to feed my family.

My wife and I just welcomed our third child — bringing our total to three under five — and convenience comes at a premium these days. 

I coach soccer on Saturday mornings and we go to church on Sunday mornings. If I want to do a long cook on the weekends, like brisket, pulled pork, beef cheeks, etc., I need a cooker that I can truly set and forget.

And on weeknights I want to give my attention to my kids, not my cookers. Being able to put dinner on, play with the kids, and come back when dinner is ready is worth a lot to me right now.

I got into outdoor cooking because I like to feed my family. Pellet cookers are undeniably a great way to do just that!

I’m at least a little self-aware — I’m already using easy-to-use cookers.

Like many of you, I love the process of cooking outdoors, especially low and slow cooking. Learning the nuances of a fire and a smoker is part of the fun.

But here’s the thing, I don’t use an offset smoker where fire management and pit knowledge are critical. For my low and slow cooks I use a variety of charcoal smokers, which are definitely on the easier side on the difficultly scale. Sure, I think about things like air flow, lighting strategy and fuel management, but I’m not a true pit master.

Or, as the HowToBBQRight podcast put it in this episode: if you think pellet smokers don’t produce real barbecue, you better be using cinderblocks and digging a hole in the ground to cook your food. (Jump to a about 32:00 mark for this portion.)

I’m a backyard enthusiast, and pellet cookers fit in perfectly for backyard types like me.

Capacity — I wanted to add something to my arsenal that would expand my cooking options.

The one thing lacking in my previous deck set up was grate real estate. My barrel smoker has impressive capacity when hanging meat (I’ve done up to 12 racks of ribs this way), but for things like wings, pork belly burnt ends, or sides, fitting a lot of food is a challenge.

I love cooking for my family, and that includes my extended family that lives nearby. (Between us we have 9 kids 10 and under!) Adding significant capacity to my setup came with serious upside.

Why I chose the Pitts and Spitts Maverick 1250

So here’s what I got: the Pitts and Spitts Maverick 1250. And here’s why I picked it:

Pellets don’t produce the same flavor as charcoal or hardwoods — so everything else needs to be perfect.

Some people swear that pellets produce the same amount of flavor as other fuels. I tend to agree with folks like Jeremy Yoder of Mad Scientist BBQ, who gives a great explainer about why this is the case in this video:

And while you can purchase premium pellets to help alleviate this drop off in smoke flavor, the reality is that you are trading some flavor for convenience. For all the reasons listed above, I think it’s a fine trade to make! 

But the right pellet cooker can help.

Pitts and Spitts smokers are all built with thick gauge steel and fully welded construction, just like their beautiful offset smokers. My 1250 weighs about 275 pounds and is fully American made, and I fully expect to pass it on to my kids with how long it should last with proper care.

And as this review from AmazingRibs puts it, “That gauge matters. Thicker steel retains heat better, delivers more heat, and recovers heat better, giving the smoker an edge at maintaining a steady temperature throughout the cooking. Better heat retention also means better efficiency because you’re using less fuel.”

This edge to edge temperature control, and the ability to recover temperature after the pit has been opened, are critical components to nailing a cook. Pitmasters all work to limit swings in temperature inside their cooker, and I figure this is especially important when I’m already sacrificing some flavor to fuel type.

Enormous grate space and pellet capacity with limited deck footprint thanks to the roll top lid.

The Maverick 1250 got its name because of it’s 1250 square inches of grate space. Tack on a 35 pound pellet hopper — compared to the 24 pound hopper that comes with the comparably sized Treager 1300 — and this thing can run for a long time and hold a lot of food.

If you’re wondering if I’m looking for a reason to cook six briskets for 18 hours to test the limits of this thing, you better believe it.

And with the roll top lid, it gets a substantial amount of its grate capacity on the upper rack, meaning the smoker is still very reasonably sized for a backyard pit — and fits very nicely next to the rest of my collection!

Support a great local dealer — visit Dominion Grills if you’re ready to up your game!

Once I narrowed down my search to the Pitts and Spitts models, I contacted my nearest dealer (Dominion Grills in Fredericksburg, VA) with some questions. They were super helpful and great to work with, and made pickup a breeze.

Buying from them meant I supported a local dealer, avoided delivery fees, and got my smoker right away, while ordering direct from Pitts and Spitts comes with decent wait times given high demand. All it cost me was a $12.95 trailer from U-haul and a stop at Cookout.

If you’re in the DC area like me, contact Dominion Grills and tell them I sent you. If you live elsewhere, here’s a handy tool to find your local dealer.

Do you own a pellet smoker?

If so, send me your suggestions, including which brand of pellets you prefer. And if you’re local to the DC area, send me a note if you’d like to get in on a bulk pellet order: costcogrilldad@gmail.com.

Thinking of buying a pellet smoker?

Let me know if you have questions about my cookers and when I use which one. To state the obvious: I’m not retiring any of my other cookers, and will still use them plenty. Here’s to a growing squad!

Picture of the Week

What I’ve cooked so far on my Maverick 1250 (and a preview of what’s to come on Instagram):

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But even while we’re gone we still have to eat, so I did plenty of outdoor cooking, including trying a bunch of new recipes.

So here is a summer cooking roundup for your enjoyment. I hope this sparks a few ideas as you get ready to cook for football season! As a tortured Cal fan, I always need to have delicious food to comfort me. (Go Bears!)

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Summer Recipe #1: Beer Brats

For any of my subscribers from Wisconsin, let me apologize up front: I had never made beer brats before this summer. But now that I have, this will be a regular in our house.

Your Shopping List:

• Aluminum pan (pick the size based on the size of your grill and how many brats you plan to make)

• Butter

• White onions

• Bell peppers

• A garlic-heavy seasoning (I used Garlic Garlic from Kosmos Q)

• Beer (I used Bud Light — my comments on instagram tell me there are strong opinions about what beer is best, but I recommend some sort of lager)

• Bratwursts

• Buns

The prep:

• Light a grill to medium-high heat

• Slice peppers and onions

The cook itself:

• Place your aluminum pan on your lit grill and add a stick of butter until melted

• Add peppers, onions and a health dose of your garlic seasoning, stirring somewhat regularly until they begin to soften

• Add a can or two of beer depending on the size of your pan. Save enough room for your bratwursts.

• Add bratwursts and cover grill 

• Wait 30 minutes or so and enjoy whatever beer you didn’t use for the cook — you’re looking for an internal temp of 160

• Remove pan from grill and set aside; place brats directly on grill grate, flipping after a couple minutes until seared on all sides

• Return brats to the pan and they’re ready to serve! Top with your favorite condiments

• Tip: have a slotted spoon ready to scoop out those peppers and onions!

The result:

Summer Recipe #2: Breakfast Fatty

If you haven’t smoked breakfast for your family before, here’s the place to start. With proper prep the night before it’s an easy morning and a delicious meal. (Hint: you could easily do this in your oven if you don’t have a smoker.)

Your Shopping List:

• A pound of bacon

• A pound of ground breakfast sausage

• Six or so eggs

• Shredded cheddar cheese

• Your favorite BBQ rub (I used Honey Killer Bee from Kosmos Q)

• Kosmos Q Maple Bourbon Glaze, or maple syrup to make your own

The Prep + The Cook Itself:

Behold! A narrated video to make this easy. (Someday Substack will support embedding Instagram videos natively, but today is not that day.)

The result:

Bonus Summer Recipe: Picnic Shoulder

While at the lake I was having trouble getting my Instagram stories to upload, so instead I consolidated an 8-hour cook into an 8-minute video. Rather than writing up the whole thing, here you go!

Picture of the Week

As many of you saw on Instagram, I was honored to get to cook for my sister-in-law’s wedding this summer. Here’s the plate I pulled off, plus how a bride eats ribs to stay photogenic.

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1. Appetizer: Smoked queso (you can make this recipe in your oven, too)

2. Side: Simple coleslaw

3. Main: My go-to pulled pork

4. Dessert: Grilled maple bourbon glazed peaches

I’ll give you a full step-by-step, complete with your shopping list for each item below. Either cook it all or pick what works best for you! Let’s get to it.

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This smoked queso will be a huge hit

This recipe is as simple as it gets but is always a winner.

Grocery list:

• One block of velveeta cheese

• One pound of smoked Gouda

• Two cans Rotel (you can use mild or hot, depending on your heat tolerance)

• One pound ground meat (I’ve used ground beef, chorizo or bison)

• One bunch cilantro

• A bag or two of tortilla chips

Other things you’ll need:

• 9x13 casserole dish or aluminum pan (I always use the latter for easy clean up).

• Some of whatever beer you are drinking while you cook. If you don’t drink, beef broth, pineapple juice, or soda will work, too. 

• Whatever BBQ rub sounds good to you. I’ve used Meatchelada from Hardcore Carnivore or SPG from Kosmos Q.

The prep:

• Cut the block of velveeta and smoked Gouda into ½ inch cubes (or so).

• Brown your meat. If you’re using beef or bison, season generously with your rub of choice. If you’re using chorizo, it’s plenty flavorful on it’s own.

• Add meat and cheese into your casserole dish or aluminum pan.

• Pour in both cans of Rotel.

• Add a healthy dose of more rub.

• Chop cilantro and set aside.

The cook itself:

• Put the pan into your smoker (or oven) at about 300 degrees. If you’re using a smoker, I like using a apple wood.

• Top with about 1/3 can of whatever beer you’re drinking for moisture. If you don’t want to use beer, I’d try some heavy cream or a can of cream of mushroom soup.

• After 45 minutes, check on the queso and stir. Continue cooking until cheese is fully melted.

• Once it’s ready, top with your chopped cilantro and serve.

This 6-ingredient slaw is the perfect side

Grocery list:

• A couple bags of cabbage slaw mix

• Duke’s mayo (only use a different type of mayo if you absolutely must)

• A couple lemons (or lemon juice)

• Apple cider vinegar

Other things you’ll need:

• Sugar

• Salt and pepper

The prep:

• Combine all of the ingredients. This recipe is all to taste, so start small because you can always add more.

• As a general guideline of where to start: a couple heaping spoonfuls of mayo, a quick pour of apple cider vinegar, a healthy pour of white sugar (I bet I use about ½ cup), and a couple tablespoons each of salt and pepper.

• Top with either a quick squirt of lemon juice, or squeeze out ½ a lemon to start.

• Mix and taste, adding more of any ingredients to your preferred texture and flavor.

The cook itself:

• Ok, so there’s no cooking needed here. But I like to make this several hours before I serve it and set it aside, both so the flavors combine with one another and so that I don’t have to prep it when company is over.

• This slaw is great on pulled pork sandwiches or as a standalone side. Enjoy!

Here’s the simplest pulled pork recipe I use

Pork shoulder is a great way to feed a lot of people for cheap, and it’s a forgiving cut of meat if you’re new to the smoking game.

Grocery list:

• 1-2 bone-in pork shoulders. These are sometimes labeled as Boston butt’s in the grocery store. I tend to look for ones that are 7-9 pounds.

• Yellow mustard. The cheap stuff is all you need.

• Enough buns for however many people you’re feeding. I always use Martin’s Potato Rolls.

• Your preferred bbq sauce. I like OP X-1 from Kosmos Q, but any tomato-based sauce from your grocery store will work, too. My only advice is to look for one that uses real sugar. Or, visit Walmart and get Fire and Smoke Society’s Original Savory BBQ Sauce.

Other things you’ll need:

• Heavy duty aluminum foil.

• Plenty of BBQ rub. Some of my favorites for pulled pork: Honey Killer Bee from Kosmos, Hardcore Carnivore Red, or Pork Perfect from Fire and Smoke Society (available at Walmart).

• Some of whatever beer you’re drinking. Good replacements are beef broth, pineapple juice, or a soda like root beer, Coke or Dr. Pepper.

• A good meat thermometer.

The prep:

• Remove pork shoulder from wrap, and pat dry with some paper towels.

• Slather with yellow mustard on all sides. This will help your rub adhere to the meat.

• Liberally apply rub to all sides of the shoulder, including any nooks and crannies.

• When I say liberally, I mean it. This is a really big hunk of meat — it can handle a lot of seasoning.

  

The cook itself:

• Light your smoker to run at around 275 degrees. I like to use apple wood with pork. If you have a charcoal grill, set it up with a water pan. Here’s how I do it in my PK Grill. Here’s how you can do it on a Weber kettle or something similar, and here’s how to do it on a ceramic cooker like a Big Green Egg.

• Put pork on cooker and wait, opening as rarely as possible, until it reaches an internal temperature of 165-170 degrees.

• Lay out a couple long strips of heavy duty aluminum foil. Remove pork shoulder from your cooker and place on your cooker. Pour about 1/3 a can of your beer on top of the pork, and tightly wrap the entire thing with foil.

  

• Place back on the cooker until it reaches an internal temperature of about 202. What you’re really looking for here is probe tenderness throughout the shoulder — your thermometer should slide in throughout like it’s butter.

• Take it off the smoker, put the wrapped butt in a casserole dish or aluminum pan, and open the top of the foil to release steam and let the meat rest. 

• After 30-45 minutes, pull apart. If it’s really tender, you’ll be able to do this with your hands. You’ll want gloves to protect yourself from the heat. I layer latex gloves (single use) over cotton ones (reusable). You can also use claws or forks for this job, too.

• Once pulled, dump out the foil with all of the juices into the pan and mix together, evenly distributing pieces of bark throughout. Top with a dusting of your bbq rub and serve

  

  ---

Grilled peaches are the perfect summer dessert

Grocery list:

• Peaches

• Vanilla ice cream

• Maple syrup

• Bourbon, if you’d like to take it up a notch

Other things you’ll need:

• A hot grill or smoker surface. I like to throw these on to my smoker if it’s still hot once the main course is served.

The prep:

• Slice peaches in half, removing the pit.

The cook itself:

• Place peach halves face down on grate for a few minutes until they start to soften.

• Then flip, and use a basting brush to coat the face of each peach half with maple syrup, bourbon, or both.

• Once soft and warm throughout, remove from heat, top with vanilla ice cream and enjoy.

  ---

Picture of the week:

I’ve done a lot of cooking since my last newsletter, so indulge me:

Tomahawk steaks caveman style

Pork belly burnt ends

A rare occasion where I’ll share something I didn’t cook: brisket, ribs, pork steaks, chicken and turkey from the world famous Snow’s BBQ in Lexington, TX. If you haven’t already, you must watch the Chef’s Table episode about Snow’s and their famous 86 year-old pit master, Tootsie.

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I’m sure I’ll devote entire write-ups to many of these individual items in the future, but for now I want to arm you with information on the products I use the most.

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Note: I have first hand knowledge of all the products below because I am a customer, not because of paid promotions. I don’t have business relationships to promote these products unless otherwise specified.

Go big and get him that new cooker

I can say this with confidence: your grill dad deserves something great for Father’s Day this year. Nothing beats getting him a new cooker. Consider these ones.

PK Grills

If your grill dad is still cooking on a propane grill, he deserves an upgrade. And it’s not just for him — you will immediately taste the superior quality of cooking with charcoal, too.

Or if his kettle is getting old and rusty, it’s time for him to have something new to work with. Pull the trigger on PK Grill’s Original Grill and Smoker.

If you follow me on Instagram you already know that I use my PK Grill all the time. You’ve seen it work wonders with direct grilling (like steaks or chicken thighs), indirect grilling (like bacon-wrapped pork loin), two-zone grilling or reverse searing (like tomahawk ribeyes), and smoking (like pork belly burnt ends, mac & cheese or queso).

Get him this cooker and start enjoying the benefits right away — and if he’s using the same grill I am, following along with my recipes is as easy as it gets.

Pit Barrel Cooker

This charcoal-burning barrel smoker is the perfect cooker if you’re looking to get into smoking. It’s affordable, takes up limited space on your deck or patio, is easy to learn and produces killer results.

It has an impressive capacity for a pretty small smoker — I’ve cooked nine racks of ribs in it at one time without a problem. I use it anytime I am cooking for a crowd or have a longer cook. It’s my go-to for bbq staples like ribs, brisket and pork shoulder, but it’s also incredible at smoking whole chickens, prime rib, beef cheeks, and more.

Get him a griddle

There’s probably no more versatile cooker out there than a flat-top griddle. It has all the conveniences of a propane grill by heating up quickly — it’s my go-to recommendation for anyone looking for something to use on weeknights — with way more versatility.

Want to cook breakfast outside? Use it for bacon, eggs, pancakes, or french toast. Want the perfect fajitas? Use it to cook up the perfect peppers and onions, char your meat and toast your tortillas. Have leftover pulled pork from your Pit Barrel? Use it to make quick and easy pulled pork quesadillas or grilled cheese. And do all of this on a single device with easy cleanup and no bacon grease spattering your backsplash inside. Most importantly, a griddle is the perfect cooker for the perfect smash burgers.

I use a 28 inch Blackstone Griddle at home and a 36 inch at the lake during the summer, but the Pit Boss and Camp Chef versions are well regarded, too.

Temperature check: get him a great thermometer

One thing I use with every single cook on any of the devices listed above is a reliable thermometer (or two!). That’s because the only way to know that you’ve absolutely nailed a cook is to check meat temperature throughout — and, when grilling or smoking, monitoring cooker temperature along the way.

In my experience, the most reliable thermometer brand for home chefs and backyard warriors is Thermoworks. Here are the devices from them I use regularly:

• Thermapen Instant Read Thermometer. This thermometer is really reliable and crazy fast - you’ll get an accurate temperature reading in less than a second. And if you’re trying to nail a perfect steak, the difference between medium rare and medium can be a matter of a few seconds. Every grill dad needs a good instant read thermometer, and this is the best one.

• Signals BBQ Alarm. This multi-probe thermometer is the perfect way to track internal temperature of your meat during longer cooks and grill or smoker temperature at the same time. It’s Bluetooth and WiFi connected, so you can monitor your cook’s progress from your phone, and if you’re especially nerdy you can graph temperature progressions and save them to consult on future cooks.

• Industrial Infared Gun. Thanks to Covid, everyone is familiar with infared thermometers these days. But pre-pandemic, I was using this one to read the temperature of my griddle before and during cooks.

Let’s talk seasonings, sauces and more

If the dad in your life is already squared away with cookers and thermometers, let’s talk about other ways he can up his backyard cooking game.

I will devote a lot more real estate in the future to breaking down my favorite rubs, sauces, injections and brines — including options of the homemade variety — but as you can imagine, most companies in this space are running Father’s Day promotions for a great gift made easy. Here are some of my favorites:

• Kosmo’s Q. This brand has it all: BBQ rubs (I use their SPG all the time, Dirty Bird is incredible on chicken, Honey Killer Bee is killer on pork), sugar free, clean eating seasonings I use often while cooking for my family, insanely flavorful Wing Dust that will take his wing game to the next level, plus an incredible selection of sauces, rib glazes, injections and brines that will make his day this weekend. Check out their Father’s Day Gift Guide for inspiration.

  

Note: I’m a Kosmos Q Brand Ambassador, which means I get free product in exchange for posting about them. They found me because I was a customer first.

• Fire and Smoke Society. This brand is the seasoning arm of PK Grills, and have a delicious (and growing!) line of rubs and sauces. Perhaps most conveniently, they are available in Walmarts everywhere, so if you’re reading this on Friday night and need something fast, here’s your solution. I like “The Usual” as a great all purpose seasoning, and Chicka-Licka-Bam-Bam is a great, somewhat spicy chicken rub.

• Hardcore Carnivore. This is the seasoning brand from Jess Pryles, one of my go-to sources for instructional videos on YouTube, and she has mastered delicious rubs that produce insane color on your meat. My two favorites are Red (on pork) and Black (on beef).

Still need ideas? Here are some accessories I use

You can get lost pretty quickly in the world of outdoor cooking accessories, but here’s a quick list of things I use often:

• Pit mitts, for protection when handling hot grates or pans.

• Spatulas, basting covers or a burger press to go with that griddle.

• Disposable cutting boards, to do prep outside and keep the kitchen clean — include these with your Kosmos order!

• Aluminum pans, for prep, basting, catching drippings, resting and serving.

• Carving knife, for brisket, ribs and more.

• Fillet knife, for trimming.

• Brine bags, for mess-free brining.

  ---

Picture of the week

Beer can chicken is a staple of any backyard cook, but recently I changed it up and finished it with an Alabama white sauce. It was my first time trying it, and it did not disappoint. Here’s the before picture, plus a video summarizing my cook. And one more gift idea for dad: a beer can chicken stand.

Thanks for reading! Be sure to forward this to your wife and kids so they know what you want for Father’s Day, and subscribe if you don’t already. Happy Father’s Day, grill dads!

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Today we’re going to talk about burgers — the quintessential cookout food and perfect way to kick off the summer. I only do burgers one way at my house, and you should give them a go this weekend, too.

I use a flat top griddle on my deck, but anyone can make this recipe — even if you don’t have any outdoor space at all.

My guess is you have almost everything you need for this cook in your fridge or pantry already. And it is not an exaggeration to say that this meal is one of the easiest to prep — and easiest on the wallet.

Let’s smash.

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Pre-cook instructions

Let’s get straight to the point.

Your grocery list

• Cooking oil

• 80-20 ground beef

• Kosher salt

• Coarse ground pepper

• Yellow mustard

• American cheese

• Large white onions

• Your preferred burger toppings

• Buns (I like Martin’s Potato Buns)

Your equipment list

You’ll need a large, flat surface for this cook. I use my Blackstone griddle. You could use a cast iron pan on your stove top or your grill, or a griddle insert on your stove top or grill. If you make pancakes on it, you can make smash burgers on it.

Other things you’ll need:

• A large spatula

• A grill press (or a second spatula — more on that below)

How to prep

• Thinly slice onions, and toss in a bowl with oil and kosher salt

• Form ground beef into balls approximately 1/3 pound in size

The cook itself

1. Heat a cooking surface over medium-low heat for your onions. For me, this is one burner of my griddle, but it can be any pan for you.

2. Add onions, stirring somewhat regularly until they caramelize. If you are under a time crunch, you can add some water to the cook surface and cover to help speed up the process.

3. Remove onions when they‘re caramelized to your preference. Save the pan.

4. Heat a cooking surface over medium-high heat and lightly coat with oil. This is another burner on my griddle, but it can be any pan for you.

5. Add balls of ground beef, wait about 20 seconds, then flip. This will help prevent sticking when you smash.

   

6. Apply pressure to the browned section of the ground beef to smash as thinly as possible. If you don’t have a burger press, use the flat portion of your large spatula, and press down on it with the handle of another spatula for maximum pressure. The more smashed the better.

7. Season with salt and pepper.

8. Squirt yellow mustard on top of every burger.

   

9. After 2-3 minutes, flip so that the burger cooks in the mustard for another 2-3 minutes.

10. Immediately top with American cheese; the burgers will be done once its melted.

    

11. Place buns face down on the surface you cooked your onions on to toast.

12. Assemble burger with your preferred toppings.

    

Picture of the week

I had some buddies over last weekend and finished some wings with Kosmos Nashville Hot Chicken Wing Dust. They were too hot for most of them, but if you’re up for the challenge…

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But I don’t buy everything at the wholesale haven. Here’s a full breakdown of what this CostcoGrillDad does and does not buy at my namesake store.

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What meat I don’t buy at Costco

I go into detail below, but for those of you who like to get to the point:

• Pre-cut steaks (blade tenderized = no thanks)

• Pork shoulder (boneless and expensive)

• Ground beef (80-20 is the only way)

Pre-cut steaks

If ever I develop enough of a platform to get Costco’s attention, I would use it to make one ask: please, for the sake of properly cooked steak everywhere, stop blade tenderizing your meat.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, all you need to know is that blade tenderizing “means the beef has been punctured with blades or needles to break down the muscle fibers and make it easier to chew. But it also means the meat has a greater chance of being contaminated and making you sick.”1

Check out the fine print on this label of NY Strips:

“USDA recommends grilling product to a minimum internal temperature of 145 degrees…”

It’s such a shame, because Costco sells quality steaks at solid prices. But I’m not going to overcook my steak, and you shouldn’t either.

Check the label at your Costco (and note: some cuts, like flank steak, are not blade tenderized). If it’s tenderized, buy from your neighborhood grocery store instead.

Edit: After publication, I was taught something via Twitter — using a sous vide is a way to safely cook blade tenderized meat at a lower temperature. Read the exchange here.

Pork shoulder

This one is simple. When I smoke a pork shoulder, I prefer bone-in cuts, whether it’s a Boston butt or a picnic shoulder.

I’ll leave the debate about whether bone-in actually impacts flavor to the Meatheads of the world. But there’s not much better after a long smoke than pulling a perfectly clean bone out of a pork shoulder, and that’s reason enough for me to look elsewhere when buying.

Add in the price — Costco usually sells theirs for $1.99, and I can often find butts on sale for $0.99 to $1.49 per pound at normal grocery stores — and it’s a no brainer.

I do have one notable exception: I buy boneless pork shoulder when I am making my smoked adobada recipe. Don’t worry, I’ll write that up soon.

Ground beef

Anyone who has followed me on Instagram for any amount of time knows that I’m a huge proponent of smash burgers. In fact, I think they are reason enough to buy a griddle.

A great smash burger doesn’t need much: 80-20 ground beef, salt, pepper, mustard, grilled onions, spread and a toasted bun.

Here’s the issue: Costco doesn’t sell 80-20 ground beef, and 85-15 won’t cut it for me. Any normal grocery store sells the good stuff for cheap — go there instead.

My favorites from the Costco meat section

If it didn’t make the list above, I probably buy it at Costco. Think of the basics: all cuts of chicken, plus bacon and sausages, plus fun cuts of lamb and fish. Given how large their selection is, I decided to narrow this list of down to my favorites:

• Brisket (price and quality is unmatched)

• Beef roasts (price and quality is unmatched)

• Ribs (great price, always available)

• Pork belly (great price, always available)

Brisket

This one is easy. Brisket at Costco is always in stock, always priced to sell — near me it’s always $2.99 per pound — and always high quality USDA prime.

If I can do this with a barrel smoker and a brisket from Costco, you can too:

Beef roasts

For all the flaws of their pre-cut steaks, Costco’s beef roasts are undefeated. USDA Prime at great prices, not blade tenderized, and able to be cut down into steaks at your preferred thickness? Yes, please.

Some of the best meals I’ve ever cooked are reverse seared prime rib or tenderloin from Costco. I even dry aged a NY strip loin myself — more on that another time.

Ribs

Three packs of ribs at a great price? Yes please. Costco prices almost always beat what I can find in the grocery store, and they are always fully stocked with both St. Louis and Baby Back three packs.

I usually opt for the St. Louis option, but you can’t go wrong either way.

Pork belly

At a price-per-pound, Costco’s pork belly might be the best thing they sell. If you haven’t made pork belly burnt ends, like these ones I made with hot honey, you need to ASAP.

Eventually I’ll write this recipe up, but in the meantime this should get you most of the way there. It’s also on my list to make homemade bacon using Costco’s pork belly, so stay tuned.

What did I miss?

I know some Costco locations offer seasonal cuts that would make my list if they were available in my area. As a California native, I wish tri-tip made its way to my Costco’s meat section. And I’ve seen beef cheeks — an absolute favorite cut of mine — on shelves on the west coast, too.

What did I miss that you like to buy from Costco? Or do you disagree with my “ do not buy” items? Let me know! You can DM me on Instagram, email me at CostcoGrillDad@gmail.com, or comment below.

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I’ll use this space to share my favorite cook from the previous week. Drumsticks are incredibly underrated — get them at Costco for $0.99 per pound, and with some charcoal, rub and sauce turn them into an incredible dinner. They were a big hit with my toddlers, which is the most important outcome from all of my cooks. Let me know what you’re cooking this weekend!

I feed my family by cooking outside, mostly with meat purchased at Costco. I’ll use this space to share recipes, tips, and tricks for outdoor cooking. I’ll also write product reviews and answer your questions along the way.

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