Recipes

Always start ribs by removing the membrane on the bottom side of the slab of ribs. It's a little bit of a chore, but they will come out more tender, and it will allow the rub to contact the meat on both sides

Cover the ribs with a good coating of Philly Grit on both sides. Exactly how much is up to you, but there should be a pretty even coating on the entire slab at least.

Let the ribs sit while you prepare your smoker. I use a charcoal smoker, so I will start the fire in the middle and scatter wood chunks at a few distances from the center so as the fire grows, there will be wood smoke during the entire cook. If you're using an electric smoker, they're great too, you'll just be loading up wood chips instead. Apple and Cherry wood are some of the best for ribs. Hickory is usually too faint of a flavor, and mesquite smoke can be overwhelming. If you're really lucky and find other fruit tree wood like peach, give them a try too!

Get your smoker to 225°F, and then put the ribs on, unwrapped. Smoke for 3 hours at this temperature.

At the end of the 3 hours, increase the smoker temperature to 250 – 275°F and continue to cook for 1 – 2 more hours. This is the time where you have to start checking on the ribs to determine when they are done. Unlike larger cuts of meat, it's difficult to use internal temperature to know when ribs are ready. You'll want to look at the meat starting to shrink away from the ends of the bones. Also, pick up the ribs from one end of the slab with a pair of tongs, the meat on the top should flex and start to split under the weight. If it doesn't split at all, you should give it more time. If the slab completely falls apart under the weight, it's too done. (The good thing about ribs is they'll still taste great if they're over done, but they just might be a little harder to handle when getting them off)

This last step is optional – I like to serve the ribs with just the dry rub and let people put BBQ sauce on themselves when eating. If you like ribs with sauce on them, you can brush sauce on the ribs at this point, and either leave them on the smoker for a bit longer, or you can transfer them to a regular grill to cook the sauce on. You just need to cook long enough to thicken the sauce and make an overall glaze, be careful not to burn the sauce, especially if it's a sugary one

Cut the pork shoulder into large chunks – approximately 2 inch cubes, trimming and discarding any of the thick fat cap

Turn the Instant Pot onto sauté mode, and add the oil to the pot

When oil is hot, brown the pieces of pork until browned on each side. You may have to work in batches if you are using a large piece of pork

Remove all pieces of pork, and pour in the cup of beer and bourbon and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot, then put pork back in the pot and add the liquid smoke

Close the lid and seal the vent, and pressure cook on high pressure for 60 minutes. After pressure cooking, allow to naturally pressure release for 20 minutes, then release any remaining pressure

Pull the pork apart with two forks, mix in barbecue sauce, and serve

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (use convection if you have it)

Rub pork tenderloin with olive oil, then completely cover with Philly Grit

Place tenderloin in a pan on medium high heat. Sear pork on all sides until browned – about 2 minutes per side.

When all sides of the pork are browned, put the pork tenderloin into the preheated oven. If the pan is oven-safe, you can put the entire pan in. Otherwise transfer to a baking sheet or roasting pan.

Cook in oven until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F. Remove from oven and allow pork to rest for 3 minutes before slicing.

Start your smoker and heat to 250 degrees F. When the smoker has reached temperature, add chunks or chips (depending on your smoker type) of the apple wood.

Trim most of the fat cap from the pork shoulder

Completely cover the pork with Philly Grit

Place the pork in the smoker, and insert a probe thermometer to monitor internal temperature.

Smoke until the internal temperature reaches 195 – 205. Test for doneness by pulling on the bone. If it easily slides out of the meat – it is done. Be patient, the pork may take 10 hours or more depending on the size! 

When the pork is cooked, wrap tightly in foil for at least 30 minutes.

When ready to serve, pull the pork apart with two forks and serve as-is with barbecue sauce on the side.

The day before cooking, pat wings dry and toss them with a mixture of kosher salt and baking powder. Let wings sit, uncovered, on a baking rack in the refrigerator at least overnight, up to 24 hours. 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Cook wings for about 40 minutes on baking rack over a baking sheet. 

Put 1 tbsp of the Philly Grit in a large mixing bowl. When wings are cooked to desired crispness, put the wings in the bowl with the Philly Grit. Drizzle the clarified butter over the wings, tossing to coat evenly with butter and Philly Grit. Add the rest of the Philly Grit and toss mixture until well coated.