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http://journalstar.com/news/state-a...cle_da274e24-8624-11df-957b-001cc4c002e0.html
Beaver Crossing man builds seriously giant barbecue
By DAVID CAREW / For the Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Saturday, July 3, 2010 8:00 am
BEAVER CROSSING -- Barbecue grills will fire up across Southeast Nebraska this weekend, but few will match Aaron Crabtree's smoker.
The assistant professor of accounting at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln lives outside Beaver Crossing with his wife, Liz, son, Gus, and infant daughter, Abby. A dedicated student of the art of barbecuing, he just finished his third, crowd-sized portable smoker cooker.
"I checked the market for units of this type and decided I could build two or three of my own for the price of one commercial unit," Crabtree said.
A Virginia native, he picked up some welding skills working on coal mining equipment during his school years.
He built his first cooker in 2006, creating the cooking chamber from a 6-foot-long, 24-inch diameter pipe. His dad admired his handiwork and thought it would be great for football tailgating at Crabtree's alma mater, Virginia Tech. So Crabtree built one for him, complete with Hokies logo. It created quite a stir.
Still, Crabtree thought he could do better. His latest creation is 19 feet long, weighs 7,000 pounds and runs on tandem axles. It is self-contained, with everything on hand to cook and clean up. It took 250 hours over six months to build.
The main cooking chamber is from a propane tank purchased from the Friend co-op. It's 8 feet long and 3 feet in diameter. The secondary chamber is 3 1/2 feet long and also 3 feet in diameter. Finally, he installed a vertical oven that can be used for cooking or as a warming oven to hold cooked meat.
Even with his experience and planning, along with tips from thesmokering.com, Crabtree hit a couple of snags. He placed the twin axles based on a car trailer. As it turned out, the center of balance of the smoker was further to the rear, so he moved the axles. And after installing a four-compartment sink, he found a frame member interfered with the drain, but that was quickly remedied.
In a recent test run, Crabtree smoked more than 150 chicken halves for a fundraiser sponsored by three area churches. It took 1 1/2 hours to preheat to 250 degrees before the birds were loaded and another 4 hours to cook. Only a small amount of wood is needed to maintain temperature thanks to the heavy metal construction.
For the best BBQ, Crabtree suggests: "Take your time and cook slowly. Try not to rush it."
He has no secret rubs or seasonings.
"All the differences in flavor are provided by your choice of wood fuel," he said.
His favorites from the South: hickory and wild cherry. In Nebraska, walnut and ash work well. But any fruit tree will work, he said. It takes a sophisticated taste to tell the difference.
Reach Dave Carew at 402-532-2139 or daviddcarew@stewireless.com
Jim's Fishing Charters
www.JimsFishing.com
http://www.youtube.com/user/Sushihunter250
Beaver Crossing man builds seriously giant barbecue
By DAVID CAREW / For the Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Saturday, July 3, 2010 8:00 am
BEAVER CROSSING -- Barbecue grills will fire up across Southeast Nebraska this weekend, but few will match Aaron Crabtree's smoker.
The assistant professor of accounting at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln lives outside Beaver Crossing with his wife, Liz, son, Gus, and infant daughter, Abby. A dedicated student of the art of barbecuing, he just finished his third, crowd-sized portable smoker cooker.
"I checked the market for units of this type and decided I could build two or three of my own for the price of one commercial unit," Crabtree said.
A Virginia native, he picked up some welding skills working on coal mining equipment during his school years.
He built his first cooker in 2006, creating the cooking chamber from a 6-foot-long, 24-inch diameter pipe. His dad admired his handiwork and thought it would be great for football tailgating at Crabtree's alma mater, Virginia Tech. So Crabtree built one for him, complete with Hokies logo. It created quite a stir.
Still, Crabtree thought he could do better. His latest creation is 19 feet long, weighs 7,000 pounds and runs on tandem axles. It is self-contained, with everything on hand to cook and clean up. It took 250 hours over six months to build.
The main cooking chamber is from a propane tank purchased from the Friend co-op. It's 8 feet long and 3 feet in diameter. The secondary chamber is 3 1/2 feet long and also 3 feet in diameter. Finally, he installed a vertical oven that can be used for cooking or as a warming oven to hold cooked meat.
Even with his experience and planning, along with tips from thesmokering.com, Crabtree hit a couple of snags. He placed the twin axles based on a car trailer. As it turned out, the center of balance of the smoker was further to the rear, so he moved the axles. And after installing a four-compartment sink, he found a frame member interfered with the drain, but that was quickly remedied.
In a recent test run, Crabtree smoked more than 150 chicken halves for a fundraiser sponsored by three area churches. It took 1 1/2 hours to preheat to 250 degrees before the birds were loaded and another 4 hours to cook. Only a small amount of wood is needed to maintain temperature thanks to the heavy metal construction.
For the best BBQ, Crabtree suggests: "Take your time and cook slowly. Try not to rush it."
He has no secret rubs or seasonings.
"All the differences in flavor are provided by your choice of wood fuel," he said.
His favorites from the South: hickory and wild cherry. In Nebraska, walnut and ash work well. But any fruit tree will work, he said. It takes a sophisticated taste to tell the difference.
Reach Dave Carew at 402-532-2139 or daviddcarew@stewireless.com
Jim's Fishing Charters
www.JimsFishing.com
http://www.youtube.com/user/Sushihunter250
