Smoking a blade steak

Question

I live in Australia where smoked BBQ isn't really common. I asked the butcher what he'd recommend for smoking and he suggested a blade steak (I believe it was). It weighs about 1.5kg / 3.3 pounds.

I'd like to smoke it tomorrow at my parents. My brother has a cheap smoker, http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/products/master-forge-charcoal-smoker, that he bought from a hardware store. There are also hickory wood chips.

I've only smoked once before (some lamb shoulder, I think it was) and, given that I'm quite new to this, feel a bit overwhelmed from the info online.

How would you recommend that I proceed? Do I marinate the meat overnight? Use a dry rub? Should sauce and baste as I go? Do I need to create a foil tent? How long can I expect it to take? What temperature am I looking at?

Any advice will be appreciated. :)

Answer 1

A blade steak is cut from the Chuck. It will have a great deal of connective tissue, so it is an appropriate cut of meat for slow-ish smoking. I would recommend about 250-275F (121-135C) as a cooking temperature. It should take about 2 hours, give or take, depending on the thickness of your steaks. Hit them up with some dry rub or salt and pepper prior to cooking. Put the steaks on the smoker, and start checking on them at about the 1.5 hour mark. You don't want to make pulled beef, so when you put a probe or skewer through the steak, it should go through with a little resistance (unlike when you are making pulled pork, for example, where you want to feel absolutely no resistance when you slide the probe through the meat). When you think the steaks are about done, paint them with your favorite sauce, if you like, and leave them on the smoker for another 15 minutes or so.

It's a little more nuanced than smoking a whole shoulder, but not enough to be intimidating. You want the finished product to be nearly fork tender, but not falling apart. However, err on the side of cooking too long, versus not enough, and you'll be happy.