Persistence Lists 8/13/2009

These lists are explained in the Explanation page to the right.

Persistence UP
EWBC FITB MI WBS ASH DOW EMN OLN SOA CAR R RRD JBL GLBL SM XEC COF FIG PFG BKD AFL MFC MTG PL RDN EXPE LVS WYNN BC BDK CAT CMI GDI MHK MTW TEX X CTX DHI KBH MAS PHM USG CDE MEE PCU BDN BPO CBL DDR HIW HPT MAC SLG ANN JNY KSU M WSM

Persistence DOWN
NLC JNPR CDNS THQI VMW ACM FCN AMLN DNDN GERN GILD MYGN PRGO SVNT APH LRCX NVLS RMBS SWKS WFR BHI DO ECA ESV FTO PTEN PXP RIG SLB SWN AB NITE ADM DF SFD MASI FFIV SINA JACK AME AUY AZO BJ ORLY ADCT TKLC DSX EXC PEG

Mustard Chicken

Note:  The original posting of this recipe on 8/12 contained an error which has been corrected.  Rosemary is the correct ingredient, not sage.  Sorry.

One of our most frequent recipes is Mustard Chicken.  It is a whole chicken cooked on a wood fire in the smoker.  The cooking method is very similar to the method I always use in the smoker, just with different numbers.  A whole chicken can feed 2-4 people, and, yes, it is messy like all good BBQ.

Overview

We’re going to mix mustard, garlic powder, and onion powder into a thick paste, and rub it under the skin.  Then, add fresh rosemary, if available, under the skin and in the cavity.  Lastly, rub the remaining mustard paste all over the skin.  Then, cook for two hours in the smoker.  Stay near the grill so you can monitor and adjust the temperature.  Cut up and serve immediately, with napkins.

Procedure

Defrost, if necessary, and clean a whole chicken.  We buy the largest available, because the small ones can be small for a reason.  The meat is more juicy in the large ones.  Remove all the junk your butcher might have stuffed in the cavity.  Put the chicken in a large flat pan such as the one pictured, with the breasts up, with the cavity facing you.

Put enough Classic/Old Fashioned Yellow Mustard in a bowl to cover two breasts and two legs with a thick coat, plus 20%.  Add garlic powder and onion powder in equal amounts, and stir, until you have a thick but not overly dry paste.  You’ll need a couple of heaping tablespoons on each side plus the extra.

Using your index finger under the skin on each breast, remove the membranes covering the breast and especially the leg.  Try not to tear the skin any more than the butcher did.  Then, use a teaspoon to place the mustard paste under the skin.  Use plenty.  You should be able to see the yellow mustard through the skin over the whole breast and ideally the leg.  Do both breasts and legs, and use 90% of the paste.

Put half the remaining paste in each hand and smear it all over the outside of the chicken, including the wings.  Place whatever is left inside the cavity.

Add a thin, 6-inch piece of fresh rosemary under the skin on top of each breast and in the cavity.  You’ll need 3 pieces.  This, of course, is optional.

We don’t use any salt because the mustard is salty, but there are many ways to tailor the taste to your liking.

Now, prepare the fire.

I use the same method on all fires meant to smoke meats.  (The method is very different for grilling, but this smoking.)  Construct a chimney stack of oak and hickory, using medium-sized pieces.  The fire must hold 325-360 degrees (preferably, mostly 350) for a whole 2 hours, preferably without adding wood.  I start with a bed of Kingsford regular charcoal, about 20 pieces, and use charcoal lighter fluid to start it.  The charcoal will burn away fast, so be ready to spread it and build the chimney on top as soon as the charcoal is mostly gray.  Pre-cut about 8 pieces of wood the best size for your smoker.  See pictures.  Note this is a smaller version of the fire used for the brisket; it must burn hotter but for a shorter time.  Drop a few small pieces of kindling down the center of the fire to get it going.

With the vents wide open and the door to the firebox cracked, let the temperature rise quickly to 400 degrees.  Then, before it burns your paint, close the chimney vent half way and close the firebox intake 80%, and of course, close the door to the firebox.  As the temperature plunges to 350, open the firebox and the chimney vents to perhaps halfway, and begin to stabilize the temperature.  Once it’s stabilized, open the smoker lid and place the chicken directly under the thermometer with the cavity toward the fire, and close the lid.  After about 1:20 minutes, rotate the chicken to put the cavity away from the fire.

Do your best to keep the temperature above 325 and below 375.  350-360 is ideal.  If it spikes to 400, the skin will be burned but the meat is still good.  If the temperature is too low, the meat can be stringy or undercooked and people won’t like it.  A whole 2 hours does very well, but if you overshoot 15 minutes, it will only get a little dry.

FWIW, I’ve actually done 6 chickens simultaneously in the grill pictured, without changing this method.  To do that, I swapped the front and back pairs one hour in.  No biggie.

To take it off the grill, lift it from inside the cavity and place it on your cutting surface.  I use same glass pan (cleaned of course).  Cut it your way and serve very hot.

Persistence Lists 8/12/2009

What these lists are all about is explained in the Explanation page to the right.

Persistence UP since 7/13

CMA EWBC MI WBS ZION DOW EMN SOA CAR R RRD JBL GLBL SM XEC BEN COF FIG BKD AFL MTG RDN EXPE WYNN BC BDK MHK MTW TEX X CTX DHI KBH MAS PHM USG CDE MEE BDN BMR BPO CBL DDR HIW HPT JOE MAC SLG ANN CHS JNY JWN M WSM

Persistence DOWN since 7/27

NLC BRCD JNPR CDNS ORCL THQI VMW ACM FCN DNDN GERN MYGN PRGO SVNT APH DLB LRCX NVLS RMBS SWKS WFR BHI DO ECA ESV FTO PTEN PXP RIG SLB SWN AB NITE ADM DF SFD AGP FFIV SINA JACK AME AUY AZO BJ ORLY ADCT TKLC DSX EXC PEG

Trader Pullback

Just like trending stocks pullback before they woosh, traders can do the same.  Each year about this time and in mid to late December, I step back to get a better perspective.  For years, my most precious asset was solely time. Now, personal energy has become as precious.  I am on a mission to make this my most productive year, so, through Labor Day (unless the Mr. Market starts throwing money at longs or shorts), I will rethink every aspect of my life and make copious notes and resolutions.

This includes life in and out of trading.  It includes interactions with family, recreation, health, role of music, endeavors that drain but don’t yield, more effective centering and sleep, more effective and efficient preparation, better anticipation of various day scenarios, better money production and the organization and routine surrounding trading, a much tighter reading and viewing list, and a more directed blog and twitter presence.  I will also know what computers I will buy when Windows 7 comes out.  I might also spend a bit of time with an HTML book.

I chose this time because, some (many) years, the market turns less productive for traders from mid-August through a few days past Labor Day.  Of course, this year could be different.  But, if we don’t get a break now, we’re unlikely to get one before mid-December.  Use it or lose it.

In large part I will remain reachable in the normal ways.

Persistence Lists 8/11/2009

These lists and how to use them are explained in the Explanation page to the right.

Persistence UP starting 7/13

CMA EWBC MI WBS ZION DOW EMN CAR R RRD JBL GLBL SM XEC BEN COF FIG BKD AFL MTG RDN EXPE LVS WYNN BC BDK MHK MTW TEX X CTX DHI MAS PHM USG CDE MEE AIV BDN BMR BPO CBL DDR HIW HPT JOE LRY MAC SLG ANN CHS JNY JWN M WSM

Persistence DOWN starting 7/27

NLC BRCD JNPR CDNS ORCL VMW ACM FCN GERN MYGN PRGO SVNT APH DLB LRCX NVLS RMBS SWKS WFR BHI DO ECA ESV PTEN PXP RIG SLB SWN AB NITE DF SFD AGP AHL FFIV SINA JACK AME AUY AZO BJ ADCT TKLC DSX EXC PEG SUG

Persistence Lists 8/10/2009

For an explanation of these lists, please see Pages to the right.

Persistence UP since 7/13

CMA EWBC MI WBS ZION DOW EMN CAR R RRD JBL GLBL SM XEC COF FIG BKD AFL MFC MTG RDN EXPE LVS WYNN BC BDK CAT MHK MTW TEX X CTX DHI MAS PHM USG CDE MEE AIV BDN BMR BPO CBL CLI DDR HIW HPT JOE LRY MAC SLG ANN CHS WSM

Persistence DOWN since 7/27

NLC BRCD JNPR ORCL ACM FCN MYGN PRGO SVNT APH DLB NVLS RMBS SWKS WFR BHI ECA PXP RIG SLB SWN AB NITE DF SFD AGP AHL FFIV SINA JACK AME AUY AZO BJ ADCT TKLC DSX EXC PEG SUG

Brisket Pictures

With 1:30 to go, here are some pictures to go along with the DAMN GOOD BRISKET.

#1.  Wrapped and ready to cook starting at 1:00 am.

#2.  6:30 am.  Grill is cleaned and fire started.

#3.  The grill stays a little dirty, but you get the idea.

#4.  6:47 am.  The fire is ready and the brisket is unwrapped and heading for the smoker.  Too bad I forgot to pepper it before wrapping it yesterday.

#5.  Just before closing the lid.  (I peppered it later.)

#6-8.  The fire settings make all the difference.

#9.  With about 2 hours to go, the fire collapsed and I added a little more wood.

#10.  Kickin’ back mostly.

#11-12.  TaDa!  12 hours after the oven started.

Damn Good Brisket

There are many ways to cook a beef brisket, and this is just one, but it’s easy and people love it.  You won’t find this recipe in any book.  You can find recipes that involve cooking less than 12 hours, but you won’t like them as well.

Overview
Brisket is a tough cut that, most agree, takes a whole 12 hours to cook.  Most of the briskets I buy are about 13 pounds, and are NOT trimmed.  If you get one that is abnormally large or thick, or very small, use your judgment to adjust this recipe.  Otherwise, the recipe is very well calibrated and has stood the test of time.  Ordinarily, I do all my cooking on a wood fire, but who wants to inhale that much smoke.  So, I cook it 6 hours in the oven (wrapped) and 6 hours on the wood fire (exposed), and stay away from the smoke. Regulating the temperature is quite important, so I take care to control the fire at all times using the vents on the smoker. I use a traditional smoker with fire box at one end, barrel in the middle, and chimney at the other end. The brisket goes midway in the smoker, under the thermometer (a must have), with the large end of the brisket toward the fire. It is really important to place the brisket fat side up.

Procedure
Put the brisket in a “hobo pack” made of aluminum foil all around. Assemble it as follows:

Lay 5-6 feet of 18-inch wide, heavy aluminum foil on the kitchen counter. To size the foil, we will be laying the brisket at one end and wrapping the foil over the top, then crimping the edges of the upper and lower foil tightly all around. So, the foil needs to be longer than 2 times the length of the brisket.  18-inch wide foil has worked for every brisket I’ve done.  That’s where we’re headed, but the brisket must be seasoned first.

Chop up 2 or 3 large onions, not finely. A layer of onion will be placed underneath and on top of the brisket. Place half of the onion on the foil where the brisket will go.

Remove the brisket from its bag. I always rinse it, but opinions vary.

Lay the brisket fat side DOWN on top of the onion. Sprinkle your favorite seasonings, rubs, whatever on the “meat side”. I sprinkle a very thick layer of Fiesta Extra Fancy Salt-Free Brisket Rub, thick enough to hide the meat. Then, I add a moderately thick coat of coarse-ground black pepper. I love the freshness of the Kirkland brand from Costco. Most people would add salt, quite a bit, but I can’t handle it. Then, rub the seasonings into the meat so they won’t fall off when you flip it over.

Now, flip the brisket over so it is fat side up (important), and add the seasonings, similarly. Then, place the remaining onions on top. Part of the function of the onions is to separate the foil from the meat, so spread them out.

Lift the extra few feet of foil over the top of the brisket so the upper and lower edges are together.  Crimp it thoroughly all the way around. As the brisket cooks quite a lot of juice will accumulate in the foil. You don’t want this getting out; it will mess up your oven. So, try to orient the crimps at least an inch above the bottom of the foil. If you’re the least concerned about leakage, place the whole package in a large, flat pan if available. (I do). Don’t put a lid on the pan.

Consider timing. The cooked brisket will have an excellent shelf life of a few hours. However, some people like meats served right off the fire. (I do). So, I back up 12 hours from serving time to start the oven, and I hit the numbers very closely. An oven with a timer is priceless. I also like to start cooking with the meat at room temperature. So, I take it out of the refrigerator several hours before starting the oven. Cook the brisket in the oven at 280 degrees for a whole 6 hours.

Prepare for some very nice smells while cooking in the oven.

After about 5 hours in the oven, prepare to start the fire, clean the grill, and raise the temperature to a stable 260 degrees.  (Details below).  Then, transfer the brisket to the smoker, rather quickly, and remove the foil. I put the brisket, fat side up, directly on the grill. Considerable juice will drip off the meat, so it’s important that no fire is directly below the meat (really).

Various woods are used in cooking red meat. I like a combination of 40% mesquite, 40% oak, and 20% hickory, but 100% oak works nicely, too. If post oak is available, use it.  You’ll need 8-12 pieces of wood that will fit in your firebox and use most of its width, depth, and height.

In stacking the wood, I start with a small amount of Kingsford regular charcoal at the bottom, perhaps 30 pieces. It will start the wood burning and be gone quickly. Build a dome of charcoal, and use a small amount of charcoal lighter fluid to get it going. When it’s burning well (20 minutes), spread it out in the middle of the firebox, in a square one layer thick. Then, stack the pre-selected wood, chimney-style, on top of the charcoal, 3 layers in each direction, leaving at least a 4″ x 4″ aperture at the top of the chimney. Good air flow is important to having a controllable, maintenance-free fire. Of course, if you have a very large smoker, you will need a larger fire and larger aperture. To get it raging quickly, pitch some thin kindling down the aperture. (NEVER use more charcoal lighter fluid). Our goal is to hit and hold 260 degrees (preferably without adding wood later), so we will overshoot by 20-30 degrees for maybe 5 minutes with the vents wide open and the door to the firebox cracked, then close the door and adjust the vents to where we expect them to be about right.  Adjust the chimney vent halfway open and the firebox vent 10% open.  The temperature will drop and stabilize in 10 minutes.  If the fire is lit well, and there is plenty of wood, the temperature will stabilize to 250-325.  Make fine adjustments to both vents to hit and hold 260 +/- 10, with an average of 260.

When the fire is ready, move the brisket (pan, foil, and all) from the oven and place it on a table near the grill, and remove the foil. Using a large fork and spachula, move the brisket into the smoker, directly under the thermometer, large side toward the fire, fat side up.   Close the lid and don’t open it for at least 5.5 hours. If you hit the numbers, you won’t burn the brisket, and it will be damn close to perfect, so there will be no need to open the smoker lid (really).  Stay out no matter how good it smells!

Early-on, the firebox vent might be very nearly closed, but as the fire burns down the temperature will tend to drop and you’ll need to open it more and more. I always plan on staying nearby the entire time, checking once every 5-10 minutes. If the temperature should runaway quickly, you could burn the brisket, so close both vents fully, ASAP, and wait for the temp to plunge to perhaps 240. Then open them slowly and let it creep back to 260, and drink less beer. Do not adjust the cooking time or temperature, just get back on plan.

You will not be happy with tough, under-cooked brisket, and 260 will not burn it. Don’t inhale much smoke and have plenty of liquids nearby. It’s a good time to have your laptop and perhaps music also.  Above all, enjoy your time off!

If you have questions, catch me on twitter ( @daytrend ) or email me at daytrend@gmail.com.

Persistence Lists 8/7/2009

To find out what these lists are, please see the Explanation page to the right.

Persistence UP since 7/13
EWBC MI WBS DOW EMN OLN CAR RRD JBL GLBL SM XEC COF AFL MFC MTG SLF EXPE LVS WYNN BC BDK CAT MHK MTW TEX X CTX DHI KBH MAS PHM USG AA CDE MEE PCU AIV BDN BPO CBG CBL CLI DDR DEI HIW HPT JOE LRY MAC SLG ANN CHS JNY WSM

Persistence DOWN since 7/27
NLC BRCD JNPR ORCL ACM FCN MYGN PRGO SVNT APH NVLS RMBS SWKS WFR BHI BJS HAL PXP RIG SLB SWN AB NITE DF SFD UNH AHL SINA JACK AME HSC BJ ADCT TKLC DSX EXC PEG SUG

Persistence Lists 8/6/2009

For an explanation of these lists, please see the Explanation page to the right.

Persistence UP starting 7/13
EWBC MI WBS ASH DOW EMN OLN CAR R JBL SM XEC COF PFG MFC MTG SLF EXPE LVS WYNN BC BDK CAT GDI MHK MTW TEX X CTX DHI KBH MAS PHM USG AA CDE MEE PCU AIV BPO CBG CLI DDR DEI HIW HPT JOE LRY MAC SLG ANN CHS JNY KSU WSM

Persistence DOWN starting 7/27
Note this date was moved up from 7/2 to make the list much more sensitive. It should become particularly useful if the market weakness continues. However, the prior few DOWN lists might provide excellent breakdown trades. It all depends on if and how weakness unfolds.
NLC BRCD JNPR ORCL ACM FCN MYGN SVNT APH NVLS SWKS BJS HAL PXP RIG SLB SWN NITE DF SFD UNH AHL SINA JACK AME HSC BJ ADCT TKLC DSX EXC PEG SUG