Daddy's Thanksgiving Tradition

On this day of Thanksgiving I thought I would share with you a tradition that my Daddy started back in the early 80's.

My Daddy loved to cook, especially bar-b-que.  He had a dream of having his own bar-b-que pit.  So while Daddy travel the state as a union representative, whenever he saw a sign that said bar-b-que, he stopped.

He would order something to eat and then asked to see the pit.  He would ask what they liked about their pit and what they would change.  Then he would ask to take pictures of the pit.

After about 5 years of traveling and getting all types of ideas, Daddy found an idea he wanted to try.  He got with a neighbor, Bud Williams, and together the two of them came up with an awesome pit that they built in an old garage.

This is the pit.  The fire is in the big black thing, called the fire pit, in the front of the picture.  The smoke is pulled through the block structure behind it and up the chimney.

The pit was a true smoker, cooking meat slowly but without the drying effect of meat cooked over a fire.  So Daddy decided to smoke turkeys for family and friends one Thanksgiving.  They were such a hit that a tradition was born

Under the silver lids is where the meat is placed on racks.   We allow the meat to brown and then we warp the meat in tin foil which holds in the moister and keeps the meat from drying out.

The tradition continued until Daddy got sick.  Hubby and I decided to take over the tradition.  So before Daddy's passing, we talked him into letting us do a Thanksgiving cook. He supervised and we did the work!

This is our work bench where we get the meat ready for the pit and our "sink" where we clean up.  If you with note, the sink is an old bath tub!  The hot water tank on the right of the picture holds hot water from the pit.  It circulates around the back of the fire box where it is heated and then is held in the hot water heater until it is needed.

Ever since we have tried to keep the tradition alive by firing up the pit every Thanksgiving and Christmas, while occasionally other times of the year.  This year we cooked about 80 pieces of meat--turkeys, Boston butts, picnic shoulders, brisket, and whole hams.

I didn't get a picture of what the turkeys look like but I did get this picture of how good the Boston butts look!

It's a lot of work, but it's a time that I really enjoy.  It is a time for me to remember the man I miss so much.  Many of the people who we cook for were friends or co-workers with my Daddy.  As they all come to pick up, we share all types of special memories of my Daddy.  It helps to keep his memory alive for me and especially my boys!

Our Thanksgiving Day is usually spent cleaning up and just recovering from the 24 hour cook!  We are not much for eating turkey or ham, especially after cooking as many as we do!

So I want to take this time to thank all of you for reading and especially the comment love so many of you share with me on a daily bases!  I thank God each day for each of you in my life! 

Thanks again for stopping by....

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