I walk past that 5th Street site every day. Honestly, this feels like praising someone for not spilling their coffee while walking. They used spotters and went slow because the law requires it and their insurance demands it. This is just the basic job for any crew in a city. We act like it's some huge feat when it's really just the bare minimum of not dropping a beam on a pedestrian.

Your brother might be onto something about tenderness, but bark improvement is huge. A dry cook gives you that crisp exterior faster, especially on something like a brisket flat. The trade-off is you gotta watch internal temps closer since there's less buffer against heat spikes. Maybe try it without water for a pork shoulder but keep it for leaner cuts like chicken breast?

Reading this, @michael_burns, I realized my DIY dreams would end with a glowing, moldy mess.

My buddy tried that once and passed out cold.

But what if it ruins the whole dish? Look @the_richard, calling it just a binder doesn't help. The line is so thin between enough and too much. One extra pinch and the whole thing turns into a gluey mess. Texture should come from the real ingredients, not some add-in. It's a band-aid fix for a problem that doesn't need to exist.