First smoke in my new to me SI 3

[sabireley]

I’m doing a pork butt brined overnight and rubbed with Memphis Dust.  It’s going in the smoker @5:45 AM.  6oz of hickory.  Auber set to 225 with a meat set point of 195 degrees. 

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[swthorpe]

Let us know how your first butt turns out!    At 225*, you will likely need 1.5+ hours per pound to reach your desired temp.  Don't panic in the stall when the meat temp seems to never change (around 165-175) -- the meat temp will rise in good time!    Also, if you can, try to allow at least an hour (preferably more) for the butt to rest after you are done smoking--I usually double foil, wrap in a towel and let it rest in a cooler.

Remember...no pics, the smoke never happened!   Cheers

[sabireley]

10 hours since putting it in cold and in the stall.  I’m patiently waiting. Pics to follow.

[old sarge]

The stall is when I mow the yard 

[sabireley]

The butt taste good and is super moist.  I had really good bark and the fat melted out nicely. Pics attached.

Some observations and issues…
 I smoked a 6lb boneless butt.
 I used 6 oz of very dry hickory.  The smoke flavor is present by not that strong. The smoke flavor is throughout, so that’s good.
The Auber was exactly on 225 the entire smoke, so the AT worked. 

It took 14 hours to reach 195.  I had the probe mounted on the top shelf near the top and had the butt on the next closest shelf that would fit right under the probe.  I verified the smoke temp and meat temp with a decent instant read so that was all ok.  I think maybe the probe was a few degrees hotter than where the meat was located. I read on here that the OEM probe placement is near the top rather than where it is in my model 3 (about half way up the back). 

I like they idea of a clip on probe so I can keep it clean and don’t have the wire exposed where it could get pulled or chewed if permanently attached through the back.
 I have read through a bunch of posts over the last week so thought I had it in the bag and would be ready to eat at 5. 
Any advice is appreciated.
 Thanks!

[swthorpe]

It looks like your first butt was successful -- congratulations!!   The one unknown about every piece of meat is the length of time it will take to reach the desired IT -- I will admit 14 hours for a 6# butt is a long time!   For the next run, you might want to try increasing the set temp to 235-240 instead of 225.    The amount of wood sounds about right, but if it was very dry, then the wood likely caught fire and was consumed too quickly.  It you experienced the "belch" blast of smoke in the first heating cycle, then the wood caught fire.  For the next smoke, you might get better smoke with wood that has a higher moisture content.

I think the greatest challenge with smoking is what you experienced this time -- estimating when to start the smoke to reach a target serving time!   I commend you for not stopping the smoke at 4pm to meet a 5pm dinner---I did this on my first butt and regretted the outcome (we ended up with pizza)!   For the next butt, you might want to use a 2 hour/pound estimate with an additional hour for resting -- it is always better to finish early and just let the meat rest.

All in all, though, your butt looks great, and you are off and running!!!  Cheers

[sabireley]

Thank you for the reply.  I would say the wood caught fire as there was quite a bit of smoke early.  The pieces were about an ounce each and they were ash when I checked this morning.  They are several years old (5 or 6 ant least) and came with the smoker when I bought it.

So the probe positioning near the back and 3 inches from the top seems ok?

I bought a a separate remote thermometer with multiple probes to monitor what’s happening in case a probe on the Auber goes bad during a smoke and to satisfy my engineering mind.

Thanks again!

[old sarge]

Looks like a successful smoke.  Nice bark.  Well done and congrats.