Hello to All

[GSDC]

My wife purchased a #1 for me for Christmas (the #2's were out of stock apparently).  A neighbor turned me on to these units, as he has a #2 and cooks some mighty good BBQ with it.  After leaving numerous hints to what I wanted for Christmas, I was excited to see this beauty in my garage on December 25th. 

My prior experience with smoking has included 2 Brinkman units, which I didn't use very often because I was frustrated with temperature control (and therefore cooking time).  I mostly used it for smoked chickens...and th occasional smoked pizza!  My best success came from using my large gas grill cooking low and indirect with some soaked, foil-wrapped wood chunks laid on the heat plate over/near the flames.....I've made some excellent pork tenderloins and baby back ribs that way. 

I'm thankful for all the time and effort many of you have put into this forum.  Reading through the posts is a great way to get started cooking with these units.  I look forward to many years of use out of this unit.

One general question about this forum: How do I view the pictures that are attached to the messages?  I see the "paper clip" icon next to the username, but I don't seem to be able to open anything.

 

[swthorpe]

Welcome!  I see many many happy smokes in your future where you will not be frustrated with controlling temps!  These units are truly set and forget...although I did babysit my #2 for the first few smokes just to be sure.    I do use a Maverick remote dual probe temp to monitor the smoker temp and IT of the meat, but you really don't have to check that often.

As for the pics, I am able to see the pictures when I click on the subject of the post...usually the pics are under the text of the post.

Cheers!

 

[GSDC]

Thanks for the quick reply.  Another question:  I used my #1 for the first time last weekend when I smoked a 4.75 pound boston butt (bone in).  The night before, I injected with apple juice, lathered in mustard, and applied a nice rub recipe before wrapping in saran wrap and placing in the fridge overnight.  At that size, I figured 7 hours to cook at 1 1/2 hours per pound....and maybe up to 9.5 hours if it took 2 hours per pound.  To slit the difference, I figured on an 8 hour cook so that I'd have some wiggle-room either way (trying to time it right for guests, etc.).  The next morning, I soaked 4 ounces of hickory for one hour, then put everything into the smoker (without pre-heating the smoker), and set the temp to 225.  I had a single probe meat thermometer that I could use to monitor the IT of the meat, but I didn't have anything to monitor the box temp.  I never opened to box until the end.  However, at 6 hours, I was only at 158 degrees.  At 8 hours, I was only at 165 degrees.  My guests were due to arrive in 30 minutes, so I increased the temp to 250.  At 10 hours cook time, I was only at 185.  It was 7:30pm at this point and I needed to feed my guests at some point, so I took it off, wrapped in foil to let rest for 30 minutes, then served.  Part of the meat was very tender, shredding very easily.  However, the part nearest the bone was tough....I had to use a knife to remove it from the bone.  It was indeed tasty; the smoke flavor and rub were excellent, but it was tougher and drier than I anticipated it being after cooking for such a long time.  Any thoughts on what happened here?  Maybe my unti never got up to the correct temp?  I'm thinking of testing the box temp with it empty....just using the same probe I used for the meat.  Could it have been the meat itself...just a bad/tough piece that would have caused it?  I'm hosting a super bowl party in a few weeks and want to serve some pulled pork sliders, so I gotta get it right this time!  The pressure is on!

 

[DivotMaker]

GS - sounds like you had the right setup going on; not sure why you're cook time was so long for a small butt like that.  You probably need to check your box temp, but don't do it empty - you're readings will be all over the page.  If you want to test without meat, at least put a couple of bricks, or a pan of sand, in there as a heat sink.  My guess is you're reading higher than actual temp on the dial. 

I don't know where you're located...what was the ambient temp during your cook?  If it was really cold, you'll see increased cook time.

Oh, and about the photos - if you were trying to look at them before you were a member (as a "guest"), you can't see them.  Only logged-in members can see pics.

Let us know how the testing goes!

 

[GSDC]

Thanks for the advice.  I will try it out this weekend.  Your posts on the forum are so very helpful. 

 

[GSDC]

The ambient temp was nice...in the high 50's to low 60's.  A bit breezy but nothing extraordinary.  I don't think that was a factor.

 

[swthorpe]

Divot provides good advice, as always!  Boston butt are a real challenge for anticipating time...I have experienced more than 2hours per pound to get to 200F, and other times more like 1.5 hours.  I suspect this has to do with the piece of meat in the smoker.  So, I now budget time for 2+ hours/lb so that I can hopefully finish early rather than late.  Using this method, you can either remove the butt and foil, or just drop the temp back on the unit after reaching the desired IT.    The stall on butts is really hard to sit through, so I am not surprised that you saw a delay in temp after hitting about 160.  Another approach if you are running out of time would be to raise the box temp from 225 to 250, but of all approaches, I recommend starting earlier.

 

[DivotMaker]

Outside temp definitely wasn't the case!  Thought you might have been one of the folks in the great white north!  Like Steve said, butts can be a fickle piece of meat!  On your next one, plan for more time, and maybe set your temp a little higher (230-235) and try that.

 

[Walt]

My understanding is there is no need to soak wood using these units.

 

[DivotMaker]

That's correct, Walt.  Chunks are fine dry, but I hear it's good to soak chips.  I always use chunks, as I like the consistency and slow smoke.  Chips just burn too fast for me.

 

[Walt]

Chips would also be good for low smokes like jerky.