BBQ Smoker problems

krazypolk

polrbehr wrote: »

There is actually not much on the rack at all, maybe a Tbsp spread around, even less on the individual ribs. The sauce is my own, modified from a recipe I got online a few years ago, and I drizzled a little honey and a few shakes of brown sugar at the start of the last hour in the smoker as well (never tried that before, good results though)

Right on, good to hear it wasn't some generic off the shelf stuff.

They look great.

BlueBirdMusic

Gerres26 wrote: »

This can happen to us using kamado "fake" smokers as well. Actually I'd imagine it can happen even easier as the ceramics hold heat better/longer and seal up better as well so as the fire cools you will have condensation build up. If you don't open the lid for a couple weeks you can have a similar outcome as you have here. Easiest fix is to scrape it off, get the kamado started and fire her up to 6 or 700 degrees for a while...all better.

Now I know what my Instant Pot was trying to tell me after not cleaning it for several days.




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All joking aside, this is a great thread. Thanks Jstas!!

I passed by it several times. You can't judge a book Discussion by its cover Discussion Name.

You never know when something is burning or spinning our of control. Each thread needs it's own warning flag.

hochpt21

I’m in the process of my first ever smoke. A small 4lb pork butt. In the stall now, but plenty of time yet. Wish me luck!

delkal

hochpt21 wrote: »

I’m in the process of my first ever smoke. A small 4lb pork butt. In the stall now, but plenty of time yet. Wish me luck!

Best of luck and I am sure you enjoy it. The biggest mistake people make is getting hungry and taking it off too soon. If you do it will be tough and dry. The meat needs time above 180-190 to break down the collagen and get tender and juicy. With a smaller roast like that I would smoke it for about 6 hours then wrap it tightly in 2 layers of foil and finish it at 225 (smoker or oven). Wrapping it stops the stall and it will finish a lot faster. When it is done keep it wrapped for at least an hour. This is the best way when starting out and how a lot of competition cooks do it. Look up the Texas crutch.

Another thing you will find is it is just as much work doing one 4 pound roast as it is with 8-10 pound roast. And on the other empty grate put on a chicken or two. A big piece of kielbasa for a couple of hours is easy too. Load that smoker up.

hochpt21

delkal wrote: »

hochpt21 wrote: »

I’m in the process of my first ever smoke. A small 4lb pork butt. In the stall now, but plenty of time yet. Wish me luck!

Best of luck and I am sure you enjoy it. The biggest mistake people make is getting hungry and taking it off too soon. If you do it will be tough and dry. The meat needs time above 180-190 to break down the collagen and get tender and juicy. With a smaller roast like that I would smoke it for about 6 hours then wrap it tightly in 2 layers of foil and finish it at 225 (smoker or oven). Wrapping it stops the stall and it will finish a lot faster. When it is done keep it wrapped for at least an hour. This is the best way when starting out and how a lot of competition cooks do it. Look up the Texas crutch.

Another thing you will find is it is just as much work doing one 4 pound roast as it is with 8-10 pound roast. And on the other empty grate put on a chicken or two. A big piece of kielbasa for a couple of hours is easy too. Load that smoker up.

Thanks for the info! I’ve done a lot of reading in preparation, and what you say is exactly what I’m doing. I actually just finished wrapping it in foil. It was in the stall for about an hour before I wrapped it. Hopefully, it kicks in again here relatively soon.

polrbehr

What kind of thermometer you got monitoring the cooking? Never saw one with 3 probes before... LOL

Ahh, I see, one of them looks to be connected to a fan to regulate air to the firebox?

pitdogg2

polrbehr wrote: »

What kind of thermometer you got monitoring the cooking? Never saw one with 3 probes before... LOL

Ahh, I see, one of them looks to be connected to a fan to regulate air to the firebox?

I've seen them at Wal-Mart so you can cook more than one item and keep track of all of their internal temps.

hochpt21

polrbehr wrote: »

What kind of thermometer you got monitoring the cooking? Never saw one with 3 probes before... LOL

Ahh, I see, one of them looks to be connected to a fan to regulate air to the firebox?

So it’s a bbq controller. A little bit cheating I’m guessing.

I can set the temp on a controller box and put one probe in the meat and one probe for ambient. The controller box will tell the fan to send puffs of air to the coals via that fan. Yesterday it held temp within 2 degrees for 8 hours and could have gone longer.

It was expensive, but I figure I will use the smoker WAY more if I can sort of set and forget. Got it on Amazon.

Yesterday’s pork butt exceeded my expectations, and was even done in time after using the Texas Crutch. I’m excited to use this thing a lot.

hochpt21

I forgot to take a picture after it was shredded, but it was amazing!

polrbehr

Nice!!^^^
I figured that it was a dual temp probe, just wondering which one you got? I have one
too, mine does meat temp and ambient air. It also has an app that connects to my iPhone so it alerts me if the temp gets too high, also when the meat is within 10 degrees of where you set it. It's pretty cool, and worth it since my smoker is away from the back door and this makes it easy to see if it needs attention.