Shopping an Outdoor Smoker. Advice needed!

[HD MM]

Oh man! Sounds good. Let us know how it goes. My first attempt at a briskett was a bit off. I broke all of the rules, but am eager to correct it. Good luck.

How'd the brisket turn out?

What size? Where did you get it? Which recipe did you follow? What did you keep the smoker temp to? How long?

I'm doing a brisket and ribs for a 4th of July BBQ and would be interested in some tips.

 

[stimpson]

How'd the brisket turn out?

What size? Where did you get it? Which recipe did you follow? What did you keep the smoker temp to? How long?

I'm doing a brisket and ribs for a 4th of July BBQ and would be interested in some tips.

Sorry for the delay. The brisket turned out great. Bought it at Kroger. It was a 7# flat. Applied a rub I got from the book "Smoke & Spice". Had to set the WSM up in the garage because of rain and winds predicted. Lit the Royal Oak (using the Minion Method) at 0800. Let the temp come up to 250 at the lid, and put the brisket on. No water in the pan. I am using a foil rapped 14" clay flower pot base, placed on top of the empty water pan. Added 3 Mesquite and 1 hickory lump to the coals. Smoke was on. About an hour into it here comes the rain and wind. Had to constantly adjust the lower vents to keep the temp stable. After a couple hours of that, the rain stopped, sun came out, and the temp stableized at around 235 at the lid. After 11 hours it had an internal temp of 180. Pulled it, wrapped it foil, then a towel, into a cooler for about an hour. Wow!!!!. We ate the last of it last night. Family loved it. The next one I do I will take pics. The wife had the camera at our sons friends B-day party.

 

[HD MM]

Sorry for the delay. The brisket turned out great. Bought it at Kroger. It was a 7# flat. Applied a rub I got from the book "Smoke & Spice". Had to set the WSM up in the garage because of rain and winds predicted. Lit the Royal Oak (using the Minion Method) at 0800. Let the temp come up to 250 at the lid, and put the brisket on. No water in the pan. I am using a foil rapped 14" clay flower pot base, placed on top of the empty water pan. Added 3 Mesquite and 1 hickory lump to the coals. Smoke was on. About an hour into it here comes the rain and wind. Had to constantly adjust the lower vents to keep the temp stable. After a couple hours of that, the rain stopped, sun came out, and the temp stableized at around 235 at the lid. After 11 hours it had an internal temp of 180. Pulled it, wrapped it foil, then a towel, into a cooler for about an hour. Wow!!!!. We ate the last of it last night. Family loved it. The next one I do I will take pics. The wife had the camera at our sons friends B-day party.

Thanks for the update. I have that "Smoke & Spice" book too. Good stuff.

When you get the opportunity, check out the Jamaican Jerk Rub they have in there. It is hands down one of my favorites for pork! All of the ingredients go so well together.

I plan on doing an overnight cook, starting at midnight on Thursday. I will try and provide pictures this time.

BTW, did you make sandwiches out of the brisket? Did you use horseradish or an Au jus? Just looking for when I serve mine on the 4th....

 

[navychop]

Are you referring to "Smoke & Spice: Cooking with Smoke, the Real Way to Barbecue" by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison? Or one of the others with similar names. I'm checking Amazon.

 

[HD MM]

Are you referring to "Smoke & Spice: Cooking with Smoke, the Real Way to Barbecue" by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison? Or one of the others with similar names. I'm checking Amazon.

That's the exact title I'm referring to.

Definitely a great buy. It has one of the largest collections of rubs and methods of any other book I've found on this subject. The wife bought it for me for Christmas.

 

[navychop]

Thank you. I'll order one tonight.

 

[stimpson]

That's a great book. I was using a friends older one. Got my new in from Amazon yesterday.
HD MM The first night we ate it sliced. After it cooled, i shredded what was left, and we have been eating sandwiches. Good stuff. I'll add one tip on the type of fuel. The Royal Oak lump burns for a long time, and has very little ash, but it's harder to get a consistant temp. The next one i'll do will be with regular Kingsford. It gets high marks for burn time and very consistant temps through out the smoke. People have gotten 16-18 hour smokes out of one full charcoal ring. You just end up with a lot of ash. Oh well. Hope this helps.

 

[HD MM]

That's a great book. I was using a friends older one. Got my new in from Amazon yesterday.
HD MM The first night we ate it sliced. After it cooled, i shredded what was left, and we have been eating sandwiches. Good stuff. I'll add one tip on the type of fuel. The Royal Oak lump burns for a long time, and has very little ash, but it's harder to get a consistant temp. The next one i'll do will be with regular Kingsford. It gets high marks for burn time and very consistant temps through out the smoke. People have gotten 16-18 hour smokes out of one full charcoal ring. You just end up with a lot of ash. Oh well. Hope this helps.

Sounds good. I got a couple large bags of Kigsford at Sams the other day. I should be set. I just cross my fingers that the wind and rain hold off on Thursday night...

 

[stimpson]

Hey HD, how'd the smoke go?

 

[HD MM]

Hey HD, how'd the smoke go?

Oh man, glad you asked.....

I slathered the 10lb brisket with mustard before rubbing with a variation of Wild Willy's Rub and refrigerated until 10pm.....

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup salt
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 teaspoons cayenne

At apx 11:15pm on Thursday (July 3rd) night, I started the WSM using the minion method. (loaded the charcoal ring full of unlit briquettes and 6 hickory chunks, then poured 20 lit briquettes on top).

By Midnight, the smoker was up to 225°F and I put the brisket in. I had a few beers and made sure the smoker maintained a temp. range of 225-250°F before I went to bed. I had the bottom 3 dampers apx 25% open to maintain this temp.

I kept waking up in the middle of the night, fearing that either the fire went out in the smoker or the temperture rose way out of control and my brisket would be ruined....

However, when I checked on it at 7:30am, the teamp was at apx 265°F and the brisket looked great. I had to add water to the pan at this time though. The temp went back down to the 245°F after I did this.

At apx 10:30am I put the ribs in the smoker.

It wasn't until 12 hours later that I needed to refuel.

I took an internal brisket temperture reading at 12 hours into the smoke and it was at 185°. A half hour later, I came back and it was exactly 190° and I took it off, wrapped in heavy duty foil and threw it into the cooler. It stayed warm until 4pm, when we ended up eating.

The baby backs turned out well too. I smoked 3 racks in apx 5 hours.

I sauced the ribs and cut into individual bones and sliced the brisket against the grain in long strips for easy serving. I had a horesradish sauce accompany the brisket slices and made brisket sandwiches.

Needless to say, the 10 people we served were quite impressed. Some never even heard of the "smoking process" and were facinated when I showed them the WSM. Everyone loved the taste.

Sorry, I didn't take any pictures as I was too busy entertaining and grilling other foods to remember...

 

[stimpson]

Oh man, glad you asked.....

I slathered the 10lb brisket with mustard before rubbing with a variation of Wild Willy's Rub and refrigerated until 10pm.....

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup salt
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 teaspoons cayenne

At apx 11:15pm on Thursday (July 3rd) night, I started the WSM using the minion method. (loaded the charcoal ring full of unlit briquettes and 6 hickory chunks, then poured 20 lit briquettes on top).

By Midnight, the smoker was up to 225°F and I put the brisket in. I had a few beers and made sure the smoker maintained a temp. range of 225-250°F before I went to bed. I had the bottom 3 dampers apx 25% open to maintain this temp.

I kept waking up in the middle of the night, fearing that either the fire went out in the smoker or the temperture rose way out of control and my brisket would be ruined....

However, when I checked on it at 7:30am, the teamp was at apx 265°F and the brisket looked great. I had to add water to the pan at this time though. The temp went back down to the 245°F after I did this.

At apx 10:30am I put the ribs in the smoker.

It wasn't until 12 hours later that I needed to refuel.

I took an internal brisket temperture reading at 12 hours into the smoke and it was at 185°. A half hour later, I came back and it was exactly 190° and I took it off, wrapped in heavy duty foil and threw it into the cooler. It stayed warm until 4pm, when we ended up eating.

The baby backs turned out well too. I smoked 3 racks in apx 5 hours.

I sauced the ribs and cut into individual bones and sliced the brisket against the grain in long strips for easy serving. I had a horesradish sauce accompany the brisket slices and made brisket sandwiches.

Needless to say, the 10 people we served were quite impressed. Some never even heard of the "smoking process" and were facinated when I showed them the WSM. Everyone loved the taste.

Sorry, I didn't take any pictures as I was too busy entertaining and grilling other foods to remember...

Outstanding!!!!!!!! Glad to hear it. Which rack did you have the brisket on, and which one did you put the ribs on? Also, where are you taking the cooker temps from? I installed a Trend thermometer in the lid. It turned out very nice. I then use a Polder meat thermometer ran through one the eyelets I got from BBQ Guru. I did a rack of baby backs for 5.5 hrs using the 3-2-1 method at a temp of around 235. When they were done I pulled them, rewrapped them and into a cooler. For the chicken, I used the method from the Bullet web site. The one where you do the brine for 4 hrs the day prior. Got a full chimney of coals going and poured in, opened up all the vents, got the temp up to 375, and put the chicken on. Right at the one hour mark the chicken was right at 160. Pulled it, unwrapped the ribs and put both on a cookie sheet loosely wrapped for about 15-20 minutes. Man, they both turned out perfect. About 1 hr after we ate I went back out to grab a quick smoke during a commercial from the race, I obviously forgot to close the vents on the smoker, that joker was up to 400 F. This is one amazing cooker.

 

[HD MM]

Outstanding!!!!!!!! Glad to hear it. Which rack did you have the brisket on, and which one did you put the ribs on? Also, where are you taking the cooker temps from? I installed a Trend thermometer in the lid. It turned out very nice. I then use a Polder meat thermometer ran through one the eyelets I got from BBQ Guru. I did a rack of baby backs for 5.5 hrs using the 3-2-1 method at a temp of around 235. When they were done I pulled them, rewrapped them and into a cooler. For the chicken, I used the method from the Bullet web site. The one where you do the brine for 4 hrs the day prior. Got a full chimney of coals going and poured in, opened up all the vents, got the temp up to 375, and put the chicken on. Right at the one hour mark the chicken was right at 160. Pulled it, unwrapped the ribs and put both on a cookie sheet loosely wrapped for about 15-20 minutes. Man, they both turned out perfect. About 1 hr after we ate I went back out to grab a quick smoke during a commercial from the race, I obviously forgot to close the vents on the smoker, that joker was up to 400 F. This is one amazing cooker.

I had the brisket on the top rack the entire time. I have a rib rack that stacks up to 4 racks horizontally. I put that on the bottom, but moved them to the top once the brisket was done. (apx 2 hours from the time I put the ribs on).

I use a this probe thermometer to monitor the inside of the smoker temperture. I just dangle the probe through one of the top damper holes. The digital monitor is magnetic on the back, so I string the probe's wire to the monitor and have the monitor attached to a metal latch on my shed, which is near the smoker. Works out perfectly. My wife complains that I need to buy her a new digital thermometer since I got hers all mucked up with smoke residue!

When I feel it's time to check the internal meat temperture, I just insert the same thermometer to check periodically. For the brisket, I inserted it horizontally through the flat.

Next time I do an overnight cook, I will definitely be able to sleep with no worries after this great experience.

I've already got requests to do Thanksgiving this year. I'll probably want to try and smoke a whole ham for that occasion. I'm still hesitant to smoke a turkey, so I'll probably just deep fry it instead.....

 

[stimpson]

I had the brisket on the top rack the entire time. I have a rib rack that stacks up to 4 racks horizontally. I put that on the bottom, but moved them to the top once the brisket was done. (apx 2 hours from the time I put the ribs on).

I use a this probe thermometer to monitor the inside of the smoker temperture. I just dangle the probe through one of the top damper holes. The digital monitor is magnetic on the back, so I string the probe's wire to the monitor and have the monitor attached to a metal latch on my shed, which is near the smoker. Works out perfectly. My wife complains that I need to buy her a new digital thermometer since I got hers all mucked up with smoke residue!

When I feel it's time to check the internal meat temperture, I just insert the same thermometer to check periodically. For the brisket, I inserted it horizontally through the flat.

Next time I do an overnight cook, I will definitely be able to sleep with no worries after this great experience.

I've already got requests to do Thanksgiving this year. I'll probably want to try and smoke a whole ham for that occasion. I'm still hesitant to smoke a turkey, so I'll probably just deep fry it instead.....

Cool. Thanks for the info. Have you given any thought on doing a high temp brisket?

 

[HD MM]

Cool. Thanks for the info. Have you given any thought on doing a high temp brisket?

Not really. I was happy with the 225-250°F low and slow results. I wouldn't want to risk jeopardizing the tenderness by speeding up the process any.

 

[navychop]

Just saw a BGE. It really does have less capacity than a WSM. And no water tray, plus the fire is closer to the food. Odd.

 

[HD MM]

Just saw a BGE. It really does have less capacity than a WSM. And no water tray, plus the fire is closer to the food. Odd.

BGE's come in multiple sizes. You must have seen the Tier-1 BGE, which is still 5x the price of the WSM.

 

[navychop]

XL & medium, and he gave me the measurements for the Large (about 18" grill). Even the XL only has a single level, about 24" across, and costs over a thousand- without stand or options. Medium, about 16" grill.

 

[charper1]

Oh man, glad you asked.....

I slathered the 10lb brisket with mustard before rubbing with a variation of Wild Willy's Rub and refrigerated until 10pm.....

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup ground black pepper (lighter here for our tastes)
• 1/4 cup salt (lighter here for our tastes)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons chili powder (New Mexico Anaheim)
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 teaspoons cayenne

Looks like the same rub I do. Substituting the cayenne for a mix of Ancho, Chipotle & Mexican oregano

 

[HD MM]

XL & medium, and he gave me the measurements for the Large (about 18" grill). Even the XL only has a single level, about 24" across, and costs over a thousand- without stand or options. Medium, about 16" grill.

Wow. That is surprising. All that money for a big green ceramic cooker!? I'll take the (2) 18.5" cooking levels on the WSM any day over that pricey egg.

My Brisket was almost 18" long and fit just perfectly when I put it on the other day. Same thing with ribs, length wise. I can't imagine having to cut those pieces of meat to have to accommodate a smaller surface.

 

[navychop]

Wow. That is surprising. All that money for a big green ceramic cooker!? I'll take the (2) 18.5" cooking levels on the WSM any day over that pricey egg.

Yep- my thoughts exactly. My money is staying in my pocket. I might one day look at a Grill Dome again, but the itch has faded.