First try at BBQ wings with pics


 
K

Kyle H.

TVWBB Fan
Doing a batch of wings today and I can't for the life of me get the temp to go above 200. Going to go check with my probe thermometer just to make sure, but if I can't get the temps above 200 how long should I smoke the wings? It's about 7lbs. worth. And they're biggins.

Thank you sirs!
 
Yeah, these were made according to the wing topic here. Do you think I should empty the pan? Not sure if I could pull that off without soaking the whole operation. They've been going for about 2 hours 15 mins at the moment.
 
Unlatch the door and see if you can find something like a chimney lighter to push up next to the door to prop it open so the coals get more air. Then, also, pick up the lit and sit it back down slightly askew so that it is not sitting flush down into the mid - section. That also will get the coals some more air. The combination should get you going. If not, try adding some more lit with a pair of tongs or large spatula through the door opening.


Good Luck!

Pat
 
Hope Kyle doesn't mind me jumping in the thread. I'm rolling a high heat brisket (1st attempt). Interestingly enough, when I prop the door, my temps drop ~50 degrees. I'm stuck at 300 (lid) and can't the temps up to 350. Looking back, I should have not assembled my smoker so fast.

Anyways, what I did just may help Kyle. I propped open my door about 15 minutes or so. When I closed the door and sealed up the WSM again (all vents wide open), my temps jumped up to 320ish. Maybe trying something like this will help.
 
Not really, no idea why. I always assemble immediately and almost always prop the door to boost temps. No water in pan, right?
 
Kevin, correct no water in the pan. It finally got up above 300 after leaving the door open for a bit, then closing. This was my first time trying the "propping the door" method, so it's gotta be my inexperience here. Anyways, temp is up and going well.

Kyle, how did your cook turn out?
 
Hey Kyle, how much room is between the wings on the grill grate? I wonder if they are so tightly packed on the grate that they are blocking the heat from rising from the charcoal bowl to the lid?

Are you using your lower grate? If not, you may try inserting the lower grate and putting roughly half the wings on the lower grate and then see what happens to the temps at the lid.

Just a thought....

Pat
 
They came out great. Did a tear test aftering smoking 3 hours at roughly 195* and they were perfect. Yes, both were full and quite packed so Pat you may have been onto something there, although I didn't notice any difference in doneness. I moved both grates to the bottom right over the coals and basted them with a sauce I made up while continuously turning them. Honestly, I thought they tasted better without the sauce so next time I'll probably serve them naked with the sauce on the side. Crisp skin also eluded me, they turned out soggy and sloppy, but I wouldn't call the cook a failure, they were damn good.
 
Tender, Moist Chicken with crispy skin - the Holy Grail of chicken-cookin, or as we called it when I was in 4-H about 100 years ago - "Chicken-Que"

Glad all turned out well.

Pat
 
Just a note about propping the side door.

Yes it takes a few minutes for this to take effect. Immediately you might lose some heat but eventually the coals get rolling due to the surge of airflow.

Just be careful that you don't leave it too far open. You'd be surprised how much of a difference it makes going from 1/4 to 1/2 inch open.
 
Scotter, thanks for the pointers on the door. I think intially I had the door way too open and was just simply loosing heat. A little pratice never hurt anyone though.

Looking back, I tried starting the coals for a high heat cook using the minion method, starting with a full lit chimney. I immediately choked it down by assembling, including the lid. Next time I want to do a high heat cook, I'll start using the standard method (full lit, then unlit on top) which has always produced a constant 325 to 350 for my WSM. One other spot I skipped was letting all the coals get going.
 
It all depends on what you are looking to do. I always start with a Minion for high heat cooks, and use about 20-25 lit, double my usual amount. I am not all that interested in starting off high, and like the control I get (and the additional smokewood time) by ramping the temps up from the bottom.

You certainly can start with the standard method. My point is that you don't have to.
 
Originally posted by K Kruger:
It all depends on what you are looking to do. I always start with a Minion for high heat cooks, and use about 20-25 lit, double my usual amount. I am not all that interested in starting off high, and like the control I get (and the additional smokewood time) by ramping the temps up from the bottom.

You certainly can start with the standard method. My point is that you don't have to.
Click to expand...

When I do high heat cooks which are minimal on the WSM (spatchcock & RSC chicken and pit beef), I do them the same as Kevin and agree that either method will work but I prefer the modified MM as well.
 
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