Newbie questions about long/overnight cooks...


 
J

Jason Paul

TVWBB Member
OK please bear with me - newbie here with practically no experience with outdoor cooking.

Anyway, I just got an 18.5" WSM and haven't used it yet. I think I may start with something really relatively short and easy like sausages or chicken legs/thighs - just to learn temp control and season the WSM a bit.

But, I think my first "real" cook will probably be a pork butt. Reading around here, it seems I should plan on a good 12-ish hour cook if I use an 8-9 lb. butt. On top of that, plan on letting it rest for 2-3 hours.

So, I'm collecting my options.

I can put it on around 2-3am and let it cook until 2-3pm or so, and plan to serve it at 6-ish. That would give me a few hours to let it rest, and also provides a little extra time just in case. This has it cooking mostly during the day when I'm awake, so I can tend to it.

Or, I can put it on the night before, say 10-11pm, let it cook overnight, and plan to serve it mid-afternoon. This sounds good because I wouldn't have to get up at 2-3am, and could theoretically let it cook overnight while I sleep.

All that said - I question option two. I've read several stories here about people getting their WSMs to go for 10-12 hours without having to add charcoal, but is it really feasible to expect to just load up the WSM and go to sleep all night? I mean, it's not a crock pot. Also, I currently don't have an electronic/alerting/fancy thermometer, so I'm guessing this may be not be the best idea for my first long cook.

Also, how safe is it to just let it go overnight while you sleep? Wouldn't that fall under the "leaving a fire unattended" category? Or, am I just being overly cautious? How many of you actually start a cook before you go to sleep, and just sleep all night leaving the WSM unattended?

Thanks,
Jason
 
Jason Paul said:
OK please bear with me - newbie here with practically no experience with outdoor cooking.

Anyway, I just got an 18.5" WSM and haven't used it yet. I think I may start with something really relatively short and easy like sausages or chicken legs/thighs - just to learn temp control and season the WSM a bit.

But, I think my first "real" cook will probably be a pork butt. Reading around here, it seems I should plan on a good 12-ish hour cook if I use an 8-9 lb. butt. On top of that, plan on letting it rest for 2-3 hours.

So, I'm collecting my options.

I can put it on around 2-3am and let it cook until 2-3pm or so, and plan to serve it at 6-ish. That would give me a few hours to let it rest, and also provides a little extra time just in case. This has it cooking mostly during the day when I'm awake, so I can tend to it.

I think this isn't enough time, you may find yourself wanting more than 12 or even more than 15 hours of cooking + resting time

Or, I can put it on the night before, say 10-11pm, let it cook overnight, and plan to serve it mid-afternoon. This sounds good because I wouldn't have to get up at 2-3am, and could theoretically let it cook overnight while I sleep.much better option. this gives you plenty of time to cook it all the way through, and you can rest it wrapped in towels in a cooler for over four hours

All that said - I question option two. I've read several stories here about people getting their WSMs to go for 10-12 hours without having to add charcoal, but is it really feasible to expect to just load up the WSM and go to sleep all night? I mean, it's not a crock pot. Also, I currently don't have an electronic/alerting/fancy thermometer, so I'm guessing this may be not be the best idea for my first long cook.

If you use a completely full charcoal ring, there's no issue with it going all night. And if you use the minion method and your vents to control temperature to get it stable before you go to sleep, and use no water in the water pan (water pan boiling dry will cause temperatures to spike, they're more stable in this way if you start it dry), there's not really any risk of major temperature spikes. Also you'll only be sleeping for the first 7-8 hours of the cook, and can attend to it in the morning, too

Also, how safe is it to just let it go overnight while you sleep? Wouldn't that fall under the "leaving a fire unattended" category? Or, am I just being overly cautious? How many of you actually start a cook before you go to sleep, and just sleep all night leaving the WSM unattended?

I sleep when using my WSM all the time, but it is located well away from my house on some patio paver bricks. The fire stays well contained but that's not to say that nothing will happen. I just haven't seen any issues. Maybe a rogue bear or your dog would tip it over if you're unlucky.

Thanks,
Jason
Click to expand...

Welcome new member
 
When I first started doing long cooks I started with getting up in the middle of the night to throw it on, and I found out after a few, that it really really really sucked to do that. Then I moved to overnight cooks, which were far better. With some practice you can definitely leave it overnight and it can hold temp without a problem. As far as leaving a fire unattended, as long as you're not in hurricane strength winds I wouldn't worry about leaving the WSM. It's not like it's a huge bonfire that's burning out of control.

My experience with butts is that you'd love to plan for 1.5 hours/lb, but if you're cooking at 225, I've found that they tend to go more towards the 2 hours/lb. I usually throw my stuff on around 8 or 9pm, and I'll get up around 6am to check my temps/coals. After doing cooks where we ended up waiting for the meat to finish I started shooting for early afternoon done times, and resting from 2-4 hours in a cooler. There's a lot less stress when cooking for a crowd knowing that the food is ready whenever you want to serve it.
 
Jason Paul said:
I think my first "real" cook will probably be a pork butt. Reading around here, it seems I should plan on a good 12-ish hour cook if I use an 8-9 lb. butt. On top of that, plan on letting it rest for 2-3 hours.

So, I'm collecting my options.
--------
Also, how safe is it to just let it go overnight while you sleep? Wouldn't that fall under the "leaving a fire unattended" category? Or, am I just being overly cautious? How many of you actually start a cook before you go to sleep, and just sleep all night leaving the WSM unattended?

Thanks,
Jason
Click to expand...

Welcome, Jason.
I agree with most of what everyone else said, except that I'd fill the water pan (with hot water) at the start of the cook --nit won't run dry by morning. I start butts and briskets at 11:00p or midnight all the time and the WSM is a champ at overnight cooks.The temperature of a minion fire will largely depend on how many briquettes you start with. Use 20 if you want to stay in the 225-250 range. WSMs are "happy" in that range.

There is very little danger of the WSM fire getting out of control while you sleep. The usual precautions should be taken, like keeping a good clearance (3' or better) to any flammables. The only fear I have out in the country is that some wildlife might inadvertently run into it in the dark, but the noise would likely wake me. :)

Jeff
 
I do overnight cooks fairly often. I use a wireless thermometer to warn me if it over or under temps. Typically it doesn't go off if I dial in the temp well. That takes some practice or at least it did for me. I run it on my deck even. I doubt it's that safe but I've never had trouble. I'd be more concerned running lump charcoal that can throw off some sparks. KBB doesn't. There are precautions you can take.
 
I usually start my overnight cooks at 10:00 or 11:00 PM. Then I make sure my temp is stable at 225-230 before going to bed. Then at 6:00 AM. I get up and check temp and charcoal usage. I don't use water in the pan. After the pork is done I double foil and wrap with old towels and put in a cooler. It will stay hot at least 3 hours if not more. Good luck! As long as your temps are not too hot it will cook beautifully. Have a good thermometer to check to internal temp and be sure you don't hit the big bone in the roast when checking.
 
If I am following things correctly, this would be your 2nd smoke on the WSM. I personally think this is to soon to do an overnight smoke. My personal experience, it took about 8-10 smokes to get consistent temps. You need to get some junk build up in that smoker. This is just my .02!
 
I agree with what Ryan says (maybe not 8 to 10 cooks though), plus you may want to try something in between like spare ribs before jumping from chicken to butts. This is usually a 5 to 6 hour cook. Also, go with t full ring of charcoal so you can get an idea of how long you can go and how the temp fluctuate. While doing the long burn, you could throw things on like ABT's, sausage, wings or whatever just to keep it interesting.
 
Thanks for the replies - definitely some good stuff.

Originally I was going to just do one or two short cooks - sausages, chicken, etc. But I think you guys are right that I should probably do a few more for the experience, and I like the idea of letting it burn for several hours (learning temp control), and just cooking stuff throughout the day, including a more mid-time meat like ribs or something.

Right now, I'm planning to learn how to control it without water in the pan. From what I've been reading here, it seems that most either cook without water, or use a clay saucer.

Also good to hear that it's pretty safe to let it go overnight (when that time comes). I wasn't loving the idea of getting up in the middle of the night to start a cook. So, when I'm ready to do an actual long cook, I'll plan on putting it on somewhere in the 9:00-11:00 range.

I have a small back yard, but plan to put down a section of decomposed granite to put the WSM (and the other grill) on, which would probably put it 8-10 feet away from the house and fence. This should keep it pretty safe to do an overnight cook, when I'm ready for that.

Thanks again - all comments and tips are appreciated.
 
I did 20 pounds of pork butt a few weekends ago in about 7.5 hours at 275 degrees. I would get your WSM up to around 275 and you can throw your pork butt on around 7 or 8 and have it done in plenty of time.
 
I'm with Trail B. I don't cook anything in the WSM at less than 275 unless I need to stretch out a cook, waterless also. Good luck on your future cooks, the WSM is great cooker.
 
I like the 2AM start. All the wild animal noises at that time are really fun. Plus, it's not too early to drink beer, because it's really late! :) Figure on a minimum of 12 hours cook time. A remote thermometer lets you get a few hours of sleeping off the beer.
 
Overnight cooks are great. In time, you'll be comfortable enough with you WSM that you will have no problems with leaving the fire overnight. I will say though that even with my WSM being able to hold temp very well (rock solid) for a long time (over 12 hours), you do lose some sleep on an overnight. What I like to do is get the fire going and put the meat on around 11pm. Take about an hour or two to get the fire stabilized. Get some sleep (4-6 hours). Check the fire (usually everything okay). Now I'm up so I do whatever around the house until the meat is done. When the meat is done, I wrap it and hold it in a cooler and then I get cleaned up and if I'm tired, take a nap in the chair for an hour or so. When I get up, it's time to get the sides ready and do whatever else is necessary for the meal and the guests. Sometimes, it's just pulling the pork. Other times it's setting a table and feeding the family. Either way, all is good.
 
I agree with a lot of whats been said here. Whenever I smoke a butt or brisket its an overnight cook. The wsm is great at that. your first few you probably won't get much sleep, but as you gain experience you'll sleep just fine. You'll want to get a wireless thermometer, it makes live Sooo much better. the therm on the lid is pretty much worthless. I run my butts 250-275° w/o water in the pan. I foil the water pan also. Cook till prob tender and then hold in a cooler for 2-3hrs+. I'll usually foil the butts around 170°IT.
 
Jason Paul said:
OK please bear with me - newbie here with practically no experience with outdoor cooking.

Anyway, I just got an 18.5" WSM and haven't used it yet. I think I may start with something really relatively short and easy like sausages or chicken legs/thighs - just to learn temp control and season the WSM a bit.

But, I think my first "real" cook will probably be a pork butt. Reading around here, it seems I should plan on a good 12-ish hour cook if I use an 8-9 lb. butt. On top of that, plan on letting it rest for 2-3 hours.

So, I'm collecting my options.

I can put it on around 2-3am and let it cook until 2-3pm or so, and plan to serve it at 6-ish. That would give me a few hours to let it rest, and also provides a little extra time just in case. This has it cooking mostly during the day when I'm awake, so I can tend to it.

Or, I can put it on the night before, say 10-11pm, let it cook overnight, and plan to serve it mid-afternoon. This sounds good because I wouldn't have to get up at 2-3am, and could theoretically let it cook overnight while I sleep.

All that said - I question option two. I've read several stories here about people getting their WSMs to go for 10-12 hours without having to add charcoal, but is it really feasible to expect to just load up the WSM and go to sleep all night? I mean, it's not a crock pot. Also, I currently don't have an electronic/alerting/fancy thermometer, so I'm guessing this may be not be the best idea for my first long cook.

Also, how safe is it to just let it go overnight while you sleep? Wouldn't that fall under the "leaving a fire unattended" category? Or, am I just being overly cautious? How many of you actually start a cook before you go to sleep, and just sleep all night leaving the WSM unattended?

Thanks,
Jason
Click to expand...

All my briskets and pork butts in my 22.5 are over night cooks. I set my temp at 215-20, fire it up at 4 pm and it burns slow all night long. I usually don't have to touch it till noon the next day. I do suggest getting a temp control device. I use the Digi DXII. Set the low and high alarms and sleep well. A Maverick remote thermometer is also a nice back up. The biggest danger is the fire going out without you knowing about it.
 
Thanks again all. I'll try to keep all of this in mind when I'm ready to do my first long cook, and even for short-cook practice runs.

As it is, we've had heavy rains each weekend since I assembled the WSM, and I haven't even set up my spot in the yard to get it properly set up. So, I'm not even ready to do a short cook yet at this point. Hopefully next weekend I'll be able to either get some of those 16" cement paver-things (temporary set up), or get the actual decomposed granite to build my more permanent spot.

I don't want to just set it out in the yard on the grass, nor do I want to set it up on my back porch (covered, and too small/close to the house).
 
I would give an overnight cook a go. If you follow the Renowned Mr. Brown recipe/times you'll do fine. You'll probably lose some sleep on your first few but the results are worth it.

http://virtualweberbullet.com/pork2.html
(I don't do the mop in the recipe, btw)

I typically start getting everything set up the day before 5 hours after the time we are eating the following day so for lunch time I usually start setting up at 5pm for dinner I start setting up around 10pm.

Follow the vent openings in the recipe, top is open 100%, bottom I start at 25% to 50% and that usually works well for the first 12 hours. I do usually add more briquettes in the AM to get through the last few hours and top off the pan with hot water (out of the tap in kitchen).

Use the minion method with kingsford (I use lump for day cooks, but to get started kingsford seems to keep a more uniform temp) and wood chunks (not soaked). Start with 20 to 30 lit briquettes. (If it's warm out use 20 if it's cooler use closer to 30 maybe 40 in winter). Dump these on top of your minion setup, stack up the WSM and let the temperature settle in.

I use a digital thermometer through a cork through one of the top vents. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000CF5MT/tvwb-20 I also have a stoker that I can monitor from my phone (grate temp and two butts).

Ok, so let it go for a half hour or 45 minutes, and watch the temp on your digital thermometer. Typically it will zero in to around 225 or 250 after a half hour and will typically hold that temp for 12 hours or so.

I start out with hot water in my pan.

I usually cook 2 or 4 butts to make it worth my time doing a cook and I usually do it when they are on sale and then freeze the rest for later or give it to family/friends.

I do have a stoker, I don't use the fan though as the WSM holds the temp fine on it's own. I do set it up so I can check the temp when I wake up in the night. That's nice if you can setup a similar system.

Before I had that I would stay up till around midnight, checking the temp every hour or so. If it looked good I would sleep for an hour or two, set an alarm to get up and go out and check the temp.

If you wake up and the temp drops just open the vents a little and check it again in an hour, don't over adjust, give it time to settle in.

The next day you can start checking the temp about 3 to 4 hours before the time you planned to eat. Usually it will hit temp around an hour before you planned to eat.

At that point take a drink cooler, place a towel in the bottom, wrap the butts in foil as they hit temp (190-195, check temp with your instant read therometer you're using in the top vent, just put it back afterward) and place them in cooler. I usually like to have them in the cooler for an hour but you can hold them for a few hours. Basically just pull them as you need them.

As far as safety, I have a few paver stones that I setup the WSM on away from the house in a circle area that we use for 'camp fires/smore's' it's a mulch circle so I soak it down with the hose before cooks. As long as you don't have really strong winds or an adventurous animal I don't expect it would tip over. I wouldn't place it on a wood deck attached the house or right next to the house though. Do what you are comfortable with.

Good luck, go for it, practice makes perfect.
 
Jason Paul said:
Thanks again all. I'll try to keep all of this in mind when I'm ready to do my first long cook, and even for short-cook practice runs.

As it is, we've had heavy rains each weekend since I assembled the WSM, and I haven't even set up my spot in the yard to get it properly set up. So, I'm not even ready to do a short cook yet at this point. Hopefully next weekend I'll be able to either get some of those 16" cement paver-things (temporary set up), or get the actual decomposed granite to build my more permanent spot.

I don't want to just set it out in the yard on the grass, nor do I want to set it up on my back porch (covered, and too small/close to the house).
Click to expand...

Living in Florida, the BBQ area must have a roof, especially when using a non-waterproof PLC to control temps.
 
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