Clean Burn


 
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Musky-Hunter

TVWBB Member
I've noticed several threads referring to a clean burn on this board. What exactly does this mean? Does it mean, no flame ups? Not too much smoke?

This weekend was my first attempt on a WSM with ribs. I couldn?t get the temp up using the Minion method. At the point it dropped below 200* I made the mistake of opening the door for a few minutes. Within 5 minutes my wood chunks were a full blaze. Could this be why my meat was bitter tasting?

Thanks in advance for your help.
 
A clean burn is when charcoal and wood are not smoldering. Wood smoldering cause bitter
and oil taste. On a WSM this will most likely happen when you close bottom vents for long periods of time. You can control temp with cold water in the water pan, using cooler burning charcoal, or to remove fuel. I also don't worry about pit temps reaching 260-275* in the dome in the last portion of a cook, it's worked very well for us.
I always leave at least one vent open to some degree and the smoke is sweet.
Jim
 
Thanks Jim.

What does smoldering mean? I'm starting to think that there should be very little smoke comming out of the WSM. Is this accurate?
 
Musky,

From my reading online I believe that smoldering means that the wood is not burning hot enough for a good burn tempature. Sorry if this sounds vague but experience is the best teacher.

The best indication of smoldering wood is a thick white smoke from the chimney of the smoker. Good burning wood produces a thin gray smoke. Quantity of smoke is proportional to amount of wood.

Hope this helps
 
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