Recent content by I. Nelson

Thanks for the replies and great advice. I think I'll put it on in the AM instead of the night before and foil/rise temps up a bit if need be. Appreciate the help!

Hi All - I am planning on doing pulled pork this weekend for a family reunion. I'm planning on getting a 5-6 lb butt. and it will be part of dinner saturday night. Here is the question that has me up nights (all problems should be so tough): Do I put it on at midnight Friday before I go to bed...

Hi - I agonized over this decision. In the end, I returned the 22.5 I bought and got the 18.5 and am very happy I did. It's easy to transport the 18.5 and it holds plenty of meat for a small group. The large one is indeed awesome and there are great reasons for keeping it, but if small groups...

All good suggestions here - i'd say that ribs are a good way to start. They take a good 4-5 hours and that will be a good way to test out the smoker and control temps. Butt is great too - but it'll be a long day!

Thanks gents!

I just returned from a long weekend where we fired up a new 18.5. Wow - controlling temps was really easy. Way easier than when smoking on a kettle. I'm still learning the correct cook times (did a 6 pound butt and 11 hours wasn't nearly long enough!) but getting the feel of using it wasn't as...

Thanks so much to everyone for these great Tips. I'll be giving it a go tomorrow morning. Think I'll try 20 obso coals and full ring of unlit. Happy smoking!

Hi all - Second question of the day from a newbie. For the minion method in an 18.5 wsm, how many lit coals do you recommend? I've seen a wide range in what I've read - from 15 coals all the way up to a full chimney. I want a 225-250 temp for pulled pork. I'm leaning towards 15-20 coals but I...

Thanks so much for the great advice - I'll give it a go! Happy 4th!

Hi everyone - I am new to the site and I'm excited to be a part of it! I just got a new 18.5 WSM and I'm going to fire it up tomorrow for the first time to do pulled pork and ribs. I've smoked on a kettle before and I've done a bunch of reading, but I am curious about bringing the smoker to...