Water pan


 

Riki Barulich

TVWBB Member
I have a 22 wsm and I've used water and not used water in the pan . For me it's much easier to control the temp with water. Also I didn't noticed a whole lot of difference in the cooks. I read that a lot of people don't use water in the pan. What's the reason for not using water? Thank you
 
A lot of them don't like the clean up, also it takes a lot of energy to keep the water hot, but thats what helps control the temperature, so they complain about increased charcoal use, and... it's harder to obtain the high temps for the hot and fast crowd, cause the water is busy stabilizing the temperature...

But, you don't HAVE to use the water pan, if you want hot, leave it out, if you believe the extra humidity helps the cook, or like the stabilizing temp and control, put it in. There's really no wrong, or right answer, just what works best for you.
 
My rambling thoughts. You tried both ways and now see what you like about each. There's no rule on this. Do what floats YOUR boat. I don't like the clean up so I'm like "a lot of them". I still use water for some cooks (pork) when I don't want to mess with spritzing or mopping. I never use water when cooking Chicken because I want the skin to dry out. My WSMs are well seasoned - that means very gunked up and don't leak air. .Once they were in that state I use water a lot less. Smokes without water use less fuel than cooks with water.

The great thing about the WSM is you get to make it the way you want it - mods. and you get to cook with it the way you want. Yes the manufacture designed it with a water pan and my truck is designed to do 120 MPH. I now own those things and use them how I choose. Enjoy your cooks.
 
As I was learning to use the WSM a few years ago I just simply experimented and found that for my personal style I prefer smoking with a dry pan and since I've used that method for so long, now, it's second-nature to get what I want in terms of temps. Well, most of the time; there will always be a curve ball now and then, lol. Even though I don't use water I foil the pan and leave it in the smoker to avoid the different taste that's associated with drippings on the coals.
 
I definitely get the clean up part, I always hope the water is mostly gone by the time the cook is done. Thank you everyone for the feed back. I like the water just wondering if I was missing something by not using water. Of course for chicken and turkey I dont use water. Yummmm I think I'm due for some smoked Turkey.
 
The water pan can of worms opens again! There is sound reasoning behind keeping a humid cooking environment, but there is also reason to prefer the bark that forms in a drier atmosphere. About a gallon of water will evaporate about mid-stall with a brisket or a butt, so you can get some of the benefits of each by letting the pan go dry during the cook. I don't use the lower rack much, so I wrap a 14" terra cotta saucer in foil to keep the drippings out of the water pan. Clean-up is a quick shot with a hose to knock out the debris.

If you cook a lot of meat at once, that will provide quite a bit of humidity without extra water. It all comes down to what result pleases you.

Jeff
 
As others have said, it can act as a heat sink, stabilizing temp control. Ive never have done an empty cook, but I did use sand for a couple years with great results.
 
What's the impact of no water pan on the lower grate?

I've done a few cooks now, and I want to try waterless, because if I get that to work it means I wouldn't have to check the smoker at all during overnight cooking unless there's something I want to do specifically. But if i want to use the bottom grate, I'm curious how taking the water out of the pan affects it.
 
FWIW, I know three of the top barbecue joints in Texas keep a water pan in their smokers. Aaron Franklin does it in his vids, I saw a pic of the smoker at Blacks in Austin and they had a water pan near the firebox, and I listened to Todd David of Cattleack in Dallas, on a podcast last week, talk about using water to keep moisture in the cook chamber.

Over at Meatheads site, the physicists he uses to investigate this stuff, says smoke particles stick to wet surfaces. He used three cotton pads, one dry, one oiled, and one wet with water. He put them in the smoker and by far, there was more smoke on the water wet pad.

Personal experience counts for a lot and whatever you like is most important. But there's a lot of evidence says water in the cook chamber is a good thing for barbecue.
 
But if i want to use the bottom grate, I'm curious how taking the water out of the pan affects it.

Hey Steve, same question/concerns when I was early on, and the answer is no...Ive done sand, water, and even strained pineapple juice, and have seen zero difference in the meats based on upper or lower shelf.

I while I generally agree with Chris' article, when I used pineapple juice in the pan, it absolutely imparted the deep flavor into my ribs, HOWEVER...as the juice evaperated, the concentrated sugars end up burning, and clean up was a complete nightmare!

But Chris does qualify..."As a new user.". Me personally...I would do strained pineapple again, but only with some sort of liner.

Keep Kookin' Kid! :)
 

 

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