Hanging on the WSM


 

John B

TVWBB Pro
I have watched the PBC craze from the sideline the last few years. I almost bought a used one for $150 last fall but decided not to pull the trigger. I felt it was a fair deal, I just could not get over the fact that I have 3 WSMs, and the feeling that it was too similar to what I already had. I finally bought the rib hanger kit from gateway drums for the 18" and the 22" last week:

https://www.gatewaydrumsmokers.com/category-s/131.htm

The build quality is fantastic, and I think I am going to really like this. I put a chimney of fully lit weber charcoal in the 18", and then left every vent wide open. The WSM settled around 300, and it cooked the chicken for 1.5 hours according my picture timestamps. The result was some of the juiciest BBQ chicken the WSM has produced. I will be doing this much more, I am glad I purchased this new toy for my bigger WSMs.

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Oh, and I did three marinated tri tips. I tried something new separating the two muscles before marinating/cooking. It may be my new method going forward.

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Looks great! Does the 30 gallon kit fit the 18.5" WSM? I may have to try this as I've been thinking about a hanger kit for my WSM for a couple years now.
 
Yes it does. I bought both sizes that they have and the 30 gallon does fit the 18.5. In fact you are seeing it in use in the pictures.
 
I believe hanging poultry over open flame brings the WSM to the next level. I’ve hung ribs but prefer smoking them flat.
 
That chicken looks great! You've convinced me; chicken halves will be my next cook on the Gateway rack.
 
So with birds or pieces, you don't even need to hang them. Just remove the water pan and cook it on the top grate at 300-325.

Ribs on the other hand, I hang and wrap (hybrid method). They are "lights out" good.
 
So with birds or pieces, you don't even need to hang them. Just remove the water pan and cook it on the top grate at 300-325.
This was my question. I'm seriously trying to resist the temptation to buy every new gizmo that gets recommended. This rack looks great, but then I started asking myself if it was really any different than just putting the chickens on the grate.

Ribs on the other hand, I hang and wrap (hybrid method). They are "lights out" good.
This would be the legit reason for getting the hanging rack, but I seldom cook more ribs than can fit on the top grate, so the larger capacity of the hanging rack would be nice to have but probably not used much, if at all.

Do you turn the ribs around part way through cooking? I'd think the part closer to the fire would get done a lot faster than the top unless you rotate the position.
 
This was my question. I'm seriously trying to resist the temptation to buy every new gizmo that gets recommended. This rack looks great, but then I started asking myself if it was really any different than just putting the chickens on the grate.


This would be the legit reason for getting the hanging rack, but I seldom cook more ribs than can fit on the top grate, so the larger capacity of the hanging rack would be nice to have but probably not used much, if at all.

Do you turn the ribs around part way through cooking? I'd think the part closer to the fire would get done a lot faster than the top unless you rotate the position.



Ok...

First...seriously consider the Gateway rack. I have a Weber rack and can see a few advantages to the Gateway (which is why i'll order a couple for competition later this year).

If you're doing 2 racks of normal spares (maybe 3 comp trimmed) and no more...you can cook them on the top grate of an 18WSM (you don't need any rotation). You don't need to flip them on the grate, but I do a rotation on the rack.

Same goes for 3-4 1/2 Chickens...you can comfortably fit them on the grate. I turn them 1-2x.
 

 

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