1st Smoke (Overnight) on the WSM 22.5"


 
Got the temp under control last night and managed to get some sleep. The Maverick alarm went off at 4am on the brisket (185F). Half asleep I pulled the brisket, foiled it and had it on the way to the cooler before I woke up enough to realize I should take a second temp somewhere else. Sure enough, ~170F and enough resistance that I detoured back to the smoker. The pork finished at 190F at 5:45AM and the brisket finished at 185F about 15 minutes later. Around 7am, I will throw the ribs on. Pics will follow shortly...

Thanks for your help guys!!
 
Pics Updates

My BBQ Partner...he bailed on the all night smoke and went and curled up in bed....

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The Ribs pre-smoke

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The Brisket at 4am....165F....see my previous post...I foiled it and put it back on the smoker.

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I'll have pics of the butt and the finished brisket this afternoon when we get ready to eat.
 
What Dave said!
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Glad it all worked out for you. Were you able to determine why that one vent wouldn't close all the way? BTW, WSM's generally run hotter their 1st few cooks ... Until you get some build-up on the inside
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Bill
 
Sounds like everything is going to plan. Bill's right, you may have read that new WSM's can run a little hot. When mine was new it could run 225 for hours with the bottom vents closed. A few runs on her and she sealed-up quite nicely.

On the brisket, where were you measuring originally? Also, just a note for next time, don't go strictly off of temp, go by "feel." If the temp prob slides in with no resistance, you're done. Just a tidbit that may help on future brisket cooks.

Again, way to step-up on your first cook, impressive. Brisket's a tough cook, I don't care what anyone says, foiling, high heat etc. help but for your first cook on your new smoker, takes some huevos IMHO. I didn't produce a decent brisket until my 3rd or 4th try. Nice job.
 
Alright...just got back from the daughters soccer game. The ribs have been lubed, foiled and are back on the smoker.

Pulled the pork...it was nice and tender althought I will probably run it up to 195F next time.

The brisket taste good, not as juicy as I would probably like. Had a tough time slicing it once the electric knife got all juiced up and slippery. I chopped/pulled the point.

Constructive feedback is always welcomed.


Pork Butt Done

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Pork Butt Pulled (Bark is much more pronounced than with the gas smoker)

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Brisket Done (For real this time)

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Brisket Sliced

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Bill...I was abe to determine that it was the charcoal grate that was keeping the last bottom vent from closing...I'll post my post-mortem shortly
 
Post-Mortem from my 1st Overnight Cook

1. Make sure the charcoal grate is positioned right so that it allows all the bottom vents to close.
2. I'm going to reduce the number of coals I start with next time. I started with 20 coals this time and it seemed to get too hot too quick.
3. Reduce the amount of wood chunks. I love smoke flavor but I definitely had too much smoke even for me. The gas smoker doesnt contribute near as much smoke as the WSM.
4. I did ok on tempature control. A couple times it seemed to be more difficult to control that others. My highest spike was 255 according to the lid thermometer.
5. Don't overtrim the fat cap on the Brisket.
6. I overcooked the ribs. If the like fall off the bone..then they were perfect but I like to have alittle resistance in my ribs.

Misc. stuff. I am going to be cooking in my first competition at the beginning of Novemeber. I was worried the WSM 22.5 would be too small to do all 4 categories. I think there will be plenty of space to do 2 butts, a brisket, 2 racks of ribs and chicken thighs.

I bought 2 briskets when I picked the meat up for this weekend. I am aging the second one to see if that provides any additional character to finished product.

Thanks to everyone for their help and feedback.
 
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