2nd cook on Craigslist Kettle


 
Charlie L

Charlie L

TVWBB Super Fan
First cook on kettle was a temperature battle. Did second cook on kettle tonight and this was much better. I Went easier this time and just did some chicken pieces indirect. I Allowed grill to heat up to 250 before putting food on and closed vent to 1/8, Used firebricks and foiled grate and held steady temps right at 290-300. I was able to set and forget. I think leaking air at lid seam was causing temp spikes last time so I used the binder clip method and it kept the the lid sealed tight. Cook was only an hour but grill held heat for 2 hours and still had fuel.

Progress.
 
Once i get temp control more comfortable i might bump up that high but this cook i was shooting for lower temps to work on temp control. I want to get to the point where i can do ribs and eventually butt(s) with as little maintenance as possible.
 
You want to do these on your kettle or in your mini? I could see cooking that "low & slow" in your mini, but it would be hard to keep a kettle at that temp for as long as it would take and then with "as little maintenance as possible."
 
Ribs are easily doable on the kettle. If you get a system down for them they are very tasty and repeatable.
 
Chuck I know the mini does them but I want to do them on the kettle as the kettle lives outside on the patio so set up /break down is significantly less, and capacity is significantly more on kettle. Hopefully I'll be able to do both kettle and mini at once one day but the kettle is a new skill I'm learning.
 
Last edited:
Bob I know they are. I did two racks on my first try, and with horrible temperature control I still turned out some decent ribs.
 
Keep cooking and experiment. Maybe less lit charcoal when you start your grill.

I like doing indirect chicken on the kettle. I feel it gets a crispier skin.
 
Tony R said:
Keep cooking and experiment. Maybe less lit charcoal when you start your grill.

I like doing indirect chicken on the kettle. I feel it gets a crispier skin.
Click to expand...

Tony, my plan was to get them to 165 indirect then a quick zap over direct to crisp skin, but they didnt need it. The skin was perfect doing indirect.
 
Sounds like you have a pretty good plan there Charlie. I like to cook/roast my chicken low n slow on my kettle also. I see that you got your kettle off of CL, was the lid or kettle damaged? I wouldn't think that you would get that much air leaking in from the lid. Wind could also impact your temp. There are so many different ways to control the temp on your kettle. I usually set the bottom vents for my initial temp, more open for higher and more closed for lower and then the only adjustments I ever make are with the vent on my lid.

Keep us informed on cook number 3 and pictures are good also.

You can't be Q'ing if you aren't having fun.
 
James Lake said:
Sounds like you have a pretty good plan there Charlie. I like to cook/roast my chicken low n slow on my kettle also. I see that you got your kettle off of CL, was the lid or kettle damaged? I wouldn't think that you would get that much air leaking in from the lid. Wind could also impact your temp. There are so many different ways to control the temp on your kettle. I usually set the bottom vents for my initial temp, more open for higher and more closed for lower and then the only adjustments I ever make are with the vent on my lid.

Keep us informed on cook number 3 and pictures are good also.

You can't be Q'ing if you aren't having fun.
Click to expand...

Thanks James,

Lid rim doesn't looked damaged and neither does kettle rim for that matter but perhaps its just slightly out of round enough to allow a small air leak that affects temps. Ive read posts that say kettles aren't built air tight and this is normal, and other posts that completely disagree.

Might try the flashlight trick (put lit flash light in kettle and cover, look for light being emitted to find gaps) after dark and see where light is coming from.

I bought a New one touch cleaning system that will arrive today. The old one was rusty and while i was able to clean it, and reshape, one of the blades still keeps bending up every time i reinstall, and i think this is affecting air control.

Might grab a steak for dinner tonight and do my first high heat cook on by kettle.
 
As you can see by my signature I have several smokers and (as of today) three kettles. You can do GREAT ribs, pulled pork from Boston Butts, and chicken indirect on the kettle. The smokers are considerably easier to control temps over a low and slow cook but that doesn't mean you can't do it on the kettle.

I wouldn't want to be without either (a kettle or a Weber smoker).

Keep on smokin'
Dale53:wsm:
 
Robert I would love a WSM but i just can't justify the buying one for the limited amount of use it would get. In a few years when my 21 month old is a bit older i will have more time for long cooks but for now its just occasional use. If i can liberate one off CL like i did with my kettle then it might be a different story but for now, trial and error with my kettle is fine with me.

Did a two zone fire for reverse sear steak last night that worked out pretty good. I used lump and got VERY high heat zone to sear the steaks before i took them off.

I wask able to snuff out fire relatively quickly after cooking with vents closed so maybe my air leaks aren't as bad as i thought.
 
Charlie;
It appears that you are getting a handle on things. Just a few more cooks and you'll be a Pitmaster!

Keep on smokin',
Dale53:wsm:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top