Alan Bosch
TVWBB Fan
We're leaving for vacation Thursday for a week of sun, sand, and sea, on Cape Cod. My sister, who lives there year 'round, requested that I bring some pulled pork with us as no good BBQ is to be had anywhere on the Cape.
So Sat. morning, I fired up the WSM, using the Minion method, and smoked up a couple of pork butts. One was coated with veg. oil and rubbed with Dinosaur BBQ Cajun Rub, the other just had Kosher salt, fresh ground pepper, and garlic powder. Both were basted with apple cider vinager several times throughout the cook. The meat was put on the smoker at 8:00 am, and I planned on about a twelve hour cook. I was bound and determined to get those rascals up to 180 degrees if it took till midnight.
Saturday here was a perfect, if windy, day. After about two hours I erected my wind screen to keep the WMS somewhat sheltered. I made it - the wind screen - back in February, out of some scrap plywood and a few hinges. It's effective, if unsightly. I was in the house putting my two-year old down for his nap, when I heard a rather loud crash, with a distict metallic ring to it. After I made sure my son was down I ran outside to find the WSM lying on the ground with the wind screen covering it. The smoke wood and charcoal had caught fire and were licking at the screen. One of the pork butts was sitting on the driveway while the other was resting in the lid. I'd really like a picture of what I looked like, staring at the wreckage for the few seconds it took to register completely...
When I recovered, I righted the base of the smoker and scooped the hot, burning coals up in a metal snow shovel, and dumped them back into the firebox. The pork butts were placed in a sheet pan while I hosed off the smoke wood and the inside and outside of the lid and middle section (this to get the ash off). The middle section was put in place after a full chimney of unlit charcoal was dumped in and new smoke wood was added. I wiped the meat off as best I could, reapplied rub, and put them back on the appropriate racks, and replaced the cover. To my horror, I discovered that the door on the middle section took the brunt of the fall and was a contorted mess. It took the better part of the next half hour getting it straight, mostly off the smoker. Guess what that did to the temps.
This all happened around 1:00 PM. It was close to 2:30 before the smoker settled down, and I spent the rest of the day keeping a close eye on things, much to my wifes chargin.
All for naught, I might add. The rest of the smoke was uneventful and the WSM required only minimul tweeking to stay between 250 & 270. I pulled the butts off the smoker at about 10:00 pm, when the internal temps for both were in the 185 degree range. Having let them rest for an hour, I pulled them at 11:00 and ate the most wonderful pulled pork sandwich I've ever had, and froze the rest for transit to the Cape.
A few observations... Keep a fire extinguisher handy. Ya never know... I was very, very lucky. The last time I smoked, I used my VW Bus as a wind screen, out of laziness. You know where this is going, and the thought makes me quake. Too, the WSM was a hundred feet from the house.
Be patient! If you're just starting out smoking, you're going to get impatient once your butt(s) gets to the 165 degree range. It's gonna sit at that temp for what seems like forever! But it'll move, given time, and then watch out Nellie cause it's going to climb fast. And the result is scrumptious, I assure you.
So this could have been much worse. Chalk one up to experience. I have this notion that I'm living proof that God indeed smiles upon fools and small children...
Peace, out.
Alan Bosch
[This message has been edited by Alan Bosch (edited 06-11-2001).]
So Sat. morning, I fired up the WSM, using the Minion method, and smoked up a couple of pork butts. One was coated with veg. oil and rubbed with Dinosaur BBQ Cajun Rub, the other just had Kosher salt, fresh ground pepper, and garlic powder. Both were basted with apple cider vinager several times throughout the cook. The meat was put on the smoker at 8:00 am, and I planned on about a twelve hour cook. I was bound and determined to get those rascals up to 180 degrees if it took till midnight.
Saturday here was a perfect, if windy, day. After about two hours I erected my wind screen to keep the WMS somewhat sheltered. I made it - the wind screen - back in February, out of some scrap plywood and a few hinges. It's effective, if unsightly. I was in the house putting my two-year old down for his nap, when I heard a rather loud crash, with a distict metallic ring to it. After I made sure my son was down I ran outside to find the WSM lying on the ground with the wind screen covering it. The smoke wood and charcoal had caught fire and were licking at the screen. One of the pork butts was sitting on the driveway while the other was resting in the lid. I'd really like a picture of what I looked like, staring at the wreckage for the few seconds it took to register completely...
When I recovered, I righted the base of the smoker and scooped the hot, burning coals up in a metal snow shovel, and dumped them back into the firebox. The pork butts were placed in a sheet pan while I hosed off the smoke wood and the inside and outside of the lid and middle section (this to get the ash off). The middle section was put in place after a full chimney of unlit charcoal was dumped in and new smoke wood was added. I wiped the meat off as best I could, reapplied rub, and put them back on the appropriate racks, and replaced the cover. To my horror, I discovered that the door on the middle section took the brunt of the fall and was a contorted mess. It took the better part of the next half hour getting it straight, mostly off the smoker. Guess what that did to the temps.
This all happened around 1:00 PM. It was close to 2:30 before the smoker settled down, and I spent the rest of the day keeping a close eye on things, much to my wifes chargin.
All for naught, I might add. The rest of the smoke was uneventful and the WSM required only minimul tweeking to stay between 250 & 270. I pulled the butts off the smoker at about 10:00 pm, when the internal temps for both were in the 185 degree range. Having let them rest for an hour, I pulled them at 11:00 and ate the most wonderful pulled pork sandwich I've ever had, and froze the rest for transit to the Cape.
A few observations... Keep a fire extinguisher handy. Ya never know... I was very, very lucky. The last time I smoked, I used my VW Bus as a wind screen, out of laziness. You know where this is going, and the thought makes me quake. Too, the WSM was a hundred feet from the house.
Be patient! If you're just starting out smoking, you're going to get impatient once your butt(s) gets to the 165 degree range. It's gonna sit at that temp for what seems like forever! But it'll move, given time, and then watch out Nellie cause it's going to climb fast. And the result is scrumptious, I assure you.
So this could have been much worse. Chalk one up to experience. I have this notion that I'm living proof that God indeed smiles upon fools and small children...
Peace, out.
Alan Bosch
[This message has been edited by Alan Bosch (edited 06-11-2001).]
