Baby Backs for Halloween with pics


 
A

Andrew Wands

TVWBB Member
Hello all! I decided to do 8 racks of baby backs for a Halloween party last saturday. All went pretty well but have a couple questions.Using the 22.5 WSM, I filled the charcoal ring with unlit kingsford and then used 3/4 chimney of lit, assembled,loaded the meat and we were off. It took about an hour to get it up to 225 or so then it held at 225-235 but would never get any hotter. I had allvents 100% open the whole time. it was a windy day and the outside temp was around 64 or so. About 3 1/2 hrs in, the temp started dropping closer to 200 so i opened up the door and stirred the coals around a bit and threw several unlit Briqs on. The temp slowly went up to 225 again and I pulled the ribs after 4 1/2 hrs or so. I did notice the temp running up closer to 300 after I took the meat off. kinda weird. Does all of this sound like the normal process with the temps? I figured i would have to mess with bottom vents bc the temp would be too high bt I had to keep them 100% to just be hot enough to smoke. I had hot water in the pan as well. Here are some pics!

Thanks!

http://yfrog.com/mocharcoalj

http://yfrog.com/3zribsonwsmj

http://yfrog.com/5zhalfwayribsj

http://yfrog.com/5xfinishedribs2j

http://yfrog.com/4yfinishedribsj
 
That's the way the minion method works.
The initial temps are just due to the lit 'coals. Takes a while for the rest of the load to engage and add to that heat.
IMHO, the minion shoud be used for longer (12+ hours)cooks.
I prefer the 'standard' method for the shorter cooks, since you get max heat all at once.
Next time you want to try BB's,you might consider trying the BRITU method.
 
Thanks Mike! I will try that next time for sure. I kept all the vents open after the ribs came off to just see how long the fuel would last and it didnt really last that much longer even with the MM. I guess the 22.5 will just use a lot more fuel and I really want to try a long cook, but im pretty sure I will have to babysit this thing for 12 plus hrs. You can see in the pic that the ring was pretty full. I guess the best way to do a long cool would be to replenish after 6 hrs or so by taking off top plus middle section at once and just throw another 2 chimneys lit in there.
 
Well, my 18" has held steady for 12 hours at 250 with a full ring minion start, no additional fuel added.
I just ocasionally rapped the legs to shake off ash, probably didn't need to do that. I did use the brinkman pan full of hot water, and had to refill it after 5 hours or so.
You might check for an out-of-round situation where the mid section fits into both the base and the lid. If the mid section binds when you twist it after it's seated, or if the lid does, that will permit extra venting. This will pull more air into the 'coal chamber, create more heat, use more fuel.
Weber does replace out-of-round sections, according to other posters.
 
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