Burying Wood in Outside Edge of Coals


 
K

KenB

TVWBB Fan
I have been reading that many people add their wood chunks buried in coal towards the outside edge of the charcoal ring instead of putting them on top of the coals. How far out from the middle are the coals buried and should the chunks be touching the burning coals from the beginning of the cook? I read that the wood gets preheated using this method and results in thin blue smoke earlier in the cook. Does anyone bury their chunks like described?
 
I put my wood right on top of the coals and then I dump my chimney over it all. Once I start adding wood every hour I just drop and few pieces on the burning coals.
 
From what I get.... the meat only adsorbs the smoke from the wood for the first few hours of the cook. So burying the wood in the charcoal towards the outer edges of the charcoal ring doesn't do much for the cook if you are using the Minion Method. Ideally... you would want the wood chunks to burn at the start of a long cook. Myself... I put them on top close to the MM lit coals.
 
I just put wood all through out the basket. Like Robert said, after 4-5hrs the smoke cant make it in any more on big meats. It's does help with color and bark thou through out the whole cook
 
Meat takes on smoke as long as there is smoke present. It's the smoke ring that stops around 140*
 
I do the same as Robert. I do MM most of the time and put the wood on top of the lit coals at the same time I put the meat on.
 
KenB, you probably read something I posted. I bury my smoke wood towards the outside of the basket. When you say bury, some people think it's on the bottom and doesn't light for a long time. I mix it with the top layer of coals rather than on top of it. The smoke wood is probably 2"-3" from the lit coals I place in the center and I have tbs within 30 minutes.
 
I usually start the coals via the minion method than wait until the coals settle a bit and the target temp is obtained, then I put the meat on and place my smoke wood on the stable coals. I found this method a little more reliable for me to get the right balance of smoked flavor. Everyone can find the best method that works for them.
 
Robert-R said:
From what I get.... the meat only adsorbs the smoke from the wood for the first few hours of the cook. So burying the wood in the charcoal towards the outer edges of the charcoal ring doesn't do much for the cook if you are using the Minion Method. Ideally... you would want the wood chunks to burn at the start of a long cook. Myself... I put them on top close to the MM lit coals.
Click to expand...

exactly my opinion.
 
This is how I do it. Sometimes I will throw a chunk on the top.









I set up my charcoal the night before and lit the cooker at 5am.... I didn't want to have to mess with it at 5am!
 
I have been buried logs/chunks in my last WSM cooks. I just start my charcoal lighting it from the most external (just in front of ATC fan). I wait 1,5/2 hours before put in the meat.
 
One reason to bury the wood is so that it warms up/dries out if it's relatively fresh wood. If the wood is wet it can really smolder, producing less than pleasant smoke flavor. If you put it in the unlit coals it gives it a bit of time to sit in the heat and dry some of the water out. Personally I fill my ring and the wedge the wood into the top layer, so it's not sitting on top but it's exposed to the lit coals when I dump them on top.
 
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