Did I make a mistake?


 
M

Mike Provencher

TVWBB Member
Hey all,

Bought a 20 lb chuck roll at Costco today. My intention was to cut it into 3 pieces, freeze 2 and smoke one tomorrow using the Pot Roast ala Stoogie recipe. My question is will the chuck roll "cook up" like the chuck roast Stoogies recipe calls for? I'm thinking the roll will, because they both come from the same part of the cow, so I figured I'd be ok. What do you all think?
 
i've never bought or smoked a chuckroll, but if i understand it right, all chuck roast are cut from the chuck roll, so you should be fine.
 
Mike,
I thought I ran into the same problem a while back and this thread should answer any questions or concerns that you have. I love the pot roast on the wsm, and I'm sure you will too
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Good luck!

Brandon

-edit in fact I have a nice slide show of the last pot roast I did It does work despite it saying that its not there
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Thanks guys for the quick response. After reading your comments and the thread link, if I cut the chuck roll into 3 6lb pieces, freezing 2 and cooking the other 1, I can follow Stoogies recipe to a "T" without any worries. I figure the cook time should be the same as Stoogies recipe indicates. Agree?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Brandon A:
Mike,
I thought I ran into the same problem a while back and this thread should answer any questions or concerns that you have. I love the pot roast on the wsm, and I'm sure you will too
icon_smile.gif
Good luck!

Brandon

-edit in fact I have a nice slide show of the last pot roast I did It does work despite it saying that its not there
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</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hey Brandon,

The roast in your vid looks like a 5 - 6lb chuck roll. If it is, how long did the roast take to cook? Also, you cooked the roast out of the foil pan for 4 hours, then into a foil pan. How long did you cook in the foil pan covered for? I'm trying to get an idea of how to plan my day tomorrow.

Thanks,

Mike
 
Mike,
Its been quite awhile since that cook, but I want to say it was another 3 hours foiled, then another hour off the smoker resting in a cooler. As you could see in the pictures I left the probe in the chuck roast while I foiled. I simply waited for the meat to reach 190ish and then opened up the foil to check for tenderness with a fork, the veggies took care of themselves.

Brandon
 
Thanks Brandon for the info. I'll follow what you did and my cook time should be approximately 8 hours or so. I'm relatively new to smoking and being a "programmer" type, I find it difficult to "go with the flow" if you know what I mean.
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Anywho, fire in the hole tomorrow at 10:00 AM. I'll post up results and pics.

Again, thanks for everyone's help

Mike
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Provencher:
Anywho, fire in the hole tomorrow at 10:00 AM. I'll post up results and pics.
</div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Mike, Allow yourself enough time to let it rest for at least 1 hr, I like to go 2 hrs if possible.
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<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Bryan S:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Provencher:
Anywho, fire in the hole tomorrow at 10:00 AM. I'll post up results and pics.
</div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Mike, Allow yourself enough time to let it rest for at least 1 hr, I like to go 2 hrs if possible.
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</div></BLOCKQUOTE>


Will do. Thanks again!
 
Hey again Mike,

Just wondering how things are turning out for you? Should be getting towards the end of you smoke by now. Wanted to check in.

Brandon
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Brandon A:
Hey again Mike,

Just wondering how things are turning out for you? Should be getting towards the end of you smoke by now. Wanted to check in.

Brandon </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hey Brandon,

Thanks for checking in. I tried to get to my pc yesterday, but between smoking and yard work, I couldn't find the time.

The smoke was a learning experience for me, as I only have no more than 20 - 25 smokes under my belt. Here's what happenned.

I cut a 20lb chuck roll into 6 3+ lb roasts. Kept one 3+ lb'er to smoke and froze the other 5 for future use. I also cooked a 4.5 lb meatloaf on the bottom rack.

Following Stogies pot roast recipe, I used the minion method. Usually when I use the minion method for pot roast, I only use a full chimney of unlit and 20 lit on top. This time I filled the ring to 3/4 full of unlit and 30 lit. I wasn't drinking heavily at that point,
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so I can't explain why I did that. For some reason, I followed the "true" minion method which calls for filling the ring with 3/4 unlit and 20 - 40 lit on top.

Anyway, mistake #1 - I was cooking a much smaller roast than Stogies recipe called for, so I should have either used much less fuel or used the standard method. I had a very difficult time, major understatement, keeping the temp close to the target temp. At one point, I had to close all vents for a good hour to bring the temp down,
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but once I opened the vents a bit, the temp would sky rocket again.

Mistake #2 - The pot roast came out dry because I over cooked it. The combo of too much fuel and very high temps killed me. I tried to use the fork test to check for doneness, but I think by the time I checked, it was too late.

Next time I cook a roast that small, i'm going to cut the smoking time in 1/2, use the standard method, and use a thermometer to check the internal temp.

On the upside, the meatloaf came out perfect, got some needed yard work done, and had a few beers, and learned another smoking lesson.
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My daughter is graduating from high school this weekend, so I figure I'll get right back at it an smoke a bunch of spares, pulled chicken, beans, and make a batch of skillet corn bread.
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<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Provencher:
Usually when I use the minion method for pot roast, I only use a full chimney of unlit and 20 lit on top. This time I filled the ring to 3/4 full of unlit and 30 lit. I wasn't drinking heavily at that point,
icon_smile.gif
so I can't explain why I did that. For some reason, I followed the "true" minion method which calls for filling the ring with 3/4 unlit and 20 - 40 lit on top. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Mike, sorry to hear it came out dry for you. You didn't mention foiling the chuck roast, did you? I always foil mine after it gets nice color and good bark on it. Somewhere around 165 internal temp, and cook till tender.
Most of us have gotten away from starting with 20 or more lit. Especially in warm weather 8-10 lit works just fine. In winter/cold windy conditions I'll light 20 or so, but for most cooks it's 10 or less. HTH
 
Foiling is the key. You can cook smaller chuck roasts at low or high temps--I typically cook 3-5lb roasts at 300-325--but foiling is required. Here's an example.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Bryan S:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Provencher:
Usually when I use the minion method for pot roast, I only use a full chimney of unlit and 20 lit on top. This time I filled the ring to 3/4 full of unlit and 30 lit. I wasn't drinking heavily at that point,
icon_smile.gif
so I can't explain why I did that. For some reason, I followed the "true" minion method which calls for filling the ring with 3/4 unlit and 20 - 40 lit on top. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Mike, sorry to hear it came out dry for you. You didn't mention foiling the chuck roast, did you? I always foil mine after it gets nice color and good bark on it. Somewhere around 165 internal temp, and cook till tender.
Most of us have gotten away from starting with 20 or more lit. Especially in warm weather 8-10 lit works just fine. In winter/cold windy conditions I'll light 20 or so, but for most cooks it's 10 or less. HTH </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hi Bryan,

I followed Stogies recipe which calls for 2 hours in a foil pan uncovered, then cover with foil for another 5 - 6 hours. I did just that but I was dead in the water once I couldn't control my temp.

In your post above, you mention you cook to 165 internal, then foil until tender. Just curious, what size roast were you smoking and what ended up as then internal temp?

Thanks,

Mike
 
Then you're right. It cooked too long. I don't know what at temps you cooked (I cook high, as noted above), but high temps are fine. They shorten the cook though. (My last 4-pounder took 4:20.) 7-8 hours is a long time unless your temps were pretty low. If they weren't, it was in fact done much earlier and you missed its done point. That sucks. But you have more...
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by K Kruger:
Then you're right. It cooked too long. I don't know what at temps you cooked (I cook high, as noted above), but high temps are fine. They shorten the cook though. (My last 4-pounder took 4:20.) 7-8 hours is a long time unless your temps were pretty low. If they weren't, it was in fact done much earlier and you missed its done point. That sucks. But you have more... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

My temps for 70% of the cook, after foiling, were between 360 and 382... :eek hi temps, smallish roast (3.3 lbs), and too long in the cooker did me in. Grasshopper has learned a lessson or two from this thread and my smoke yesterday. Going to take the left over roast, gravy, and veggies and make a killer pot pie!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Provencher:
In your post above, you mention you cook to 165 internal, then foil until tender. Just curious, what size roast were you smoking and what ended up as then internal temp?

Thanks,

Mike </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
The 165-170 internal comes from doing chuck rolls. Many here stick to that for chuck roasts as well. It's a good number to go with till you get the hang of judging meat. In the begining I used to use internal temps as a guide to turn out good Q. These days I usually just go by eye, because I've done these cooks so many times. After a while you get the feel for things. On my last chuck roast cook, back in March I used a small 2.5lb. roast. I cooked it at 235 for about 2.5-3 hrs, then wrapped it tight in foil and cooked till tender. It was very moist and tender. Total cook time was prob around 5 - 5.5 hrs. I did not cook to the pull stage. I cooked it to the tender slice stage. It sliced up fine and did not fall apart. HTH
 
I think I misunderstood, I thought you cut the chuck roll into 3, 6 pound roasts, not 6, 3's? The roast I used in my last pot roast was a 6 pounder, sorry if I led you astray. If you do try the pot roast again, you may have better luck with the larger cut. Another thing I noticed is, you said you cooked "in the pan" uncovered for the first 2 hours. IMO you would be better off without the pan for the first part of the cook. I'm no expert but it seems the pan would sheild the meat from some of your smoke? Well anyway, I'm glad your meatloaf turned out well, nothing like a smoked meatloaf. There are some people in this world who think meatloaf is hamburger/crackers/egg and ketchup, no wonder they dont like it
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Brandon
 
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