First cooking session

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Tried the WSM yesterday for the first time. I had bought two 4 pound boston butts and rubbed 'em down with a basic rub, let sit in fridge o/n. Fired up the charcoal in the backyard at 6:30 am (some guy driving to work stopped by and was concerned that our house was on fire...i convinced him it was just some charcoal starting up :-) )

By about 7:30 the fire was going well and I put the meat on. Added three chunks of hickory. Temp dropped rapidly to between 240-250 measured through the lid. Stayed at that temp for the whole 8 hours I was cooking. Had to make minor vent adjustments every once in a while but no problem. Internal temp was between 180-185 when I stopped.

Pork pulled apart easily was moist and very tasty. Stirred in some NC type bbq sauce.....yum!

So, the first time was a great experience. I was a little surprised that I didn't have more difficulties to keep the temp at 250. It was about 95 degrees outside and almost no wind. I guess I would need more fuel when it gets colder outside. I used one 10lb bag of Kingsford for the whole 8 hours.

one happy smoker!

Any other suggestions? BTW, one full water pan lasted for the entire session.
 
Congrats on your success! My only suggestion would be to try cooking to 190-200? internal. The pork will be more "pullable". It can take quite a long time, though. My last two cooks (one with five 6-8 pounders, the other with three) took 16 hours to reach 190?! It's worth the wait, though. Both were overnight cooks, and both were accomplished on a single load of charcoal.
 
Are you guys using water in the pan - mine cook a lot quicker?.

Steve
 
I used the water pan but only filled it up in the beginning. When I took the meat off there was still quite a bit of liquid in the pan.
 
The last three butt cooks I've done has required topping off the water pan at least once during the course of the cook. Each of these smokes have run 10+ hours, getting the butts up to ~190 degrees. I always foil line the pan - makes for easier clean-up. Now if I can just find foil that's wide enough to line the pan with one sheet...

Oh, and Scale, I'd really love to have a copy of that NC BBQ sauce recipie. Just to have something different for the next time I do some butts (which'll be next weekend).

Peace. Out.

Alan
 
NJ Steve, I always use water in the pan. I tried using a dry pan a couple of times. I got higher temps and the meat cooked faster, but I thought the meat turned out a bit drier than it does when using water.

Alan, I buy Reynolds heavy-duty foil at Sam's. It is 18" wide and fits the pan perfectly.

Steve
 
I have been going waterless and things work out fine for me, I don't even turn it as I don't open the cover (I use a polder in the butt and another probe in a potato . The bottom vents are almost closed. It may be a little dry but as I pull it and chop it all together it works for me?.

Steve
 
The NC BBQ sauce is in Steve Raichlens book "the BBQ bible" along with the recipe for the rub I used. I don't have it here right now but hope I'll remember to look it up.
If I remember correctly it was something like this:

1 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup ketchup
2 TBSP brown sugar
1 tsp black pepper
1-2 tsp red pepper flakes
2-3 tsp salt

stir till dissolved and taste, add sugar or salt to taste. stir into pulled pork, mound on bun and add more sauce if needed. Most important is the vinegar base, hot pepper flakes and not much tomato. If you look on some other BBQ sites you'll find variations of this recipe that I'm sure will work also.
Authentic NC BBQ also calls for slaw (which I don't like)
 
Hey Scale,
Try this sauce/mop the next time you do pulled pork. This is a version I've been using/tweaking for years. This will keep for a few months in the fridge so I always make a big batch - it just get's better with time...
Also, you should really try some REAL NC BBQ slaw on your next pulled pork sandwich - nothing like it. Best of luck.

For best results let this sit for a few hours in the fridge before using.

1 gallon cider vinegar
1/2 gallon apple juice
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons red pepper
3 tablespoons red pepper flakes (more to taste)
3 tablespoons ground black pepper
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
 
Thanks Budman I'll try that. As for the slaw, I've lived in NC for six years and hope to return in a few years but while I acquired a taste for the Q I never got friendly with the slaw :-0
 
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