first smoke - great results


 
K

Kevin Thomas

TVWBB Member
What a couple of weeks of bad luck. I finally get my bullet and then I get dog sick the first weekend and went out of town the next weekend. I didn't think this past weekend would ever get here.

I couldn't decide what to do first so I did a little of everything: two slabs of ribs and six chicken breasts (I don't like dark meat) in the afternoon and then a brisket and pork butt for an overnight cook. The ribs and chicken breasts turned out just a little bit dry, but that's my fault as I got caught up talking with the neighbors for about an hour. The chicken was good and moist right off the smoker, but had dried out overnight after being in the fridge.

I started the pork butt and brisket at 7:00 PM. I filled the water pan around 3:00 AM and the lid temp was just under 250*. When I woke up at 7:00 AM it had fallen to 210* and most of the coals were out. However, both the pork and brisket were ready after only twelve hours. I wrapped both in foil and set in a cooler for a few hours. The pork pulled perfectly, but the brisket had turned to pot roast, so I pulled and chopped it for sandwiches (it tasted great though).

It sure feels good to have that first one under my belt.
 
Excellent. Sounds like your unit got a heavy break in. Good Stuff.
How big were the butt and brisket you ran?
 
Getting that first one under your belt is good. My first one was not the best results. I rushed it along a little to taste the results lol. Don't worry about the dry chicken breast, it makes for great smoked chicken salad!
 
The butt was about seven pounds and the brisket was about ten pounds. I was expecting both of them to take alot longer to finish (I've heard about alot of 15-19 hour smokes on here). With a ten pound brisket I was guessing it would take about 15 hours. Could this have been a fluke that it got done so fast or is it more the norm?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Kevin Thomas:
T (I've heard about alot of 15-19 hour smokes on here). With a ten pound brisket I was guessing it would take about 15 hours. Could this have been a fluke that it got done so fast or is it more the norm? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I think that the biggest difference is how low and slow you go. I tend to do most of my cooks with a top of meat temp of 220 to 230 and I let the Guru keep it there. With no temp excursions into the 240s - 250s I expect the cook to take longer. I think that I get better rendering on the butts by taking the low and slow approach. The butts (early in my smoking career) that I finished in a 300 oven had a lot more fat left in them.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Kevin Thomas:
Could this have been a fluke that it got done so fast or is it more the norm? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

The norm? Not for me. I would've expected 14-17 hours myself. But--I just did a 14.5-lb brisket so expected 20 hours, give or take 1 or 2. It was done in 14. Who'd athunk it?
 
Picnics and briskets I sart areound 210 (so it takes longer to hit 140 where I hear the smoke ring forms up to that point) and then go up to 230. When I have a brisket that is that much larger than the size I am used to cooking, I look at the weight difference and where is the weight difference from. Is it that much thicker, or is it just a little thicker but just that much more width? Works for me, but others here may have different opinions. Hope I explained that right lol.
 
The amount of intramuscular fat is the main factor in the lenght of a cook if the same pit temps are used.
Jim
 
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