First Try - Throned Chicken & Ribs - Advice?

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Ok, I went crazy today and bought a 2003 Silver B Premium and a WSM.

I acquired some hickory & lump coal (should I change and get Kings, after reading the site more carefully?).

I bought two 4 lb whole chickens and two 2lb each baby back rib racks.

Temps are going to be about 50 degrees, low wind (hopefully).

My plan is to have the chicken and ribs finish at relatively the same time (I'll have a cooler ready, just in case).

I'm after tender, falls apart type ribs for the family (yes, I know they are technically "overcooked" so to speak).

As for the chicken, on this first shot out of the box I'm more concerned with tenderness of meat, assuming most of the family will discard the skin.

Can you guys give me any begginer advice?

I've never smoked/bbq'd before (I'm 21).

Should I start the ribs before the chicken? Should I put the ribs on the top, chicken on the bottom? Can I just use the thermo from my Silver-B in the lid of the WSM ... must I really affix it?

Thanks for any info... happy BBQing to all.
 
To reduce the risks of contamination ALWAYS put your poultry on the bottom. As for your cook times - the chicken will probably take almost as much time as the ribs if you're cooking everything at around 225 degrees. If the birds get done sooner just wrap them in foil and hold them until the ribs are finished. The birds should rest before you cut and serve them anyway.

If this is your first cook I would recommend focusing on just one meat and work with that. Get comfortable cooking things by themselves. You get a feel for how different types of meats cook, how the WSM reacts, etc. As you progress you can start combing meats in the cooker and getting into more complex cooks.
 
Typically ribs cook at lower temperatures than chicken. If you've never cooked over fire before ribs are a great way to start, I sugegst the BRITU recipe on this site. After you finish the ribs then do the chicken, perhaps after stirring up the coals to get heat up and adding a few.

Don't forget to give the Silver-B a workout also. Great for grilling all sorts of food.

If you want falling apart ribs then cook longer than is indicated by the BRITU recipe.

You can always make chicken skin crispy by grilling over medium to high heat after smoking, either on the Silver-B or just assemble the WSM as a grill after smoking.

For your first time I recommend against 2 different meats and grills ... but have fun is all that's really important.

By the way hickory is strong smoke wood, go easy on it, might want to only use 3-4 chunks on the WSM for ribs.
 
Sounds good. I'm pretty set on doing two meats to have enough (hopefully) to feed everyone. By "3 - 4 chunks" what sort of volume is one chunk?

If I use foil to expedite the ribs towards the end, I just remove them, as quickly as possible wrap them tightly in foil, and return them?

Would it make more sense to only WSM the ribs and indirect cook the chicken on the Silver?

Thanks for the info
 
Normally the chunks referred to on this site is about the size of your fist or slightly smaller. I would put the ribs on the WSM and the birds on the silver.
Best of luck
 
I think it may be a problem trying to do the chicken at high temp and cooking your ribs at the same time. The ribs really need the lower/slower temps. Doing your ribs indirect on the gasser might be a better way to go. Jason can direct you on this because he seems to have completly mastered the technique.

Paul
 
Buktor

Actually, I was talking about ribs on the gasser. I guess because I was so impressed with how one of our members, Jason, had mastered this technique. Certainly you could do the chicken on the throne on the gasser, but I haven't done it that way. Better check to see that you have enough vertical clearance under the lid of your gasser for the birds. That might be the way to go if it fits because you could maintain your 350 temp with the middle burner off and the other two med or lower.

I think I replied on your other thread about speed and foil. Don't worry about going too fast but have everything laid out ahead of time so you can move the ribs to the foil, spray them with apple juice, wrap tightly and return to WSM. Don't leave the lid off while you're doing this.

I think Kingsford works better for low/slow and would recommend it it for your ribs if you do them on the WSM.

I do my chicken by butterflying, splitting and marinating in WB Italian. I cook low/slow till 160 in breast and 180 in thigh. However I do not eat the skin to avoid fat. I think it's great this way but it is definetely the minority view.

I don't think you're crazy for buying the Genesis Silver and WSM at the same time - just wise beyond your years. Don't forget to read Chris' info from the home page. I think a problem some people have who find this forum first is they just look at posts from others. Those are usually good and can help you with specific problems or refine your technique, but you can miss the overall picture.

Good luck and enjoy your cooking.

Paul
 
Buktor, as one who has 'oversmoked' before, on your first smoke I would intentionally use fewer smoking chunks. You are planning on impressing several people...easy to do with less smoke on your first try. I vote for 2 or three chunks depending on the the wood. My opinion...
 
My gasser ribs are pretty darn good and it only took me about 4 years to get it right. /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif I have yet to make ribs as good on the WSM but with each batch I'm getting closer and expect to surpass soon.

In a nutshell:
- prep raw ribs (thin light racks seem to work best)
- make a tinfoil woodchip log, poke a few small holes in it (hickory seemed to work best)
- apply rub
- let sit out for an hour or so
- heat grill to high for 10 minutes or so
- scrub then oil grates
- put ribs on grates meat side down to sear
- move ribs a bit, sear for a few minutes until nice grill marks but not burned
- sear the bone side now, not as much
- shake a bit more rub on both sides
- turn back 2 burners off, leave front one on medium
- put woodchip log on top of and in front of frontmost flavorizer bar (must lift grates for access)
- put rib racks in back
- close lid and maintain dome temp of about 225 by varying front burner as necessary
- periodically re-arrange ribs if cooking multiple racks of them to ensure even cooking
- cook until done, maybe 3 hours
- might have to add a second chip log later on
- after ribs are done lightly glaze with favorite sauce, then turn all burners on medium and lightly carmelize sauce on meat
- serve
 
If you're doing chicken on the WSM, I would only use about 3 chunks of hickory. Hickory is pretty strong (and good), however, poultry will absorb smoke more so than pork or beef. It is (relatively) easy to over-smoke poultry.

I've also found that poultry does better at a higher temp than you would use for ribs. I like ribs at 240* at the lid, whereas I cook chicken between 275*-290*.

As for rib tenderness- I like the meat to pull easily from the bone, as do 85-90% of all rib eaters.

Final note to relax: It's not rocket science unless you want it to be. /infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif
 
Chicken on the Silver B and ribs in the WSM. That way you get to use both new toys! To add a little smoke flavor to the chicken, use Jason's "chip log" or a smoker box sitting on the flavorizer bars. And I'll just add to everyone else that says, ENJOY!
 
Buktor - If it was up to me and in fact I did it last weekend, I would cook the chicken on the throne indirectly on the gasser. This give a nice skin. You can add a few wood chips to get the smoke flavor, but watch how much you use as it can overpower the chicken. Then cook the ribs on the WSM. The plan here is to show the better half how you really needed to buy both!
 
Buktor

For the first time just do the ribs on the wsm. This way you can focus on the ribs only.As for the chicken I like to spatchcock the chicken and put on the grill. It will cook alot faster than a whole chicken. Check the website on how to split open a chicken. Brining the chicken will help. Seeing how this is your first, don't overload yourself with to many details, this way not to many things can go wrong. Just keep it simple, then the next time advance yourself.

http://www.virtualweberbullet.com/butterflychicken.html
 
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