Found handy way of keeping pan water free of grease


 
J

John O Jr

New member
I have always been less than less than anxious to clean my WSM after use due to the nasty greasy water left in the water pan. I know there are methods to dealing with this including just waiting for the fats to solidify on top and skimming it off. But I thought of a handy way of dealing with this by simply filling the water pan with however much water I need, and then putting foil over the top to catch the drippings.

The 18" wide rolls of heavy duty foil will cover the top of water pan with one sheet - and still have some left over on the edges to where you can have the center pushed down a little to make a bit of a bowl to catch grease. I leave a few small gaps around the edges to allow for steam to escape.

This method of foiling the pan will make it hard or impossible to add more water during the smoke - so it may not be best option for extra long smokes if you would want to add more water. However, the one time I have tried this so far with s 7lb pork butt I still had at least half the amount of water in the pan after having it on the smoker for 6 hours (before switching over to oven). So, I think that even though some steam escapes, the foil covering the pan limits the amount of water loss and may prevent pan from going 'bone dry'.

Just thought I would share this tip since I think this really helps make cleanup easier if you're using water in the water pan. It may also have the extra benefit of slowing down water loss in the water pan during extra long smokes.
 
I guess I'm lucky. When we got our backyard re-done - long before I got my WSM - we got all the drainage re-done. There is a drain spout at the corner of my house that runs directly to the street. I bought one of those long funnels that you use for changing the oil in your car and I keep it stuck in that spout. When done using the WSM I dump my water pan water down that drain and be done with it. The runoff from my sprinklers takes care of the rest. And every so often I flush the drain with the hose to break up and grease or fat that may collect. Easy peasy.

Your way is good too. Plus with the foil over the pan you probably get less evaporation so the water actually lasts longer through the cook - just my guess.
 
Russ,

Just waiting for the city health dept write you a ticket for draining waste onto the street. Nice grease trail from the street storm drain back to your pipe spilling onto the street. No way your yard sprinkler can flush all of this grease into the storm drain. Nasty looking stuff in the gutter.
 
Trust me - if it was an issue, the officials in my city or my homeowners association would have been on my case by now. They watch for every little thing around here. I've had my WSM for over 2 years and not a peep. And there is no greasy trail from the drain down the street. Its not an issue.
 
I don't do the water. but normally if you cover a pan on a stove it comes to a boil faster and can boil over if the amount is sufficient.
I guess this is a learning curve that one has to deal with?
And welcome to the board John!

Tim
 
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