Help w/side box smoker & minion method (in progress!)?


 
M

Michael Coumerilh

New member
OK, so I lit 20 coals using a weber chimney over my Performer's gas starter (love eht!) and placed those over about 100-150ish coals in my side box (smoker)(coal). I left the stack open 100%, and the vent on the left at about 50% (side box). It took quite awhile for the temp to rise - which I expected. However, after about an hour the temp on the lid (which is always hot) was at 400°! I have an oven therm sitting beside the butt and it reads about 260° (oven therm). I closed the side box vent to about 20% (vent). But the Minion Method coal is all but used up basically (it's all lit!) (coal).

Q: My guess is my problem was having the side box vent opened too far? I'm going to keep it at 20% now, and see if I can get it down a bit. But the temp isn't my main concern. What about the 'sloooooooow' burn? I'm using Kingsford. Oh, and that's a pear branch sitting in there for extra flavuh.

The problem is that the Minion method is bust for this smoke since I can't just drop unused coal UNDER the hot stuff. So, should I try and add 20 coals or so every hour to keep a steady temp once this cools a bit?

For those unfamiliar w/ the Minion Method - (Link)
Edit: Added picture of entire smoker. And last paragraph.
 
Well my brother have this big off set smoker and having the same problem.

They take alot of fuel to get hot dont they?

Totally different from the wsm.

But to give some help(have no xp myself in offset but i have an idea)when you get the smoker hot to cooking temp then clear the fuel chamber. restart with the minion with vents as low as u can to keep the temp up.

Better to get the temp up and do a restart then run there every 1h to refill fuel.

Im not saying that im right but its just a thought.

Hope u solve the problem and if u do im interested in the answer to help my brother out.

Bless//Me
 
Michael,I also have no experience with an offset,just the WSM. But,if you drop unlit on top of lit,it will still burn. I would think that you just need to watch the vents. And,yes,it's easier to catch a temp on the way up,than to try to cool them off after it gets hot. HTH
 
Well, this is what I've got so far:


fire lit: 0622
meat on: 0700

TIME : OVEN : LID : VENT
0645 - 150° - 200° - 50%
0700 - 200° - 400° - 20%
0715 - 250° - 370° - 20%
0800 - 280° - 350° - 20%
0900 - 250° - 340° - 20%
0915 - 250° - 330° - 20% - *added 15 briquettes
0930 - 255° - 340° - 20%
0945 - 255° - 340° - 20%
1000 - 250° - 325° - 20% - *meat temp: 140°-165°

I need the temp to get down a little more, so I'm gonna wait quite a bit longer to put more coals on again. At 1000 I'll start checking the temp of the meat.

Edit: added 1000 temps
 
It might be more work and charcoal than you planned, but it looks like the cook is going well. Good steady temps. I would just get some nice Busch beer and add a few coals every 30 min. Now that you know your cooking temps in relation to your lid temps, I wouldn't open the cooking chamber for a couple hours. Sounds like a great Saturday to me! Go Cards!
 
Jim Minion used a wsm, and his method doesn't really work well on an offset unless it's really tight and air intake can be controlled effectively. Even then, guys make all kinds of charcoal baskets to facillitate some semblance of a MM, some even with a steel plate- partitioned design where the charcoal has to slowly burn along a narrow trail of coals, winding around the plates.
 
Originally posted by Dave Russell:
Jim Minion used a wsm, and his method doesn't really work well on an offset unless it's really tight and air intake can be controlled effectively. Even then, guys make all kinds of charcoal baskets to facillitate some semblance of a MM, some even with a steel plate- partitioned design where the charcoal has to slowly burn along a narrow trail of coals, winding around the plates.
Click to expand...

Hmmm. Good to know. Then my NEXT question - for any takers - would be what would be a good method for using an offset for an overnight smoke? - fuel, placement, etc.
 
An updated chart of temps. The temp is REALLY steady! That said, I just added another 15 briquettes since the original pile is nearly GONE! I'll probably add another 15 here within the hour - though, I HAVE learned: patience. Wait it out and let the temp settle before taking swift action. So, I'm hoping to not jump the gun here.

TIME : OVEN : LID : VENT
0622 - ---° - ---° - --% - lit 20 coals in chimney on Performer
0630 - ---° - ---° - 50% - put coals on Minion Method
0645 - 150° - 200° - 50%
0700 - 200° - 400° - 20% - put meat on
0715 - 250° - 370° - 20%
0800 - 280° - 350° - 20%
0900 - 250° - 340° - 20%
0915 - 250° - 330° - 20% - added 15 briquettes
0930 - 255° - 340° - 20%
0945 - 255° - 340° - 20%
1000 - 250° - 325° - 20% - meat temp: 140°-165°
1015 - 240° - 300° - 20% - tapped ash off coal
1030 - 235° - 295° - 20%
1100 - 200° - 255° - 20% - added 15 briquettes - meat temp: 170°
 
Caffeine.

No, I'm anxious to learn an overnight technique. I've just never heard of one. That trail of coals with partitions sounds interesting. It seems the "hands off" cooking is the major strength of the vertical.

If there is a good way to do it... Somebody on this forum knows how.
 
If you're able to use the MM, one thing you'll have to remember is to shut your vent much sooner than these guys that use the wsm. If you wait till the cooker gets up to 200, your charcoal will have gotten away from you already, but I guess you already have figured that out.

Honestly though, I'm really skeptical about your chances of MM success, just loading full and lighting the top like we do with the wsm. I'd try a more traditional approach of lighting charcoal in a chimney and adding as needed. Invite a couple of friends over to stay up and kick a few back overnight. (THAT is the traditional approach.)If that's not an option, cook a little hotter and get it done during the day.
 
Well, it turned out A-OK. put it in a crock pot to bring to a friend's house. Pairing it with one of my versions of the No. 5 Sauce.

Fresh out of the smoker (and it seems a piece has gone missing. hmmm):
DSC00010.jpg


And hand pulled in the crock pot:
DSC00011.jpg
 
Oh My! I used to have that very same NB Offset back in VA!

I feel your pain! It's like you burn at least 4x~5x the fuel.

The issue is all that steel. You gotta burn a ton just to get it up to temp.

They're great if you're doing 100 lb of meat. But woefully inefficient for a single butt.

Overnight smoke?! No Sleep For You! As you've already noticed, you're going to be tending that beast every couple of hours.


Darn it! That WSM on CL over in St Charles just sold!
 
Hey Michael! Welcome!
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I used an offset/stick-burner before I got my WSMs and they can do the job just fine.
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Most folks who use offsets don't use charcoal, except for a modest starter fire. Offsets are frequently called stick-burners because smaller split logs like the oak, you fuel a fireplace with, are the most efficient way to operate it. A full chimney of lit charcoal topped with 3-4 split oak logs will getcha started .. add a log or 2 periodically
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Use the firebox vents to slow the fire down and use the chimney vent to control the temperature ...
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Cheers!
 
Originally posted by TravisH:

Darn it! That WSM on CL over in St Charles just sold!
Click to expand...

I know. I saw that last week.

Thanks for the tips Travis and Rondo. I've got a 22.5" performer, so maybe I'll just go back to that for the single butts.

Signed,

Frustrated trouper - AKA Mike
 
Well done u got a great final product witch was the goal from the start i guess
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Takes a bit of practise with a new smoker but u did great.

I have seen ppl feed those offsets with coals from another burn beside the smoker were they just burn wood and then toss it in when needed.

Just burning wood in ur firebox would be a overkill of smoke i guess or?

Well great jobb.

Bless
 
Originally posted by Dave Russell:
Jim Minion used a wsm, and his method doesn't really work well on an offset unless it's really tight and air intake can be controlled effectively. Even then, guys make all kinds of charcoal baskets to facillitate some semblance of a MM, some even with a steel plate- partitioned design where the charcoal has to slowly burn along a narrow trail of coals, winding around the plates.
Click to expand...
That's what I did. I made a charcoal basket out of expanded metal and put the lit on the side closest to the cooking chamber. The charcoal burns sideways instead of down. When it starts to run low, I scraped all the lit back away from the vents and filled close to the vents.
3928322343_2671fe9c18.jpg


I also have a maze which I prefer. You light one corner and the fire snakes around. When it reaches the end, you back-fill and it burns the other way. You can make one or buy one from Klose Pits.
4044833752_821398afa4.jpg


Either way, regulating your temps in an offset isn't anything like a WSM!
 
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