Interesting cook


 
M

Michael Stella

TVWBB Member
I'm having a strange cook (at least strange for me) right now. I'm cooking some pork butts for a party tonight. It was about 18 degrees last night when I started a fire using the Minion Method and K brand charcoal. About 11:00 temps were stable, and I put the meat on. Kept checking the temp at the lid and it was at 230. (stiff 18 degree breeze blowing constant on the smoker) Went to bed. This morning I woke up around 6:00 to check on it and the temps were down to 175 at the lid. So I opened up the smoker to stir the coals, and maybe add some, and most of it had burnt up and was ash. So I add another lit chimney along with an entire bowl of unlet, and got the temps back up, and business as usual. About 45 mins ago temps were at about 210 at the lid, so I look in the door and the fire was burnt down again. Not as low as the first time, but low. So I open up the cooker and put another chimney worth of unlit K on the fire. About 20 mins later I was back up to 245 at the lid. The meat is at 181 right now. I've gone through about 1.3 bags of K so far. I've never gone through charcoal like this before. I just hope the meat gets to 195 soon, so I can pull it and let it rest. I'm going to take them off no later than 6:00 anyway just so they can rest a bit before I pull or (hopefully not) shred.

I also put on a fatty when I put the last batch of unlit k in the smoker
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mikebaby
 
You didn't mention how you had your bottom vents set, but if you had an 18mph wind blowing onto the WSM, with no wind block and your vents open, your temps during the night had to get high and you would have used up a lot of charcoal.

Temps of 230, 210 and 175 at the lid will probably equate to around 210, 190 and 155 at the top grate where the meat is.
 
Having a wind break here in Ohio during the winter is essential. I used to have the same problems. Not as bad now since I put together a wind break.
 
I usually do, but during a real stiff wind it will sometimes get knocked over and I don't want my WSM to go over with it. The pork came out great (I threw on a fatty for good measure with about 4 hours go go). After That last charcoal I put on, the fire stoked it self up to 240 at the lid and held constant until 4:00 when I pulled it off and put in a cooler. It just fell apart, this was by far my best butt yet.

I think I'm going to try a brisket next.

Michael
 
Take a look at either a wind break that want blow over, or moving the whole shebang to somewhere in the yard that is less windy! If you have a dominant direction try putting the WSM on the leaward side of something from that direction as a first step.
 
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