"Newbie" first cook on WSM


 
D

Dave Hutson

TVWBB Super Fan
Well, yesterday, I did my first cook on this wonderful product. For those who don't know, I own a catering business, and a Klose mobile BBQ pit. I have cooked on smaller offsets, as well as a piece of junk Brinkmann Smoke n Grill for about 7 years now, but never on a WSM until yesterday. I was originally planning to do ribs, but , since the weather was a relatively warm mid-40s I figured I'd try a brisket. I also brined two chickens and did them as well. I had the brisket on by 6:00 am and used four large Igloo coolers I have for catering as windbreaks as we had 25-35 mph breezes. I used lump with some hickory in the Minion method. I took the brisket to 160 and foiled it at which point I finished it in the oven (pulled at 195 and rested for two hours) : Observations-

1) The cooker handled the wind and itermittent rain like a champ, varying only about +/- 10 deg all day.

2) I had to keep all vents wide open throughout the cook because the wind was taking heat off the cooker.

3) The brisket tasted as good as any I have had. Great smoke ring, alot of juice in the foil. It took about 9 hours to get it to 160 though.

4) I did the chickens with some mesquite after I took the brisket off. Very moist and flavorful.

5) "Redneck" brand lump performed well.

6) The Brinkmann water pan is a MUST!!! What was Weber thinking? Not only is the pan too small, but the sides are shallow. I cannot imagine cooking with this "frisbee!"

7) Add a thermo guys!I installed a 2" stem Ashcroft opposite the vent.

8) Next time, I am going to try sand.

9) Great product and thanks for the help guys!
 
Glad to hear you were pleased with it, sounds like you had a great cook despite conditions.

That Brinkmann pan is good in certain situations IMO. I have one but I only use it when I want a big heat sink, like my cheese smoke the other day. When you double up the water you double up the heat sink. If you're having a hard time maintaing a high enough temp why use a heat sink?

The other scenario I think it's good for is if it's hot where you live, maybe at sea level and wanting to run 225ºF with a leaky WSM. All bottom vents closed and can't get below 240ºF kinda thing. Then bring on that 2 gallon heat sink.

You can still dial in the temp pretty well and have a shield with even an empty pan (though I like to put foil balls in and cover with foil to reduce grease and dripping smoke). Sure some fluctuations but nothing bad enough even close to ruining the food.

A q for you:

Is the Klose (or offsets in general) as susceptible to the wind as the WSM? I'm thinking a lot heavier gauge steel so not as affected.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Dave Hutson:
Shawn, it is not as succeptible, but it is harder to hide! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>No doubt!
 
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