Quick overnight question


 
M

Mark Dietrich

TVWBB Member
I put a 6-pound packer on at about 12:30 this morning. Right now it's ten after 11:00, and my little brisket is sitting at 176. Am I on schedule here? I sort of expected the little guy to go a little faster. It is sitting above a 12-pound shoulder, if that makes any difference. And I've been so good... haven't even peeked.

Thanks,
 
Mark, sounds like you have a nice little cook going there
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How long has it been at 176? It's probably sitting in the plateau. I've had temps settle in the 170's for hours before. I usually bump the temps up 20 degrees to "break the stall" Dont worry, after the plateau temps should start to rise more quickly.

Brandon
 
And the obvious follow-up that I should have thought to ask before: I haven't added any fuel, and temp is stable right now at 240. At what point do I panic and add, and what's the best way to do that? Lit? Unlit? I've never tried to go this long before.

Thanks again,
 
Mark - I'll let the brisket experts keep me in check. But AFA adding fuel to the WSM I have done it several ways during overnight cooks.

Unlit is relatively easy to load if you have a "rake" or similar tool available to move the fuel around once loaded. If not - heavy gloves and/or long BBQ tongs will work. In a pinch I have also used a piece of sheet aluminum or flashing to load fuel (used as a slide). This sounds complex but actually easy to do through the side door. Slide fuel into place and move about using tongs, rake, etc.

If you are adding lit, then you should have the lit coals from the chimney available in a bucket and really should have the heavy gloves available. Use tongues to load coals individually. The best method was to use a slide made from a piece of sheet metal/flashing. I loaded the charcoal onto the flashing and slid it in through the side door. You can distribute after wards using long tongs or the rake if you have one.

The last and actually easiest is using gloves to lift the entire mid section completely off and setting it aside. Keep the lid closed. The lid temps will actually be unaffected as all heat is retained. This can be awkward if you are using the water pan with water loaded. You need to be very careful not to dump the pan I.E., lift in a straight up fluid motion and set aside. The risk to dumping the water pan is the catch. For that reason, if you haven't done this before I don't recommend it.

Often stirring the coals can give you the added heat you need without adding fuel, depending on the cook time left. Some folks simply rap the legs to make the ash drop, increasing temps. Of course if you are running out of fuel this might not give the duration you need.
 
I would suggest adding unlit rather then lit if your worried about the fuel not making it the full duration. Adding lit will cause the temp to spike. The only thing about adding unlit is you have to have sufficent lit left or it wont "take" If your water pan isnt plumb full I'd do the hot squat and tend the fire quick, no time like the present to learn
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Just be careful and you'll be fine. Slow and steady...

Brandon
 
And I would suggest getting in there and checking the brisket to see what it feels like in terms of tenderness. It's hard to believe it is a 6-lb packer as slaughter rarely occurs that young commercially. Still, I'd check it to see what. Temps don't really tell you much.
 
Careful adding the coal. When I did it I poured unlit on top and I guess I wasn't paying attention because the temps went well over 300*.

Be careful taking the mid-section off and don't let your feet get under it. You need to stay bent over. No, it's not good for your back, but if that hot water spills on your feet, you're going to be hating life.

I haven't spilled any water removing the mid-section because I don't keep it all the way full. What's left is what's left.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by K Kruger:
And I would suggest getting in there and checking the brisket to see what it feels like in terms of tenderness. It's hard to believe it is a 6-lb packer as slaughter rarely occurs that young commercially. Still, I'd check it to see what. Temps don't really tell you much. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Sooo....what's the tear test for a brisket?
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I never tear meat. For ribs, a probe goes between the bones like it's going through butter. For brisket, a probe goes into the flat with little-to-no resistance.
 
Well the brisket came off around 4:00, and looks lovely. Now the problem is that enormous hunk of pork. I've added fuel, I'm maintaining 250 at the lid, and the shoulder has been sitting at 177 for the last three hours. Not a bump. I'm at 18 and half hours here, and I'll keep going if it will eventually work. At what point do I throw in the towel and finish this in the oven?

And everything was going so well...

Thanks for all the advice. It is surely appreciated.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">At what point do I throw in the towel and finish this in the oven? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
You never really need to do that. You can simply bump the temp up 35? or so and that'll kick it. Alternatively, you can foil it and return it to the cooker and bump up the temp. That will make it even faster. Oven not required.
 
Wrap-up, or The Butt that Nearly Kicked Mine:

10:00 tonight I removed the pork shoulder at 195-200 throughout. 21 and a half hours cooking time. The final three I kept the lid temp as close to 300 as I could get it at that point. That got us through the home stretch.

I foiled it and rested it in the cooler for an hour, then pulled. It pulled beautifully, nearly all of the nastiness had rendered away, and I don't think I have ever tasted anything so heavenly. One bite, and every minute I spent stressing over this meat was worth it. In the end, all I really needed to do was watch the vents and be patient. It was a humbling, and extremely rewarding, experience.

Kind thanks to all for talking me through. Hopefully I'm over the hump, and I won't be such a basket case the next time.

Cheers,
 
Mark,
Glad to hear the shoulder came out nicely, how did your brisket end up? They can be tricky. Did you determine if it truely was a tiny packer, or just a flat? Just wondering.

If I've learned anything about overnighters it would be to get them started earlier then later. I like to get them rollin by eight so that the twelve hour mark is about when I'm wakin up. I'm doing an overnighter Sat. It'll be 3 large ~8 lb butts and a batch of beans. I plan to start at or before 8, to serve lunch at noon Sunday. Now that I'm thinking about it I may even get started earlier. Butts can easily keep in a cooler 4 hours if things finish early.

Anyway, congrats on your first marithon cook, as you've found, someone is always happy to help. Next time we want photos though
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BTW, I'll be in St. Paul Tuesday at Roy Wilkens for a concert...small world.

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Brandon
 
Glad to hear your big cook went good. I did my first set of boston butts yesterday. I started them in the morning so I didnt have to get up during my sleep. Boy that was a mistake. I put the meat on at 6 am and it wasnt done until 12:30 am. I let it rest for 30 min and then pulled it. I thought it was going to take 12 - 14 hrs to cook. Now I know why everyone does the overnight thing and its what I will do next time. With my oversized water pan, I didnt have to ajust anything for hours. It just sat and puffed along and I added more unlit fuel about 12 hours into the cook.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Brandon A:
Mark,
Glad to hear the shoulder came out nicely, how did your brisket end up? They can be tricky. Did you determine if it truely was a tiny packer, or just a flat? Just wondering.

If I've learned anything about overnighters it would be to get them started earlier then later. I like to get them rollin by eight so that the twelve hour mark is about when I'm wakin up. I'm doing an overnighter Sat. It'll be 3 large ~8 lb butts and a batch of beans. I plan to start at or before 8, to serve lunch at noon Sunday. Now that I'm thinking about it I may even get started earlier. Butts can easily keep in a cooler 4 hours if things finish early.

Anyway, congrats on your first marithon cook, as you've found, someone is always happy to help. Next time we want photos though
icon_wink.gif

BTW, I'll be in St. Paul Tuesday at Roy Wilkens for a concert...small world.

wsmsmile8gm.gif

Brandon </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Good advice. Much safer to take the extra time on the front end. The brisket is a little packer. It came cryoed from Costco. Inasmuch as "packer" means both pieces, that seems to be what I've got. I had to trim the fat that ends up going through and separating the two pieces. It seems great. I'm going to reheat and slice it for a party tomorrow, but the top pulled apart nicely, and the probe went through like there was nothing there, so I'm hopeful. Similar behavior to the butt- I had to kick up the temp a bit before I could get it out of its stall. I'll let you know (and maybe take a pic then. The pork is already pulled. I finished that at 12:30 last night, which made it exactly a 24-hour project.
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Thanks again,
 
How long it will take is relative to the size of the butt, its structure and, mostly, cooktemp. For a shorter cook simply cook at a higher temp from the get-go. 20-25? higher makes quite a difference. You can go 50? higher if you'd like, too. You can also kind of split the difference and start lower, bumping the temp higher, say, halfway through the cook.
 
Party in progress, and the pork is incredible. Used a finishing sauce (apple juice, chicken stock, butter) and warmed it in the slow cooker. Excellent.

Big question, though. How do I reheat/deal with this brisket? It's been in the foil (and plastic wrap) since late Thursday afternoon. It's intact. Is there anything other than throwing it in a warm oven for a while? Not sure what the best move is at this point.

Thanks,
 
I place on a rack in a pan, drizzle with stock and a little butter, cover the pan tightly (after sticking in a remote probe), and reheat in a 300 oven to an internal of 145-150, tops.
 
Thank you, Kevin. That was perfect, and we determined that it was, indeed, a tiny packer. Only problem is, it's not wise to grab the handle of the pan in order to remove the probe. That was not cool, but I'm not letting go of this little ice cube, and hopefully the blistering will not be too severe.

Thanks again for contributing to a very successful party. You guys rock.
 
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