Rookie Smoker on Performer


 
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Mike A

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Happy Thursday everyone. I recently purchased a Weber Performer and have been using the heck out of it for the last few weeks. I've got a happy girlfriend and a full belly most nights.

So far I've stuck to fairly routine stuff, steaks, chicken, shrimp, pork loins, etc. but last night I stepped up my game and added some mesquite smoking chips to the fire.

I was please with the flavor and though a bit of a pain, the smoke was manageable. I'm looking for some advice on where to go next with my grill. Is it worth buying a smokinator or some other similar contraption? I'm considering smoking a butt or maybe trying the drunken chicken which I have never attempted before. Any other suggestions.

Happy Grilling.
 
There's a good illustration of smoking with fire bricks later in this post, as well as the actual post on using the roasting pan with water as a heat sink in This thread.

That's a good read for a start.
 
Absolutley agree with Stuart. The method used by Michael L, with the water pan is FULL proof on the weber performer. I tried it with an 8 lb butt,...it was flawless. Kept the temps at 250 the whole time. Of course you have to be able to know how to adjust your vents then it worked out great. I bought the smokenator and have not used it yet, because of the wonderful methods the guys have here. Try it, you will be turning out fantastic bbq/smoked meats in no time.
 
Stuart that thread made my mouth water. That guy made it look so easy... I might have to pick up a shoulder, cook it, and have bbq for lunch the rest of the week.
Owwwwwww
 
Regina - Anything specific about the vents I need to know? My understanding at this point is they basically form a chimney effect... Close to bottom vent and the fire can't breath. Close the top vent and the smoke can't escape. Basically it's a balancing act between the two. Is there more to it?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike A:
Regina - Anything specific about the vents I need to know? My understanding at this point is they basically form a chimney effect... Close to bottom vent and the fire can't breath. Close the top vent and the smoke can't escape. Basically it's a balancing act between the two. Is there more to it? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

You're right...The lower vents allow air to enter the kettle through the bottom to feed the fire, close them off and the coals won't have any oxygen to burn. The upper vents allow air to escape out the top of the kettle. The amount each is open will control the amount of airflow passing through the kettle. It's pretty simple, but how much you have the vents open will affect your temp, and your overall burn time.

I've never tried the method in the post I referred to, but I have used the fire bricks and I do have a smokenator. I find 50% top and 25-30% bottom keeps you at a steady 225, but you will have to play with them a bit during the cook to compensate for temp fluctuations. I would highly recommend getting some fire bricks (I hear Ace Hardware is a good source in the USA) and playing with it. A pork butt will require you to reload during the cook, so it might be better to start with some ribs and get used to vent management. I've turned out some amazing ribs using this method and learned allot about my kettle in the process. A good candy thermometer in one of the top vents is all you need to keep track of the temps...just remember that the temp at the vent will be a bit higher than the grate level. Shoot for 275 up there and you'll be in the sweet spot at the grate level. Plan on cooking for about 6 hours for a couple of full racks of ribs and let the meat determine when you eat, not the time. Most people don't use a thermo to check for doneness, but I swear by waiting until your ribs are at 195 in the thickest part before testing for probe tender and bend.
 
Just curious, what would happen if you went bottom vents 100% and top 10% or vice versa and left your top vents wide open and cracked the bottom?
 
Hey Mike, Stuart has alot of great advice there. Alot of people control their vents with the bottom one. Example. If you have the top wide open or lets say 50% open, and the bottom just open a crack it will settle in at one specific temp. You don't know what that number is, because every grill/kettle is different. A good thing to do (what I did when I first started to learn) was after I was done grilling steak (as an example) and my grill was real hot I would slowly start to close down the vents and "see" where the temp would settle in. I also marked the bottom vent with a permanent marker as to the positions Open ,1/4, 1/2, and closed. because when you have charcoal in there sometimes it is hard to see in. But with that post that Michael L made he talks about how much charcoal he used and his vent settings. I have never had to reload charcoal, if anything I have some leftover. The reason is that I would rather over do it a bit than have my temp fall too low, reload and have to wait until the temp comes back up. Lots of great advice on all of these thread about smoking on the kettle. Read through them and it will give you a better feel for adjusting the vents, how much charcoal and approximately how long some things will take to smoke. (Not an exact science, it is the art of the fire so to speak).Ask away we are all here to help you.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike A:
Just curious, what would happen if you went bottom vents 100% and top 10% or vice versa and left your top vents wide open and cracked the bottom? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

You'd probably end up running hot since the kettles are never 100% sealed when you close the lid. If air can find a way out other than the top vent it will. Regina has some good advice about grilling some steaks on high heat and then playing with the vents to get a feel for where you are with your kettle.

I just threw on some beef ribs and I'll be posting in the photo gallery as I go so feel free to check my pics of the cook out over there.
 
I've had a lot of gadgets and gizmos, but I find the simple fire brick method to be the best and cheapest method if you are only cooking 1 or 2 butts or a brisket.
 
I think I'm going to take the plunge and smoke my first butt/shoulder this weekend. I'm a little concerned about how much smoke I'll actually be dealing with though. I live in an apartment complex where I fortunately can have a grill, but the smoke can be an issue b/c of the design of the deck. For a long term cook like those discussed, am I looking at a situation where I'll bellow smoke for 6hrs or is it a gentle stream?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike A:
I think I'm going to take the plunge and smoke my first butt/shoulder this weekend. I'm a little concerned about how much smoke I'll actually be dealing with though. I live in an apartment complex where I fortunately can have a grill, but the smoke can be an issue b/c of the design of the deck. For a long term cook like those discussed, am I looking at a situation where I'll bellow smoke for 6hrs or is it a gentle stream? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

The amount of smoke will taper off as the cook progresses. Lighting your chimney will kick off more smoke than your cook will in most cases. Do yourself a favor and get some good charcoal for your cook. Nakedwhiz has some great reviews of various brands.

Also, unless you're cooking a small butt, 6 hours won't be enough time to do pulled pork.
 
You said that right Stuart! The chimney will produce the most smoke. Mike when you are "actually smoking" the pork butt at a low temp you may only see the classic thin blue smoke coming from the top vent. The smell will be awesome. I use Stubbs charcoal, tastes good, burns long.
 
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