Second smoke (trouble with temp)


 
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Pat DiFelice

New member
Hello all,
I did my second smoke last night. On the home page a saw a quick recipe for skinless,boneless chicken breasts. I figured I'll try that. I cooked 18 pieces, filled the top and bottom racks. As per recipe I started with a full chimney starter and actually added about an extra 12 because I wasn't ready with the chicken (I was still prepping them). I couldn't get the temp over 225 degrees, just one for about 5 minutes. It mostly stayed at 210 degrees. The recipe called for 250-275 degrees for about 1 hr, and them check for 160 to 165 degrees internal meat temp. I cooked it for over two hours and the internal meat temp was at 150. I also added fuel during the cook ( another 12 coals). Still the same temp. The outside temp was in the high 20's with a decent breeze, it was night also. I used a 15" wind screen for the bottom vents, fully opened, and I had half of the water pan filled with hot tap water. Luckily the meat was cooked but not to 160 degrees, it was still good, a little on the dry side. But the next day it tasted even better, very moist and tender (I don't know what happened) I had luck. I'm guessing not enough fuel to start, I didn't think half full water pan would make a difference (I like the moisture it gives). Any suggestions for the future? It should of only been 1 hour cook. Sorry for being long winded.
Thanks for all your help.
Pat
 
Skip the water. At temps over 275 no water is needed. In cold ambient conditions I would not bother with water regardless of desired cooktemp.

More lit never hurts either.

Water prevents temps from rising too high. It will not add moisture to the meat.
 
Pat, air + fuel=heat. If you want higher temps you gotta get more air in to the fuel. Easy way is to flip the door and open and inch, brace with something to keep it open. You can also crack the hood a bit. You can and should use more if not all hot coals and as Kevin said, no need for water. If you like high heat cooks there are other, mo betta, ways to increase air flow. Ad some more vents. It works wonders, I promise. Also I suggest you get your chicken to room temp before putting on and get you smoker temp up before adding meat. This point however has some differing opinions. I cooked chicken last weekend with a grate temp of 325-350 and it was juicy and delicious. It can be done.

Good Smokin' to ya.

Mark
 
Pat, what Kevin said.

Most of us that use water in the pan only do so for low-n-slow 225-250 cooks, like Chris A. teaches here on his site.

For chicken though, it doesn't matter how hot your cooker gets, so just foil the pan to keep the drippings from burning and don't try to fight a 212 degree heat sink if you want to cook 250-275. I open the vents up and let 'er rip, cracking the door if I want to cook 300+. Poultry isn't something that needs to be slow cooked for tenderness like the usual bbq cuts of meat, and you want a very subtle smoke flavor, anyway.
 
Your WSM did exactly what it was supposed to do. Note that Chris A says he did his cook in September, in California, and says to foil the pan for easier cleanup but leave it dry.
 
Thanks for the replies,
What I'm not getting is that the first smoke, about three weeks ago I did spareribs. I fill the ring and used the minion method. I had a full pan of water. I had to keep the bottom vents from 10% to 50% max open to keep the heat down to 225/250 degrees, now that's with water. Last night I had not even 1/2 the water with the vents fully opened and I couldn't get a higher temp. In regards to not using water and lining the pan with foil. I'm sure it doesn't but I have to ask, does the empty water pan get distorted with the high heat and no water to absorb it?
Thanks again,
Pat
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Pat DiFelice:
Thanks for the replies,
What I'm not getting is that the first smoke, about three weeks ago I did spareribs. I fill the ring and used the minion method. I had a full pan of water. I had to keep the bottom vents from 10% to 50% max open to keep the heat down to 225/250 degrees, now that's with water. Last night I had not even 1/2 the water with the vents fully opened and I couldn't get a higher temp. In regards to not using water and lining the pan with foil. I'm sure it doesn't but I have to ask, does the empty water pan get distorted with the high heat and no water to absorb it?
Thanks again,
Pat </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Wind, cooler temps w/ cloud cover, and lots of cold meat can deter the wsm from reaching higher temps, and if your's is pretty new, it'll start running at lower temps as the seasoning builds up. Recording factors in a log is a good way to learn from cooks and be able to predict time and temps for different things. Also, make a decent windbreak of some sort.

The pan will be fine, no matter how hot you cook. Just foil w/ an air pocket so you don't get burnt drippings. Speaking of the pan, get a ECB (el cheapo Brinkman water smoker) charcoal pan. Around here they sell for about $5 at Bass Pro Shop or Academy Sports. It holds just about as much water as the current OE wsm pan, but gives you more room to heap the coals. Ignore the replacement suggestion if you have a big wsm.
 
I agree with Dave, you need a full wind break. A few weeks ago I was facing similar weather and could not get the temp up over 220 until I set up a wind break that sheltered the entire smoker.
I also think that the cold weather may be affecting the temperature reading at the dome. I once read of someone that found that the dome was 20 degree cooler than the lower rack during cold windy weather.
 
Thanks for all your replies and help. My next step is to build the full wind screen, since I plan on using the WSM all winter.
Pat
 
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