So I ordered a WSM.....


 
R

Randy J.

New member
Hi guys, it's my first day here and I'm looking for some general advice. I ordered a WSM online yesterday and am hoping to be cooking with it next weekend. I've been doing indirect grilling using wood chips on my 22 1/2" Weber kettle grill for several years but have never before owned a smoker. So before I get started I'm wondering what accessories I might need to buy. From scanning this board it sounds like a probe thermometer is a must. Is that for checking the temperature of the smoker, the food or both? What else might I expect to need/want?

Another thing I'm wondering about is cooking at altitude. I live just outside of Albuquerque which is about 5000 ft above sea level. I'm curious if anyone has any experience with how that might affect cooking times and temperatures.

Great board, by the way, I've been enjoying reading. Thanks in advance for any suggestions and advice.
 
Welcome Randy. I can offer some tips on the cooking at altitude from my intial difficulties.
I would not even think about using water in the pan, your smoker most likely will not get good cooking temps consistiently. I use foiled water pan only and have found that to best suit my needs here in Denver. Also it seems from what I see others post, that I tend to use more fuel and my burn times have not run as long as others, my guess would be due to decreased oxygen feeding the fire. As far as acessories I don't use many, I do have a remote thermometer that comes in handy. You will figure it out I'm sure and soon be enjoying excellent BBQ. Good luck....Chris
 
First smoker and its a WSM, well done, you won't be disappointed and will become addicted.

Regarding accessories here's a suggestion or two, heavy duty gloves, a good rib rack, chimney starter if you don't have one, Guru eyelets, remote thermometer, a variety of wood chunks, spray bottle, Dr. style latex gloves . . . I think this is a good start.

So, have you decided what your first cook will be?
 
Originally posted by Randy J.:
Hi guys, it's my first day here and I'm looking for some general advice. I ordered a WSM online yesterday and am hoping to be cooking with it next weekend. I've been doing indirect grilling using wood chips on my 22 1/2" Weber kettle grill for several years but have never before owned a smoker. So before I get started I'm wondering what accessories I might need to buy. From scanning this board it sounds like a probe thermometer is a must. Is that for checking the temperature of the smoker, the food or both? What else might I expect to need/want?

Another thing I'm wondering about is cooking at altitude. I live just outside of Albuquerque which is about 5000 ft above sea level. I'm curious if anyone has any experience with how that might affect cooking times and temperatures.

Great board, by the way, I've been enjoying reading. Thanks in advance for any suggestions and advice.
Click to expand...
Welcome aboard Randy, you've mad a great choice on smokers. I have had mine now for just under one year, and I love it. Larry gave you some very good advice, and covered the basics very well. You will also need to throw away your scale. You will put on a few extra pounds from all of the great food that you will be cooking on your new smoker, but as hot as your summers get there in NM, you can sweat it off pretty easy. I moved to California about 3 1/2 years ago from Los Lunas NM. Man I sure miss NM and the great green chili and the great golf courses. Where abouts are you located?
 
Great replies, thank you all.

Chris- When you say you use a foil pan do you mean instead of the water pan that comes with the unit? I haven't seen it yet so I'm guessing.

Larry - A few people have suggested to me that my first cook should be a pork butt due to its forgiving nature. Problem is that I just did one last weekend on the Weber kettle and so would like to do something different. Folks, would I be making my life difficult to try brisket or chicken the first time out?

Ed - I'm in Rio Rancho, just outside the Albuquerque line. We're only a couple months from chile roasting season. For me, the late summer and fall are the best times to live in New Mexico. As to golf, I hope to get to play more this year after my daughter starts kindergarten.

George - I'll be reading

Scott - thanks for the link
 
My first cook was baby backs, came out perfect! They have a good tolerance for heat, so I would try some. I did them around 245 at the lid, this allows it to go lower and a tiny bit higher with not much ill effect.
 
Originally posted by Randy J.

Chris- When you say you use a foil pan do you mean instead of the water pan that comes with the unit? I haven't seen it yet so I'm guessing.
Click to expand...
Randy, Welcome to the board. Instead of putting water in the stock WSM because of altitude, Chris runs the pan dry, and just puts a sheet of foil in the WSM. I use no water also, and like to keep the foil about an 1.5" up off the inside bottom of the stock WSM water pan. This gives you a nice air gap/insulation. There's still plenty of room to collect the grease, no worries.
 
i just rinse my water pan out in the sink after it cools. since its not holding food itself a good scrub with some dawn then a rub with a wad of aluminum foil and it gets all the chunks out. then one more rinse with dawn and its good to go for the next cook.

i tried to foil the pan like some do but was too much hassle for my lazy nature. i have cooked twice now with my new wsm and its a god send. your gonna love it. the only thing i find hard to clean are the grill grates. still havent figured a good way to do that.
 
Jon, i use Bissell grill and oven cleaner on my grates otg and wsm. Works real good, just spray and let it sit for a bout 15 minutes, use a brass wire brush to scrub. I then bring them inside and use dishwash in the sink and wipe them clean with water.
I find the Bissell at Big Lots for I think $1.50 per can
 
Welcome aboard Randy. I too live in RR (Enchanted Hills). My first cook on the WSM was Babybacks and they came out great. I followed the BRITU recipe. One thing I have learned from others on this board was to reduce the quantity of salt in the recipe. In fact, Kevin Kruger suggested leaving the salt completely out of the rub and just pre-salt the ribs as if you were salting at the table prior to eating. I did a couple slabs of spares this past weekend using this method and they were perfect.

I too use an empty, foiled water pan. No more messy water pan to clean.

Here is my method of cleaning the grates. place them in a Hefty garbage bag, dump in a cup or two of Amonia, tie it closed and let it sun-soak in the yard for several hour or overnight. Clean-up is a breeze. I learned this method when clearing out of base housing several years ago. The housing inspector recommended this method to clean oven racks.

Bob W.
 
Hey Robert, small world, huh?

Guys, I see that I'm going to need wood chunks rather than chips. On short notice - I want to cook tomorrow - the only chunks I know I can get my hands on are hickory. Is hickory too strong for baby backs? I have some apple and cherry chips but I assume they'll burn out too quickly.
 
Randy,

I did the BRITU bb ribs for my first cook and they were great. I actually only used fruit wood for my initial smokes, but find myself using more and more hickory. Hickory is fine, but I would only use one or two fist size chunks for those bb's. You can also add the apple chips for additional smoke.
 
I was fortunate enough to find some apple wood this afternoon so I guess I'll go with those and the BRITU recipe. Can't wait to get started.
 
Hey Randy-

Welcome! I've not been around here too long, and only smoking a year now, but this is THE place to learn and share.

In response to one of your first questions, in case you don't have the answer already... yes, a grill/oven probe thermometer is a must. I use one to keep track of the internal temp of a piece of meat throughout the cook. (I leave it on the whole time, and check every so often.) This temp can help you judge when the meat is done.

I have a separate digital quick-read thermometer too, so I can take the temp in several areas quickly then I think the food is about done. Many people suggest the Thermapen brand, but I have a different/similar/cheaper/somewhat lower quality version. This gives you the same information as the probe thermometer, but you can take the temp in several spots quicker than with the probe (i.e. checking a big pork butt or turkey in multiple spots).

I have a separate "hard" thermometer I stuck through a wine cork and plugged into one of the holes in the lid vent. This reads the cooking temp at the lid, which basically tells you how fast you are cooking. It's kind of the smoker's speedometer. Lots of guys drill a special hole in the lid to permanently mount a thermometer, but I haven't gotten that adventurous yet.

Some people use a probe thermometer that has two probes. One probe they stick in the meat, and the other they mount inside the smoker to read the air temp near the grate. This way, you can use one device to tell the temp of the meat and the temp of the smoker.

Anyhow, that's probably a lot more words than you were looking for, but that's what the different thermos are used for. You've already found the best accessory of all... this website. Read as much as you can, share you adventures, and you'll have a great time. Good luck!
 
Benny, that's definitely not "more words" than I was looking for. It was a great post, very helpful. I really like the cork idea. Thank you.

I think I'll be heading to the local gadget emporium tomorrow morning for a thermometer or two.
 
Well, that was a heckuva lotta fun. I did 4 racks of ribs for my first cook. I followed as best I could the BRITU method. That is an excellent rub.

The wind kicked up real bad here and knocked my temperature way down about halfway through the process. As a result I ended up with ribs that had a great flavor and texture but were a bit fattier than I would have liked. The most important critics, my wife and 5 y/o daughter, both would have preferred me finishing them off with a final dusting of dry rub rather than the sauce.

I have three racks to send off to family/friends. I'll advise them to heat on low in the oven long enough to let that last bit of fat to cook off.

I am thoroughly impressed by how well the WSM holds and distributes heat. Learned some valuable lessons today and had a good time cooking. Leaning towards turkey for next Sunday. Thank you all for your help.
 
Originally posted by Randy J.:

The wind kicked up real bad here and knocked my temperature way down about halfway through the process. As a result I ended up with ribs that had a great flavor and texture but were a bit fattier than I would have liked.
Click to expand...
Randy. Congrats on your first cook.
icon_cool.gif
Sounds like you might need to get yourself a wind break. FYI, You could have finished them in the oven to your liking and still have kept the smoke flavor and taste.
icon_wink.gif
Wind break info for you.
 
Bryan, great link, thank you.

The wind always blows in New Mexico and for some reason this year seems even more than normal. A wind break is definitely up my alley.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top