Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Was cleaning out the garage a while ago and stumbled upon my grandfathers smoker and figured in memory of him and that I want to make some good food hopefully, that I would attempt my 1st smoking on fathers day.. pork shoulder.
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/...3/photo4-1.jpg
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/...3/photo2-2.jpg
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/...3/photo3-1.jpg
Couple questions,
the thermometer is broken, where can I find a replacement for it?
from what I've found "The Brinkmann Sportsman charcoal smoker uses smoke, heat and steaming liquid to slow-cook foods." can anyone give me any good tips or hell I haven't found a recipe to try yet and Sundays right around the corner, and does http://www.ehow.com/how_4780568_smok...an-smoker.html seem like a pretty good guide line to go by?
thanks

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

1. Get pork butt, not shoulder. It is way better meat. It is also a good bit smaller and easier to cook.
2. Get a new thermo just about anywhere- wally world, target, grocery store. when you get it, test it in boiling water. it should read 212. If it does not, you know how much to compensate for
3. Cook at about 225/230*. This will get it done at about 90 mins per pound
4. Pull when internal temp hits 195. Wrap in foil, then in a couple towels and then in a cooler to rest for an hour or so (or longer if necessary.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Sounds like a good way to spend Sunday morning. Be sure to factor in ~30-45min for the charcoal to burn down to coals and to get the pit to smoking temperature before adding the meat.

I have found that Academy is a good one stop shop for your BBQ needs (lump charcoal, wood for smoking, thermometers, tools, etc).

I have never done a pork butt, but I am tossing the idea around of hosting lunch on Sunday with family.

Good luck with the cooking.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Good find with the smoker...got the father mojo hopefully still lurking in it...please post pics of your adventures!

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Let us know how it goes :)

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

That was my first smoker, and I still have and use it periodically.

Here are some mods that will make cooking with a ECB a little easier.

If you drill holes in the fire pan, make sure that you have a metal pan under the smoker and DO NOT fire that thing up on a wood (or anything combustible) deck. The early ECBs had vent holes in the firepan until someone burned down their house and sued.

I do not use liquid in the water pan personally. I prefer the "bark" that my rub gives and steam from the liquid is not real condusive to that. The objective is to provide a "thermal barrier" between the heat source and the food so that you are cooking with an indirect heat as opposed to a direct heat source. Instead, I use playground sand in the water pan. Works well, you can sift out any grease dripping, and it's easy to clean up afterwards.

BTW, I use a probe thermometer with a wireless reciever. Not only can I move to whatever smoker I am using, but with the wireless reciever, I can be anywhere I wnat and still know my temps. Some of the best ~$30 I spent.

Just my :2 worth, your millage may vary!

My herd (most of them at least :))

http://oldchurchbbq.com/sharedpictur...Butt%20003.jpg

My Hot Rodded ECB

http://oldchurchbbq.com/sharedpictur...Butt%20007.jpg

Oh, and the most important part...post up pictures!

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

That's the key, without pictures, we simply won't believe you....

And while we are at it, I have to ask what might be a stupid question,
not unlike Monty Python....Chip said to test your thermo by dipping it
in boiling water, which boils at 212....but does not water also boil at 250?
325?? 400?? How can you test a thermo that way? Is it a ROLLING boil,
or the first bubbles that denote 212?

btw the reference was "Can you not also build a bridge out of STONE??"

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Awesome thanks for the tips, I am gonna def do a few of these mods at least, is there a nice simple rub to help produce a good bark?

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

The hottest that plain water can get at atmospheric pressure is 212, the bubbles you see are because once water hits 212 the heat energy that is being put into the water is no longer raising the temperature, it is vaporizing the water at the bottom of the pan and makes the boiling water look like it's rolling. Pressure cookers work by increasing the temperature that water vaporizes thus increasing the temperature at which the water boils, so you can essentially boil things at hotter than 212.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

:tu:tu

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

BTW, I am in no way associated with the website that I linked to, but I have made several mods that he illistrated. I have not tried any of his recipies.

As for a rub, look up Alton Brown's website. He did a pretty good show on BBQ a while back and he gave a nice beginners basic rub. Just remember, a recipe is only a guide, play with it to make it your own. There also several rubs availiable at various supermarkets and such. Bad Byrons Butt Rub is hard to beat for a commercial rub :tu

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

WHO SAYS kids don't like science anymore! Thanks for that info. I was not paying attention in school.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

I actually learned thermodynamics and heat transfer in Navy Nuclear Power School, your country's tax dollars at work, training me to boil water.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

My money was well spent I see :lr

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

That setup don't suck bro!! :dr

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Thanks Mike. I have a VERY loving and understanding wife who doesn't give me too much grief about all of my toys. And between fishing, BBQ'n, cigars and such, I have a few toys :)

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

You can also do a search thru the recipies as well as the "What's in your Smoker" thread. As I recall there have been a few posted. I would rather give you a base to start out with and then have you add/subtract things that you like/don't like. Beware, it is a slippery slop like any other. We have been perfectiong our rubs and sauces for the last 15 or 20 years :dr

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

should I brine this or just do a rub before I smoke it, and how long would you say the coals will last before I should swap them out for fresh ones?

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Your call on brining...some do, I don't.

The longevity of coals are anyones guess. It depends a lot on the brand, the surrounding temperature and humidity, etc. I use natural lump charcoal personally, but I know Brent (one of the REAL bbq Guru atound here) uses brickets (Kingsford I think). Keep an eye on your temperature and add just a piece or two when the temperature starts to drop. Again, this takes a bit of practice. If you add too much or too soon, you can get into wild temperature swings. That's not the end of the world, but it make it a little rougher on yourself. Practice, practice practice, and when you think you have it down, practice some more :). One of the pest things about BBQ'n to me is getting to eat my mistakes!

BTW, Lump burns hotter (so you don't need as much) but probably costs more and may be harder to find. I can get it at the big box hardware stores and supermarkets around here. I use lump to start my tow-behind stick burner.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

I found this rub and think I'm gonna try it out
http://www.bbqpitboys.com/pork_dry_rub.html

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Looks pretty good. I might suggest splitting the sugar between light brown and turbino (or raw) sugar. Be careful because the brown is pretty moist and will clump together unless you dry it out in the oven (on a cookie sheet) first.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Don't listen to Steve, he's like a weekend barbecuer or something. :D

He is right about one thing, practice is the best thing for you. It allows you to slowly make all the mistakes and
learn from them, and rarely will they ever be so big that you have no food to eat and share. It is almost always
fun and people are impressed.

BUT I have converted from Lump lately. It does burn hotter, so you do use less, but it also burns faster
so you use the same amount, lol. In the end it's simply a preference, or so I have found, in my limited experience.
I used the crap out of lump, and then one day I hit the semi-annual Kingsford sale at wherever it is, and that dang
stuff burned throughout my cook. It was no long cook or anything, but I was impressed by the fact that I tended
my smoker a LOT less with the briquets that day. Lump is awwesome for Steaks and grilling at high temps, but since
I cook low and slow most of the time, I want the bricks. I really liked the lump and used it for a few years.
But I am on the bricks now. You should try both to see which you prefer.

I am also thinking about getting one of those Brinkmann's for when I go to the Smokies later this summer. I want
something I can take over there new and leave it there. (cabin) I usually smoke 3 racks of ribs and a butt, and that
stuff is IMMENSELY BETTER off the grill than re-heated, even though i usually smoke it only the day before I travel over.
Is that taste worth 60 bucks?? I am not sure.
-----
Haha, I edited all my personal stories, I forgot we were not in the Smoker thread, where you can SEE Steve's mastery
firsthand....I was kidding, lol.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

I've seen some of his stuff OLS. this smoker has 2 racks and I was thinking about putting some chicken on the other rack (the Spanish supermarket right down the street sells chicken legs like 10lbs for 8$), is that pushing it for a first timer or I should be okay? Also a: how to do I "maintain" the temp and when its time to add new coals do I add lit ones or add unlit ones? I am assuming lit ones but figured I would ask

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

:banger:banger :tu

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

I would agree with this as well, but you also have to remember that most of my cooking is on the Lang, I only use lump to get the original bed of coals and the smoker heated up. Once that happens, unless I screw up and let my fire die down somehow ( :al ), I am feeding my bably quarter sticks about every hour or so.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

?? quarter sticks?:confused:;s

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

oh yeah I wanted to ask if these were decent prices?
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/...3/photo1-3.jpg

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Quater sticks of wood, about 24" long.

http://oldchurchbbq.com/sharedpictur...0BBQ%20003.jpg

Happy smoker

http://oldchurchbbq.com/sharedpictur...0BBQ%20001.jpg

Another thing regarding lump vs. brickets. I find that charcoal brickettes ash a lot where lump burns more efficiently (?). In my stick burner, my fire sits up pretty high so I don't have to worry about ash overload, but when I used the ECB, I was always having to clean out the firepan of ash. With the modifications described previously, it is a lot easier to clean out the ash without loosing temp though. Like BRad said earlier though, I would recommend trying it both ways (seperate cooks though) to see which way works best for your style and situation.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Price doesn't look unreasonable. Differnt parts of the country makes a difference in price too though.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

ok so they are not a steal then

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

I don't know what the normal price up in your part of the country is.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

NOTHING is a steal anymore. I wish I was kidding, but meat of every kind is out of control. I remember when
NO ONE would touch a chicken wing, it was like a giblet or something. You could buy 24 wings in a family
pack for about 3 bucks. Now the chicken wing is like filet mignon or something. And POARK? Don't get
me started on that (misspelled intentionally due to En Ess Ay filtering) The other white meat is so high now
that when it's time for a SALE, its still pricey. Beef has never been cheap. So I think you have to go by
what the store calls a sale. Now that you will be cruising the meat rack every Friday, you will see what
'normal' prices are and start watching the sales sheets.

It seems like what you are needing is what it took me 4 years to finally buy. I thought ten bucks was too much, lol.
You need a chimney starter. Start off your replenishment coals in it and tong them into the smoker when you
see a slight temp drop coming on. With that unit I would say that every 100 minutes or so you are going to
have to be adding coals. But I say that like I KNOW....I don't, lol. There are people here that mix burning coals and
unburned coals all the time, something they call the minion method, but I don't like the gasses that come from
unlit charcoal on top of lit coal. The smoke and gas are worse with a fresh start of coals, but I don't like
the smell of it, and don't want it near my meat. But that's because I use indirect smoking in the same unit
as my meat. I think it might be fine for people that have fireboxes, though. I am just handicapped by my cooker...

see attached pic................meat on one side, smoke on the other...fresh coals would be a prob.

BTW, chicken on the BOTTOM, dude....dripping juices are the issue.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

You know you asked a question that I missed, and although I am not the best to answer it since I don't own
a Brinkmann or a Smokey Mountain, I WILL say that these people PACK those things, I would not fret about
chicken being "too much". YOU DO need some places for the smoke to be able to circulate, but Brinkmann
users are masters of efficient use of space. The only warning I would extend is if you have never done it
before, there is no sense in spending a lot of money on meat to try it out. Then again, if it's a home run,
you'd like to have more meat to show for it, lol. Remember as well that while smoked chicken is good,
not much smoke gets past that skin. And the skin is leathery, not crispy when you are done, unless you
give it a good crisping over the coals on a grill or in the oven. It's still good though. Wonderful in fact.

I guess I would get some chicken and check and see if there is anything beefy in the 'reduced for quick
sale' rack. What's there isn't always best for smoking, but you still have to look, lol. A lot of times you can
find 'Western Style Pork Ribs" which are to DIE FOR off the smoker! Great beginner's meat, too. MOST
important is to remember to take good pics. We live for em on the "what's in your smoker" thread. AND HAVE FUN!

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Maybe if you have time, do a mini smoke to get the feel for it before you play in the super bowl on sunday.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Here is a step by step guide from the site amazing ribs if you want to read it. Good luck and have fun with it. BTW, Old Bay seasoning makes good pulled pork too.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

what could I constitute as a mini smoke? got free time sat that i could try

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

thanks for this, good site

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

did a test run with some chicken breasts, didn't go quite as well as planned and also running out of time so finishing in the oven but I think I know the mistakes made and how to correct them, Ill let you know how tomorrow goes!

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Are you glad you did a test run?

You will feel more confident about your smoke tomorrow. :tu

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

yeah, it has been making me nervous all week, hopefully tomorrow will go smoother

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

alright so here is what I ended up with
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/...3/photo1-4.jpg
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/...3/photo2-3.jpg
was decent but a lot to be improved on

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Looks great!

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Looks like a great start to me!

I smoked my first butt on Sunday along with a beer butt chicken. I was very happy to have them both ready for lunch and the pork butt was fantastic! The internal temp only got up to around 175, which is good, but I have read that getting the temp to 190 will have all the fat and connecting tissue rendered out. Next time. Sadly, I neglected to take any pictures, but the 9lb butt fed everyone. We froze the half that didn't get eaten.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

How was it Brendon?

What were your temps.

It looks like you could have used more wood because you dont have a very pink ring/crust.

looks yummy to me though.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

my smoker was pretty good about staying at 225-230 but I did have it flair up to like 350 at one point and had a hard time getting it back down. I think I need to work out more of how much charcoal to use, how much wood and how much is too much. I got it up to 195, I had it in the smoker for 5-6 hours until I started to get a headache so I ended up wrapping it up in foil and sticking it in the oven for the last 35-40 degrees while I took a nap. I think it could have used more rub on it also it barely had any bark to it, it could also be that I finished it in the oven. I am def going to be trying it again in a few weeks
and maybe try charcoal to start and wood for the rest

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

you will get her with some practice.

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

Practice practice practice :)

Like I said before, even your mistakes will be better than anything you buy at a bbq joint!

Looks really good for a first time though :tu:tu :dr

Re: Fathers Day ~ 1st time Smoking
 

thanks guys