Pit Barrel Cooker (PBC) Appreciation Thread

[ssv3]

Chicken is done. I'm wore out. I made 2 pizzas in the kettle during and after the chicken cook. Bob posted in another thread that he did chicken today too and went with high heat like I did. It was interesting to hear his results were exactly like mine. The higher heat resulted in a crispy skin, but less of a smoked chicken taste. Mine cooked at about 360-370 the entire cook. I'll probably back it down to around 300-325 next time and ramp it up at the end to crisp the skin. I used KosmosQ's dirty bird. Hey that stuff is great! It was my first time to use it and it's a winner! :thumb:

Below is the only finished pic I have.

Looks good bud! Speaking of pizza, you ought to look at the Blackstone pizza oven. A pie in literally 3-4 mins and perfect at that. Cuts down on all the extra work and the hassle of dealing with charcoal.

You'll love it if you do a lot of pizza.

 

[Thingfish]

Andrew - I don't go as aggressive as you have on the temps with chicken. I cook as normal and then pull one rod with 15 - 20 minutes remaining in the 2 hour cook. I find that it crisps the skin a bit but keeps the juiciness I want. Once you try various things you will land upon what works best for you.

 

[STLBBQer]

I got two whole chickens at the store yesterday. Doing them tomorrow. Will either use the PBC or my Weber rotisserie, haven't decided. If I do go with the rotisserie, I will be sure to post about how much the PBC sucks and is redundant.

 

[jjjonz]

Chicken looking good Andrew...I gotta get me a couple of fire brick.

 

[AClarke44]

Looks good bud! Speaking of pizza, you ought to look at the Blackstone pizza oven. A pie in literally 3-4 mins and perfect at that. Cuts down on all the extra work and the hassle of dealing with charcoal.

You'll love it if you do a lot of pizza.

Sako, my wife isn't gonna let me hang out with you anymore if you aren't careful....lol
I like the looks of the Blackstone Pizza oven but I don't see how you get a good wood fired pizza taste.......isn't it just flames produced by gas that heats a stone? Not knocking it I just need more info. I should probably ask over in that thread.

 

[AClarke44]

Andrew - I don't go as aggressive as you have on the temps with chicken. I cook as normal and then pull one rod with 15 - 20 minutes remaining in the 2 hour cook. I find that it crisps the skin a bit but keeps the juiciness I want. Once you try various things you will land upon what works best for you.

Yeah I'm gonna tone it back next time. I like it better overall with a lower temp (about 300) then a ramp up like you mentioned to crisp skin.

 

[Fwismoker]

Yeah I'm gonna tone it back next time. I like it better overall with a lower temp (about 300) then a ramp up like you mentioned to crisp skin.

I just don't understand y'all, just spatched a bird over a fire 500* plus and it was guuuooooood! Juicy, tasty... mmmmm

 

[AClarke44]

I just don't understand y'all, just spatched a bird over a fire 500* plus and it was guuuooooood! Juicy, tasty... mmmmm

Not saying it wasn't good. Just didn't taste like smoked chicken. It was juicy and skin was crispy.

 

[Texas Thumper]

Hi everyone! Have learned a lot about the PBC from this thread, and I bought one 2 weeks ago. Am still learning to use it. First cook was a chick split in half and babyback ribs. It cooked way too hot for my liking and also did not like the charcoal Smoke flavor.

Cooking a butt and St Louis Ribs today. I decided to bring a half a chimney of blue bag kingsford to full ash coat. And added some apple wood. The cook has been going well, albeit, I'm working to find the right damper setting.

The two main advantages IMO is charcoal conservation, and meat capacity. Over all, I like it

 

[AClarke44]

Hi everyone! Have learned a lot about the PBC from this thread, and I bought one 2 weeks ago. Am still learning to use it. First cook was a chick split in half and babyback ribs. It cooked way too hot for my liking and also did not like the charcoal Smoke flavor.

Coking a butt and St Louis Ribs today. I decided to bring a half a chimney do same blue bag kings ford to full ash coat. And added some apple wood. The cook has been going well, albeit, I'm working to find the right damper setting.

The two main advantages IMO is charcoal conservation, and meat capacity. Over all, I like it

Set your intake (vent cap) to 1/4 open and light 36 briquettes to ashed over like you mentioned. Mix some smaller wood chunks in with the unlit coal and make sure there are 1 or 2 that will get hit right away with the hot coals you pour on. Dump the hot coals, put the rods in, put the lid on and wait 15-20 minutes before putting in your meat. You should be running somewhere between 260 and 300 at that point. Do you have a way to monitor the cooker temp?

Edit: one thing I've found is just get close with the vent cap setting. Then adjust the amount of coals you light to get a higher or lower temp. I started with 40. Too hot! Went back to 34. A little too low for me (hovered around 240-250). Lit 36 and it sits right where I like it, 270-280. I've found 2 briquettes adjust the temp about 20-25 drgrees. Once you get your favorite temp set you can adjust the rods and/or lid to get higher Temps when needed.

 

[STLBBQer]

Set your intake (vent cap) to 1/4 open and light 36 briquettes to ashed over like you mentioned. Mix some smaller wood chunks in with the unlit coal and make sure there are 1 or 2 that will get hit right away with the hot coals you pour on. Dump the hot coals, put the rods in, put the lid on and wait 15-20 minutes before putting in your meat. You should be running somewhere between 260 and 300 at that point. Do you have a way to monitor the cooker temp?

Edit: one thing I've found is just get close with the vent cap setting. Then adjust the amount of coals you light to get a higher or lower temp. I started with 40. Too hot! Went back to 34. A little too low for me (hovered around 240-250). Lit 36 and it sits right where I like it, 270-280. I've found 2 briquettes adjust the temp about 20-25 drgrees. Once you get your favorite temp set you can adjust the rods and/or lid to get higher Temps when needed.

Just an FYI, if you happen to use Stubbs briquettes, I've found that 34-35 briquettes exactly fit in a Weber MINI chimney. Also, the mini chimney is easier to pour in the PBC I've found. That's my GI Joe "Knowing is Half the Battle" for today. :becky:

 

[AClarke44]

Just an FYI, if you happen to use Stubbs briquettes, I've found that 34-35 briquettes exactly fit in a Weber MINI chimney. Also, the mini chimney is easier to pour in the PBC I've found. That's my GI Joe "Knowing is Half the Battle" for today. :becky:

Yep that's what I use. If you shake them around you can fit 40 if you need to. :becky:

 

[STLBBQer]

Yep that's what I use. If you shake them around you can fit 40 if you need to. :becky:

Actually, I can only fit 39 if I shake them. You're WRONG. :laugh::laugh::laugh:

Seriously though, the mini chimney is awesome. With the mini chimney and a Jumbo Joe, I can do a lot of damage.

 

[Texas Thumper]

Set your intake (vent cap) to 1/4 open and light 36 briquettes to ashed over like you mentioned. Mix some smaller wood chunks in with the unlit coal and make sure there are 1 or 2 that will get hit right away with the hot coals you pour on. Dump the hot coals, put the rods in, put the lid on and wait 15-20 minutes before putting in your meat. You should be running somewhere between 260 and 300 at that point. Do you have a way to monitor the cooker temp?

Edit: one thing I've found is just get close with the vent cap setting. Then adjust the amount of coals you light to get a higher or lower temp. I started with 40. Too hot! Went back to 34. A little too low for me (hovered around 240-250). Lit 36 and it sits right where I like it, 270-280. I've found 2 briquettes adjust the temp about 20-25 drgrees. Once you get your favorite temp set you can adjust the rods and/or lid to get higher Temps when needed.

Thanks! I will definitely use your advise on the coal count. I had no idea two bricketts could make such a difference. Also, I have three crappy thermometers...all reading differently. :-( Any advise?

 

[Kmartyn]

I go overkill compared to most here on the thermometer side.

Maverick 733 so I can sit inside my air conditioned sun room and track the temp of the PBC and the meat. Party Q controller for set and forget.

 

[STLBBQer]

I go overkill compared to most here on the thermometer side.

Maverick 733 so I can sit inside my air conditioned sun room and track the temp of the PBC and the meat. Party Q controller for set and forget.

Man, Canadians are so laid back. :becky: :laugh:

They also invented hockey, so I'm forever in debt.

 

[AClarke44]

Thanks! I will definitely use your advise on the coal count. I had no idea two bricketts could make such a difference. Also, I have three crappy thermometers...all reading differently. :-( Any advise?

I use the Maverick et-733. I bent one of the clips so I can hang a probe from one of my rebar.

Yeah I wouldn't have thought 2 briqs would matter either but after about 3-4 cooks hitting 245-250ish I decided to add 2 more briquettes and presto, temps climbed to 270-280. I target 275 so that's perfect for me. Of course if you open the lid a lot the temp will climb. I usually just block the intake about half way for 10-15 minutes and it'll drop back down.

 

[sully13]

Set your intake (vent cap) to 1/4 open and light 36 briquettes to ashed over like you mentioned. Mix some smaller wood chunks in with the unlit coal and make sure there are 1 or 2 that will get hit right away with the hot coals you pour on. Dump the hot coals, put the rods in, put the lid on and wait 15-20 minutes before putting in your meat. You should be running somewhere between 260 and 300 at that point. Do you have a way to monitor the cooker temp?

Edit: one thing I've found is just get close with the vent cap setting. Then adjust the amount of coals you light to get a higher or lower temp. I started with 40. Too hot! Went back to 34. A little too low for me (hovered around 240-250). Lit 36 and it sits right where I like it, 270-280. I've found 2 briquettes adjust the temp about 20-25 drgrees. Once you get your favorite temp set you can adjust the rods and/or lid to get higher Temps when needed.

Thank you! I have been wondering about this.

 

[AClarke44]

Thank you! I have been wondering about this.

Sully, not sure your elevation in CT but set your vent cap as stated in the PBC directions. The rest of my post should apply. If you are at sea level and in a humid area you may need to set your vent cap to 1/2 open but again the rest of the post should apply.

 

[sully13]

Sully, not sure your elevation in CT but set your vent cap as stated in the PBC directions. The rest of my post should apply. If you are at sea level and in a humid area you may need to set your vent cap to 1/2 open but again the rest of the post should apply.

Thanks!
I'm pretty much at sea level. I have my cap at about a 1/4. Humidity here comes and goes on a week to week basis in the summer. I very much appreciate not having to figure out those temperature changes on my own.

Here are some pics and my first PBC mod!. A wind shield for the rebar holes. The wind picked up after I started cooking. I needed something quick. If you look closely at the brats and chicken. There is one brat that is darker then the rest and one chicken 1/2 that is a little darker too. There was definitely a hot spot in the PBC which may be useful in information in the future.