- Joined
- Jan 3, 2014
- Location
- Detroit...
Nice "intimidater" paint job.
BBQ Newbie with some questions
- Thread starter Vinny P
- Start date
Vinny P
Found some matches.
- Joined
- Jul 3, 2014
- Location
- Charlott...
To complete this thread as promised, the Baby Backs turned out pretty good yesterday. I did a 3 hour cook at around 250 with no foil. Meat was tender, but not falling off the bone. No horrible petroleum flavor this time either. As a matter of fact, the smoke flavor was more mild than I'd have liked it, but considering that all I had was a handful of hickory chips, I'm not surprised at all. The smoke from those chips is not long lasting, and I've yet to get some decent hardwood chunks to cook with.
To address the question about the dampers, I cook with the exhaust wide open always, and the bottom slide vents as open or closed as necessary to keep a particular temperature. To keep it as low as 220, I've got pretty much everything but one 3/4 vent hole closed off (Each side with half a hole open) . 250 temps are held with 2 holes open (one on each side). I can get pretty hot temps with all 4 holes on each side wide open if wanted, and the Big Poppa has a second set of bolts to hold the basket up just below the cooking grate, so it can be used as a high temp grill, which I've not done yet.
For those not familiar with the Big Poppa Smoker kit, it installs by drilling 4 3/4" holes near the bottom edge on both sides, and you install a metal channel that has a flat sliding door inside it. The door allows you to cover or uncover as many holes as needed.
It's not as "air tight" as the pipe nipples and ball valved set ups on a regular UDS, as there are gaps between the channel and the drum, as well as between the sliding door and drum holes. So even fully closed, it would be hard to say that there is NO air getting inside the drum. With both sides fully closed and the exhaust closed, it will choke out a fire in time however, so it works just fine.
As to whether or not the fire was choked down too far, I have always had very light smoke, without any meat on the fire. Once the fat starts to render out, the smoke gets thicker.
Lastly, I forgot that my paint job was also the same colors as Dale's legendary no 3 car, but in all honesty, the paint job was modeled after the 1978 corvette pace car, which was also Black over Silver with a red pinstripe. Either way, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.
To address the question about the dampers, I cook with the exhaust wide open always, and the bottom slide vents as open or closed as necessary to keep a particular temperature. To keep it as low as 220, I've got pretty much everything but one 3/4 vent hole closed off (Each side with half a hole open) . 250 temps are held with 2 holes open (one on each side). I can get pretty hot temps with all 4 holes on each side wide open if wanted, and the Big Poppa has a second set of bolts to hold the basket up just below the cooking grate, so it can be used as a high temp grill, which I've not done yet.
For those not familiar with the Big Poppa Smoker kit, it installs by drilling 4 3/4" holes near the bottom edge on both sides, and you install a metal channel that has a flat sliding door inside it. The door allows you to cover or uncover as many holes as needed.
It's not as "air tight" as the pipe nipples and ball valved set ups on a regular UDS, as there are gaps between the channel and the drum, as well as between the sliding door and drum holes. So even fully closed, it would be hard to say that there is NO air getting inside the drum. With both sides fully closed and the exhaust closed, it will choke out a fire in time however, so it works just fine.
As to whether or not the fire was choked down too far, I have always had very light smoke, without any meat on the fire. Once the fat starts to render out, the smoke gets thicker.
Lastly, I forgot that my paint job was also the same colors as Dale's legendary no 3 car, but in all honesty, the paint job was modeled after the 1978 corvette pace car, which was also Black over Silver with a red pinstripe. Either way, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.
KC Transplant
Full Fledged Farker
- Joined
- Oct 14, 2013
- Location
- Grand...
I totally agree with everyone. I can smell Kingsford from a mile away. I'd use Stubb's or Coshell. I'd clean it out and season it a couple more times. Part of it is probably some residue left in the barrel and part is probably the charcoal. Some people get good results with Kingsford, but I can't. I use spray cooking oil to season. It's easier. I spray the inside the first 4 or 5 times I use a new barrel to build up a good seal. Fatties help too. And you're on the right track with lumps. The chips burn up too fast and give off a bad smoke.
Get rid of KBB. Get some Stubbs and hickory and apple chunks at Wally World (they sell both). I used to use KBB, but now I can't stand the smell when it's firing off. When using the miniom method in my WSM, there is always some gettin' going.
Vinny P
Found some matches.
- Joined
- Jul 3, 2014
- Location
- Charlott...
To clarify, I haven't used the Kingsford briquettes since before I did the cleanout, and re-season, only lump, and no wood chips or chunks either. The 2nd fatty, which was identical to the first fatty I did to "season" the drum, was a bacon wrapped sausage fatty. In BOTH instances, the presence of the offensive odor was profound, leading me to believe it was something in the FOOD leading to the odor, and not the drum, or fuel that was causing the problem directly.
It is my opinion that with that much fat rendering out of the fatty and directly onto the coals, it was causing a nasty burnt "oil" or fat smell, and the residual grease on the inside of the drum seems to point to the same.
I'd suspect that if I used either a diffuser, or a drip pan to catch most of the drippings, the problem wouldn't be quite as bad.
I did wipe out the barrel with paper towel after that 2nd fatty cook, and it looked like used motor oil on the paper towels! Once clean of the residue, the next cook (2 slabs of baby backs) on lump charcoal was clear of any oily smell or flavor.
I'm gonna chalk this up to the bacon drippings directly onto the charcoal creating a "too thick" and caustic smoke that has caused the offensive smell and taste. To that end, I won't be cooking another bacon wrapped fatty without some way to catch the larger portion of fat drippings first.
It is my opinion that with that much fat rendering out of the fatty and directly onto the coals, it was causing a nasty burnt "oil" or fat smell, and the residual grease on the inside of the drum seems to point to the same.
I'd suspect that if I used either a diffuser, or a drip pan to catch most of the drippings, the problem wouldn't be quite as bad.
I did wipe out the barrel with paper towel after that 2nd fatty cook, and it looked like used motor oil on the paper towels! Once clean of the residue, the next cook (2 slabs of baby backs) on lump charcoal was clear of any oily smell or flavor.
I'm gonna chalk this up to the bacon drippings directly onto the charcoal creating a "too thick" and caustic smoke that has caused the offensive smell and taste. To that end, I won't be cooking another bacon wrapped fatty without some way to catch the larger portion of fat drippings first.
Sweat'in Pig
Knows what a fatty is.
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2013
- Location
- Kokomo In
I would cook some of that bacon in a skillet to see if it gives off a "nasty" odor!!
