Food Smokers and Smoking Tips/Tricks/Techniques

I'm having trouble with this little smoker, the temp stays where I want it mostly (225-250) but this brisket has been on for 3 hours and is only at 150*. I'm using Kingsford blue bag, not sure what's going on.
I just wrapped it in foil, I assume it's at its "stall" but feel like I should have already passed it.

 

Mine sits at a stall for hours.

But you have the little 2lb brisket, right? That does seem odd.

 

Right.. Idk I'll keep working on it.
Also my coals aren't Daisy chaining, I poured a chimney in and poured unlit coals on top. When the temp starts to drop I check and there's ash and then there is unlit coals. I stir it up and they light. I need some tips.

 

Wait. It takes time. Pull when it's 200f, then let it rest wrapped in a towel (keep HOT!) for a hour.

Time means little in BBQ.

 

Keep at it. Prolly not enuff air, and you didn't stack the bricks well. Some smokers just don't smoke meat well.

 

Salt/Pepper. Hickory chips. Expect about 8+ hours at 250f.

 

I've got the bottom vents fully open and control the temp with the lid vent (mini wsm). And... It just started raining.

 

Just needs more time. You can't extrapolate the time per pound downward past a certain point, e.g., an 8 oz piece of brisket isn't going to only take 30 minutes at an hour per pound. You did the right thing by wrapping it. If you get sick of tending the smoker, you can finish in the oven at the same temp. You're not smoking the meat any further if it's wrapped in tin foil anyway.

 

Checked the temp again, let's say at 5.5hrs.

 

I actually prefer mesquite and lump charcoal in a pit. My main use for the electric smoker is for making jerky and sausage because I can control the amount of smoke and keep the temps lower with little effort.

 

Smokin some chicken breasts n baby back ribs with orange wood for the Horns game, let yall know how it turns out

 

Since I never knew about this tread, enjoy my short vid.

http://youtu.be/IhqUtk9wKUg

 

Put the brisket on, its late in the afternoon so it may just be lunch/dinner tomorrow. But i used a bbq rub i have from a local store, fat cap up. Smoking with some mesquite and hickory. Smoker around 250* when i put it in so ill be keeping an eye on the temp for a little bit.

Edit: 3 hours in and the brisket is sitting at 160*, wood chips still smoking and smoker temp holding around 215-225. Cant wait to eat it!

 

190* after 7.5 hours, sitting in the cooler for an hour and then ill refrigerate for tomorrow.

 

Just placed on the pellet pooper. 230 degrees with hickory. The wait begins...

 

Yummy!

 

2 5lb butts I cooked this weekend

 

I ended up doing 3 fatties yesterday. I was under the gun to get them all done since I got a super late start on doing them. Didn't take pictures like I wanted to.

1. Breakfast fattie: sausage stuffed with honey ham, crispy bacon, eggs, cheesy tots (yes tots stuffed with cheese) and then MORE cheese used a colby/jack blend. All wrapped up in the bacon weave.
2. Bacon Cheeseburger fattie: ground beef (lean since lots of fat from the bacon) inside rubbed with bone suckin sauce rub stuffed with crispy applewood smoked bacon, colby/jack blend and sharp cheddar, then a mix of ketchup/mustard/bbq and then wrapped in an applewoord bacon weave.
3. Chicken Cordon Blue fattie: ground chicken seasoned with a chicken seasoning (comes from a local german place) stuffed with aged swiss, honey ham some fresh garlic and then wrapped in a bacon weave.

Took a little over 2.5 hours to cook smoke them to 160 internal. Let them sit for 15 mins while we got everything else ready and then I sliced them up. All were pretty much devoured and every seemed to really like. Personally my favs were the Chicken and Breakfast ones. Next time I will start a little earlier and get some good pictures. Need to deep clean the rig this week want to do some chicken and some ribs this coming weekend. Oh and this was on my Traeger Texas Pro using lumber jack Hickory/Cherry/Maple blend pellets.

 

After a week in the fridge. Going back in overnight to dry out. Apparently it needs to dry to form a pellicle, but that's just what I've read. I fried a small edge piece tonight and it was pretty salty, but to be fair it was all crust. I decided not to soak out any of the salt and I will smoke it as-is tomorrow. Edit* I did actually decide to rinse it well last night. Just too salty and most articles recommend a rinse. Went on a 200 degree smoker this morning at 9 am after drying out overnight in the fridge.

 

Smoked for about 2 hours, at about 210 degrees to get to 155 internal. Cut, sliced and some fried up to go on a sandwich made with chicken breast I brined overnight and smoked alongside the bacon. Bacon smoke flavor is powerful, but it should mellow out after a day in the fridge. Going to vac pack it into small packages and into the freezer. Think I'll try to turn a shoulder into buck board bacon next. I'd rate this first attempt at an 8 out of 10. a win overall but lots of room to experiment with the cure recipe and smoke time.