Buying a Weber OTS

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Bob E Que

Knows what a fatty is.
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I going be buy one this Thursday. Now I have so many questions.
What seasoning is required before I use it? For indirect cooking should I get fire bricks? reference: http://tvwbb.infopop.cc/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/9040039023/m/6750042994?r=6750042994#6750042994
Minion method - put the lit 'coals the end or the middle of the unlit?
What is the best way to measure the grill temp?
I was thinking ribs for the first smoke. That gives me a few hours Friday to play with temps before having to put the meat on.


Thanks in advance. PRON to come.
 
No seasoning required, the kettle is made with a porcelain enamel coating. Clean the grids before using the first time and hit with a little oil to help keep them clean.

I do indirect grilling on mine all the time, but I am thinking your questions are more suited to low and slow BBQ cooking, so I will save that for someone else to answer. I use my WSM's for that.
 
If you want to do Lo n' Slo........STOP!!!!!!!!!!! Get used to the kettle first. You can BBQ on a Weber kettle but that will take some practice, charcoal rails and allot of patience. Fire up your new baby and cook some burgers, wings and things. Don't try to get to complicated. The beauty of the kettle is how it cooks. Learn to play it then investigate.
 
if ya want to smoke something then do a pork butt. very forgiving. coals on one side and meat on the other. there are many fine tricks to do but a read at the weber site will get you well on yer way. minion is usually a pile of coals with about twelve or so lit ones on top.
 
ps, learn to cook the indirect way. similar to how you would set up to smoke. many will cook to temp indirectly and then put the food above the hot coals for that last char for great results.
 
I purchased fire bricks a while back when I first read that thread you linked to.

Now I honestly can't remember how I ever got along without them. There have been times when I've been able to get 15+ hour burns on one load of charcoal.

Best "accessory" ever! :)
 
What do you consider a "load"?

All good stuff. Just confiscated a weber kettle from my FIL for neglecting it and i want to use the kettle instead of the drums for the moment.
kris
 
If you're gonna do ribs for your first smoke then I say bank your coals on one side and use minion method. Drop a temp probe down one of the top vent holes like this:

DSC02400.jpg



Have your bottom vents 100% open to start and then close the bottom vents down as you reach your target temp. Use a rib rack to get multiple racks on the indirect side and let 'er rip! Good luck!
 
There is some good reading in that link,I use fire bricks all the time for 2 zone cooking.I use the foil under the cool side to direct the air flow over the coals and a water pan under the meat.I think I might cut the bricks so they dont over lap this weekend.
 
I use a cheap oven thermometer from a kitchen shop on the grill, and I drop a probe in the top. I get a 50deg difference between the two.

For Minion I put a basket of coal on one side and put 10 lit ones on top, then let it go. I put a foil tray of water on the grill on top of the fire and move it more on or off as I want to control the temperature, that seems the most instant way of doing it. I end up closing the vents easily two thirds, but it will depend on how the temperature on the grill is going.

Ribs or pulled pork are easy, but to get started why not roast a whole chicken, and you can add some smoke too.
 
Thanks for the thread and the link Bob E Que - I just got a kettle and this has been very informative.
 
suprfast said:
What do you consider a "load"?

...
kris
Click to expand...

In the case of the 15 hour burn I was speaking of it was basically all the charcoal I could cram in the other half of the kettle. ;) I basically put the fire bricks around the half way mark and filled up all the space on the other side. Worked great. I used K so I did have to stir out the ash once the next morning.

Worked great though.
 
+1 for the smokenator that was mentioned in the tvwbb. If you want to hit the ground running and start smoking, I recommend this. It also gives you extra cooking surface compared to using fire bricks.
 
Thanks for all you help

I appreciate all the help you guys gave me.

I went by the Home depot on the way to work today.
The display model was on sale for 1/2 price. :-D It has a few dings, and it is a DO date (2005).
It is my kettle, so like me, a few dings should be expected.
I bought some high temp paint to clear those up.
I have a grill, with the flip edges, in my drum so I might switch them.
I will have to cook something for lunch tomorrow, just to try it out.
I will get some pron if i can focus on anything besides my Weber.
Second shift sucks when you have a new grill in your car.

I said Thursday was the day I was going to buy it, but the weather was so nice. Why wait?
 
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