UDS added to the family

[chingador]

Got rid of the Bandera a couple of months ago. I really like my Primo, but I never have been totally satisfied with the brisket I get off of it. I have made some good que off of it, but never have been able to come close to the brisket I put out on the Bandera. On top of that, I really wanted more smoking capacity for parties, especially Super Bowl weekend.

I really did not want to spend a ton of money on another Primo, and I did not want a stick burner because I have grown accostomed to the whole "set it and sort of forget it" culture. Really not interested in the pellet pooper idea either.

That pretty much leaves the UDS. The only problem is that I am not the most handy person. I saw the Big Poppa Smoker UDS on a Cowgirl thread and the light bulb went on.

Ordered the kit, found a new barrel in town. Sent it out to get sandblasted and put the thing together. Not really a big deal. The drill bit that comes with the kit isn't the best. I bought a bit at Home Depot that blew doors on it. Once that was all done, I painted the outside with high temp spray paint, rubbed the inside down with lard and the rest is history.

for my first smoke, I did some thin cut pork cutlets from a Mexican meat market( thin sliced butt) and some bouidan. I start the pit like I start my primo, which is to light a starter cube near the top of the charcoal basket and let the temps come up, shutting down the air vents gradually before I reach the target temp. This works well with the UDS as it does with the Primo. The BP UDS really seems to like the 250 range.

To be honest, I am not thrilled with the idea of the temp in the middle being 50 degrees higher than the edges, so I am using a diffuser. Once again, I am using the same idea as the Primo. I bought a 15" ceramic pizza stone that is on the second rack right above the coal basket. The stone is just wider than the coal basket. My idea here is that the stone will act like the D plates do on the Primo. Hopefully the temps will be more stable throughout the cooking area. My main concern is that instead of the temps being higher in the middle, I just diverted the heat to the edges. i have not done the biscuit test yet.

Following my standard "ready, fire, aim" format, I am going for the whole jiggly brisket thing today. I have a CAB brisket from Sams. Really not the best brisket I have seen, but the best I could pick out with what they had.

Started the fire at 6:00, rubbed the brisket down with salt and black pepper and it went on around seven. Temp seems dialed in around 245. I will take the brisket to around 170 then wrap in parchment paper.

A word on smoke. For the first hour, the smoke was really dirty, but it really cleaned up to light blue at the end of the first hour. It is chugging along very nice right now.

Also, had an amigo build an island bar for my patio. The wife was tired of seeing all of my BBQ stuff out in the open so I needed a place to stash it and get it out of eyesight. Really liking how this is turning out.

Here is a pick of the new pic with some sweet blue coming out as well as the new bar set up. Will be organizing the rest this weekend between playing golf, tennis and watching football.

[Johnny_Crunch]

Nice pr0n. Congrats on the new cooker.

[chingador]

brisket at 165. Ready to wrap. Pit has been between 225 and 250 all day. Smells awesome.

[asada]

Looks great! are you using lump?

[HogFan]

Looking good!

[chingador]

yes, wicked good weekend warrior and oak chunks.

[cowgirl]

Great looking drum!! I like the looks of your bar too. Did you use house siding on the exterior? That's what I used on mine and it has held up great!

[chingador]

thanks Cowgirl. Yes, we did use a hardi plank like siding. My phone camera stinks. I wish the travertine tiles on top would have come out better.

BTW, the brisket was awesome. My best in a while. My thermo pen is acting a little screwey and I really do not trust it right now so the flat was just a tad overcooked but still not dry. The point was very jiggly.

The BPS drum is an awesome deal. I love it.

[big brother smoke]

Nice post and great seeing you around again.