I am the suck at kettle smokin

LT72884 · Apr 11, 2011

I have decided that i am the suck at using lump as a fuel for me kettle to keep low n slow. I try to use only 10% lit to unlit and i still have issues. So im switching to KF blue bag to see what happens.

Any hints and tips i should follow?

im thinking of 1.5 chimneys of UNLIT and then about 10% - 15% of that amount will be lit in a chimney and poured on top and spread out over the entire pile. Then i will use me cast iron box to hold me wood chunks

mbshop · Apr 11, 2011

lump in the kettle is best being packed in a basket of some kind. either the weber ones or self made. if just loosely put in or spread out and it will go out. try royal oak or stubbs briq if you don't want to use lump.

BobBrisket · Apr 11, 2011

Depending on the set up, even if you only bank coal on one side, you really only need about 6 lit coals or so. Place em evenly around the rest of the unlit and let em get going a bit.

What are you trying to smoke in the Kettle?

LT72884 · Apr 11, 2011

mbshop said:
lump in the kettle is best being packed in a basket of some kind. either the weber ones or self made. if just loosely put in or spread out and it will go out. try royal oak or stubbs briq if you don't want to use lump.

i gots some stubbs! Is RO briqs all natural?

thanks

LT72884 · Apr 11, 2011

BobBrisket said:
What are you trying to smoke in the Kettle?

anything! haha. i just cant get the lump below 375. i have tried 6 times and lump is just hard to use at my elevation of 4600.

With lump, since its all weird sizes, im not sure how much to even use as the lit portion!

haha thanks

Matt

BobBrisket · Apr 11, 2011

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=63927&highlight=banked+coals

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=37852

Just bank the briqs on one end, You can use some pavers or bricks to keep em corralled. But just toss 6 or so lit coals on top of the unlit. Leave the top off till they catch. Once the lid goes on, leave the exhaust vent open and crank back the bottom vents to about 1/4 open all around. I've always has hotter burns in the kettle, but can get it to cruise at 275 or so. Catch the coals on the way up and put the chunks on the grate so they smolder longer.

Bob

LT72884 · Apr 11, 2011

bob, i like your idea with the wood chunks on the grate. i was thinkin of somethin simular. I did that with my lil electric UDS i made and it seemed to work great!

I think im going to use briqs for smoking now on and use the lump for grilling or higher heat cooks such as prime rib and what not!

thanks guys!

Ground Pounder · Apr 11, 2011

Another idea in the kettle is to "snake" the the unlit coals, then placing 6-8 lit coals on one side of the unlit, and letting them burn across instead of down. There's a link somewhere in the Weber Kettle Appreciation society thread to this method.

I'm sorry I can't post pics or links atm (not on a computer), but I used some of those cheap aluminum expanded sheets that you buy to grill veggies and just folded them up to make a sort-of-wrap-around basket for the coals, and use the snake method. I try and keep a steady amount of unlit coals along the "snake" for a more consistant burn. I've found that I can get about 6 hours of steady 250-275 out of about 8 lbs of K-blue or Stubbs this way, with the vents fully open and the bottom intake at around 1/2 to 1/3 open (depending on the outside weather). Once it burns through to near the end, I just deposit the ash into the bottom of the kettle and re-fill going back the other way with unlit coals. I've done two 6lb butts this way and only had to open the lid 4 times during the whole cook - once to place the meat, once to re-fill the coals, once to foil, and once to pull it out.

HeSmellsLikeSmoke · Apr 11, 2011

Is your kettle lid sealing well? Or is the bottom damper not sealing? Might not be a charcoal issue?

Dave Russell · Apr 11, 2011

^^^What he said!

Captain Dave · Apr 11, 2011

Yep^^^ You gota keep the lid on. Intake air= temperature! Now thats hard on a kettle. How are you gaugeing the temperature? What kind of thermometer do you have? Do you have to open the lid to see it?

Brontoburger · Apr 11, 2011

Look up a thread from last mid-week called 1st Brisket. I did mine on a Weber kettle.

I keep my probe stuck under the utensil rack. I also had about 1/2 gal of water in a glass water pan beneath the meat. The pan really helped to moderate the temp. Also, I found that all it takes is a tiny movement of the damper lever to make things happen.

Cook · Apr 11, 2011

You'll get it...and no matter what you think...you are not the suck!

Dave Russell · Apr 11, 2011

Brontoburger said:
Look up a thread from last mid-week called 1st Brisket. I did mine on a Weber kettle. View attachment 51693

View attachment 51694
I keep my probe stuck under the utensil rack. I also had about 1/2 gal of water in a glass water pan beneath the meat. The pan really helped to moderate the temp. Also, I found that all it takes is a tiny movement of the damper lever to make things happen.

While this may certainly work, especially with the use of a water pan, I prefer to hang my therm in the vent over the meat. I don't want ANYTHING interferring with the seal of my kettle lid on a MM cook.

Riverside BBQ · Apr 11, 2011

with a basket (the weber baskets) full of lump and a pan of water my kettle will hold 250 pretty good. I've never had to fill both baskets. I'll add to the basket on a longer smoke of course and it rises, but again settles quick enough. I keep the top open and the bottom vent open just a slither.

Dave S · Apr 11, 2011

LT,
Here is how I set up my Kettle. The fire brick and the water help to keep the temps in the 230 to 240 range.
I start with a chimney of unlit with a couple of chunks of wood (love apple for the Pork Shoulder). I add 10 lit coals all bunched together right in the middle. I open the bottom vents fully open until I reach the 170 range and then close the bottom down to about 1/4" open. It settles in right around 230 to 240.
Make sure you don't leave the top off too long or your temps will get out of control. Have fun and experiment. You learn a lot by learning on a kettle.

MadCityJim · Apr 11, 2011

Dave: You're making me Hungry!

LT72884 · Apr 11, 2011

HeSmellsLikeSmoke said:
Is your kettle lid sealing well? Or is the bottom damper not sealing? Might not be a charcoal issue?

Well, as far as i know it seals pretty good. i do have brackets on there for the rotiss mode. i think it might be adding a we bit of extra air. i will check it out.

The bottom damper is usualy only open a pencil width.

thanks.

time to read the other replies. just got to work and now its time to see what yall said

LT72884 · Apr 11, 2011

@ dave

I assume i can buy those bricks at homedepot for a fairly good price?

thanks

i really never add a water pan to the kettle. maybe thats me issue. Is the water pan supposed to be on the cooking grate or below the food?

thanks

LT72884 · Apr 12, 2011

totally random question but i noticed with a stick burner, there is literally no smoke commin out. just fumes. Should it be that way with a kettle and a UDS?

thanks

I am the suck at kettle smokin

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