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Im getting my smoked meats closer and closer to the coals and wanted to know if anyone on here has ever smoked on a kettle direct over the coals.
Is it doable?
Is it doable?
Im getting my smoked meats closer and closer to the coals and wanted to know if anyone on here has ever smoked on a kettle direct over the coals.
Is it doable?
thanks guys.
Are all these downsides because the temp at the grate is higher?
ie, what if I was able to cook direct and still achieve 250° grate temp?
No because there is a difference between 250 deg conduction, radiant, and convection heat. The extreme example would be sticking your hand into a 400 deg oven(convection) vs touching the inner walls of a 400 deg Oven (conduction). One is harmless and the other will cause severe harm. Radiant heat is somewhere between conduction and convection in intensity. You cook wilth all three forms of heat at the same time but each contributes differently depending on the scenario. In a uds, the grill grates would be a form of conduction and the heat from the coals beneath would be radiant, and the air circulating around would be convection. The closer you get to the coals the more radiant and conduction heat you will receive (convection doesn’t increase). If you had a diverter in place the heat would be mainly convection and the radiant heat would be absorbed mostly by the diverter.
But but but
If you are limiting the air flow doesn't that also limit the radiant heat bring produced?
Im getting my smoked meats closer and closer to the coals and wanted to know if anyone on here has ever smoked on a kettle direct over the coals.
Is it doable?
Yes I’d still use a rotesserie over the charcoal though if you are that close or flip frequently. It would work alright in that scenario. Or just use a drum
That sounds like grilling to me.
lol. I like my drum but now my fire is 12" below the meat. If I can get it to about 7" below on a kettle, and have it work, then I wouldn't need two cookers. Just one. and the kettle would be easier to maintain since it is smaller overall.
A Santa Maria would fulfill the one cooker predicament (or the gabbys attachment for the kettle) or just build a uds that you can rest a charcoal basket a short distance below the top grate where the lower grate would be for when you want to grill on it.
A kettle needs a riser to be a good raised direct cooker. Heats too close. Kamado styles too this well.
You could cut a raiser from your drum.
I'll bite. Why do you want to smoke with direct heat applied to the meat in close proximity to the heat source (ie, grilling)? There are lots of way to smoke in a kettle without using direct heat. Will your UDS be angry that you are cheating on it with a kettle?