Big slick
10-06-2011, 10:14 AM
So I got my Ique 110 about a month ago and just got around to using it the other day. For the record I used this on my 22.5" WSM. The packaging was perfect and neat. The instructions were easy to follow thanks to pictures. In all honesty though I didn't look at the directions till I had hooked everything up so setting this up is really easy to do. Now for it's maiden voyage. I decided to smoke 2-8lb whole briskets. I had one on each rack in the WSM. I poured in a chimney of lump and then another lit chimney of lump on top of that. I clipped the Ique110 to the top rack about 5" from the edge of the grate. I then placed my maverick probe right next to that (laying on the grate). Closed all the bottom vents and left the top vent about half way. The Ique ran flawlessly. I notices though that the WSM thermometer was reading about 20-25 degrees cooler than my maverick and the Ique. Not thinking anymore of it I left the smoker alone and let it cook for 5 hours occasionally taking a quick peak. After the 5th hour I decide to see how tender the meat was. I was shocked to see that both briskets were tough as nails. I decided to crank up the heat and turned the Ique to 300. It took the Ique awhile to get the smoker up to that temp so I opened the top vent completely to get as much air flow going as possible. This was still not getting the temp up quick enough so I opened the access door and after about 10 minutes I was just over 300. I let the briskets cook another hour and probed them again. They were still pretty tough.
I then decided to wrap them in foil to see if that could speed up the process. Well 2 hours later they were still pretty tough. Mind you now that the whole time the WSM thermometer was running about 20 degrees cooler. I let it cook for another hour and they seemed tender enough and if I didn't pull the briskets now there wasn't going to be any dinner.
So I pulled the briskets and cut off the point and cubed it up for burnt ends. Re-seasoned them, added some sauce and threw them back on the smoker and turned the dial all the way up on the Ique. One hour later I started slicing the flats. The meat sliced nicely but was not nearly as tender as I would've liked. Also I must have gone too light on the dry rub because the brisket was very boring. I grabbed the burnt ends an we sat down to eat. To sum it all up this was my worst smoke yet.
The next day we threw the brisket in a pan, poured on some bbq sauce and a little bit of dry rub, covered it with tin foil and cooked it in the oven at 350 for 4 hours an it made the meat a lot more tender. So we were able to save it.
I'm not sure why my WSM thermometer was so much cooler than my maverick and Ique. Normally they run within 5 degrees of each other. Regardless, the Ique worked like a charm. The worst part about it was the fact that I had to run extension chords to power it. Also, every time I opened the lid the error light would flash and then after about 5 minutes with the lid back on it would go back to working fine. It's easy to use and works well so in my book it's worth every penny.
Any ideas as to why the temps were so far off?? I think this is why My briskets were taking so long. Normally I can crank out a brisket in 9 hours and by the time the 9th hour rolls around the neat is perfectly tender.
I thought that maybe it was just a tough brisket, but what are the odds that I get two tough briskets???
What do you guys think.
I then decided to wrap them in foil to see if that could speed up the process. Well 2 hours later they were still pretty tough. Mind you now that the whole time the WSM thermometer was running about 20 degrees cooler. I let it cook for another hour and they seemed tender enough and if I didn't pull the briskets now there wasn't going to be any dinner.
So I pulled the briskets and cut off the point and cubed it up for burnt ends. Re-seasoned them, added some sauce and threw them back on the smoker and turned the dial all the way up on the Ique. One hour later I started slicing the flats. The meat sliced nicely but was not nearly as tender as I would've liked. Also I must have gone too light on the dry rub because the brisket was very boring. I grabbed the burnt ends an we sat down to eat. To sum it all up this was my worst smoke yet.
The next day we threw the brisket in a pan, poured on some bbq sauce and a little bit of dry rub, covered it with tin foil and cooked it in the oven at 350 for 4 hours an it made the meat a lot more tender. So we were able to save it.
I'm not sure why my WSM thermometer was so much cooler than my maverick and Ique. Normally they run within 5 degrees of each other. Regardless, the Ique worked like a charm. The worst part about it was the fact that I had to run extension chords to power it. Also, every time I opened the lid the error light would flash and then after about 5 minutes with the lid back on it would go back to working fine. It's easy to use and works well so in my book it's worth every penny.
Any ideas as to why the temps were so far off?? I think this is why My briskets were taking so long. Normally I can crank out a brisket in 9 hours and by the time the 9th hour rolls around the neat is perfectly tender.
I thought that maybe it was just a tough brisket, but what are the odds that I get two tough briskets???
What do you guys think.