N00b questions about fires, charcoal, etc...

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

Sorry for the n00b questions. I have been using a gasser for many years and just gave charcoal a try again very recently. I bought a Weber Smokey Joe Silver to get my get my feet wet, or should I say smoke in my eyes. :-D From what I have been reading here, the SJS isn't the greatest when it comes to keeping a good fire burning, especially with the lid on. It seems to be an air flow problem. Anyway, I have several cooks under my belt as I have been using it almost daily. I am grilling, not smoking or long cooks.

I use a Weber chimney to get the charcoal started. I have used Royal Oak lump, Stubb's and Kingsford blue briquettes. For direct cooking, the RO lump burns the hottest, followed by Stubbs and Kinford. If I put the lid on, it does make the fire diminish somewhat, with the Kingford being the most affected.

I have done a few indirect cooks too, but not with the lump yet, just the K and Stubbs. I have used the split fire as suggested by Weber and also fire on one side, cook on the other. I have had problems with the split fire, especially when the lid is on. I had excellent results the other night using Stubbs on half the grill, even with the lid on. I had a nice for for an hour or more. I repeated the procedure with the Kingsford and had much poorer results. In fact, I had to add some lit Stubbs to the grill to finish my cooking. The K wouldn't tolerate the lid on for more than a few minutes at a time. There was no such problem with the Stubbs. The Stubbs burns hotter and longer, with less ash.

I am using more charcoal than Weber suggests, about 40 briquettes for an indirect cook, and even more for direct, although most of my direct cooking has been over lump. I am also piling the charcoal a few layers deep as a single layer just hasn't worked for me at all. I see pics posted here of the full size Weber kettles and it looks like they are using the same amount of charcoal that I am using in the SJS. Also, it looks like a single layer in some of the pics.

What am I doing wrong? Is it easier on a full size kettle? Does the charcoal make that much of a difference? Does Kingford perform better on a bigger grill? Is the Stubbs performance really that much better? How would the lump perform for indirect grilling?

I would appreciate any help or suggestions, info etc. Please help me improve my techniques. How much charcoal should I use? How should I place it on the grate? Again, sorry for such a long post and for the lack of experience.

 

[Smiter Q]

Hi Bob, welcome aboard. Do not forget to say hello in the welcome thread area too. :-D

What have you been cooking, and are your questions specifically towards a certain type of meat?
I have the 22 inch kettle, and when I bank on the side they are multiple deep when doing longer cooks
like a full chicken or numerous bird parts. When doing tenderloins, steaks, etc I use less.

Someone who has the same setup as you will be along shortly and offer more helpful info.

 

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

Thanks. I did do my introduction post when I first joined, about 2 1/2 weeks ago. So far all I have done indirect is chicken leg quarters and wings. Direct I have done rib eyes, NY strips, boneless chicken breasts, burgers and sausages. I have grilled eggplant, mushrooms, peppers, hot peppers, pineapple and bananas.

What kind of charcoal do you use?

 

[bigabyte]

I use lump exclusively and bank it to one side on all of my kettles. On the 22 inch, a full chimney is just the right amount for grilling. I do all of my lower temp smoking in my WSM's, so I have no advice there, but someone here will definitely be able to help with that.

Good luck!

 

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

I use lump exclusively and bank it to one side on all of my kettles. On the 22 inch, a full chimney is just the right amount for grilling. I do all of my lower temp smoking in my WSM's, so I have no advice there, but someone here will definitely be able to help with that.

Good luck!

How long will the fire burn well with a full chimney in the 22"? Are you piling it up some or spreading it over half of the grill?

 

[ZouBBQ]

When you light your charcoal in the chimney, do you let it go till the coals at the top are white with ash?

Make sure your top vent is always fully open, and clean out your ashes before every cook. You are having an airflow problem. You will not need a full chimney of coals on that small a grill... I very rarely use more than 3/4 on a full 22 kettle, so I would guess you want to stick around a half chimney or less (assuming this is a weber brand chimney)

Piling in too much charcoal restricts the airflow, i would aim to keep things An average of around 1.5 coals deep so air can move around easily.

Ive never cooked on a sjs so its hard to know exactly what you should be doing. The best way is with trial and error, that way you truly understand what works best and why. Thats how you get better!

 

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

I have kept both the top and bottom vents wide open for all my cooks. I also clean out the ash before each use. I do let the coals get ashed over before putting them in the grill and I also let them sit in the grill for a few minutes before I begin to cook or put the lid on. I seem to have to use about 2/3 of a chimney to get satisfactory results and nothing really works well when I use the Kingsford.

The SJS does have airflow problems according to many users here. If I use a lighter layer of coals, the fire dies out quickly when I put the lid on. It seems as if the 22" kettles are much more efficient than the little 14".

 

[bigabyte]

I use the Best of the West mesquite lump from Sam's Club and get about 45 minutes with a chimney full. Here's a pic of some burgers from tonight and you can get an idea of the amount of coals in the 22 inch kettle and how thick.

I light the chimney to the point that flames are coming up out of the chimney and the top coals are starting to light up on the sides. I pour it in on one side of the kettle and use a fireplace shovel to spread the coals out in an even layer basically covering almost 1/2 of the bottom charcoal grate (they are almost to the center of the grate but not quite).

Now, the chimney I'm using is one of the bigger Weber models. Most regular chimneys hold less and would be about right when almost filled to the top for an 18 inch kettle. For a Smokey Joe, you are going to have to kind of experiment to find that sweet spot. Maybe start with half a regular sized chimney and go from there.

 

[mbshop]

the sjs is really ment as a small portable quick cook no fuss grill. many have pushed it beyond its limits as you have found out. yes, with the lid down the fire will die down a bit but it will stay rather hot though. its fun to play with including making a mini smoker out of it. i'd guess that you are ready to graduate to a 22.5 kettle. check craigs list for a good deal and get ready to be amazed.

 

[Smiter Q]

Boston Craigslist

Weber Performer $150 http://boston.craigslist.org/bmw/hsh/2469262626.html

One Touch Gold $65 - http://boston.craigslist.org/bmw/for/2468229618.html

Can't go wrong with either as an addition. I have the OTG myself and love it.
If it was my market, I would take a look at the Performer. Table would rock.
New these are over 300

 

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

I use the Best of the West mesquite lump from Sam's Club and get about 45 minutes with a chimney full. Here's a pic of some burgers from tonight and you can get an idea of the amount of coals in the 22 inch kettle and how thick.
http://i219.photobucket.com/albums/cc150/bigabyte/Burgers/2011_06_30/r_IMG_0490.jpg

I light the chimney to the point that flames are coming up out of the chimney and the top coals are starting to light up on the sides. I pour it in on one side of the kettle and use a fireplace shovel to spread the coals out in an even layer basically covering almost 1/2 of the bottom charcoal grate (they are almost to the center of the grate but not quite).

Now, the chimney I'm using is one of the bigger Weber models. Most regular chimneys hold less and would be about right when almost filled to the top for an 18 inch kettle. For a Smokey Joe, you are going to have to kind of experiment to find that sweet spot. Maybe start with half a regular sized chimney and go from there.

I'm using the Weber chimney too. I find that with lump, some of the charcoal falls thru the grate. I have seen that some here have used a second grate set at right angles to each other to make smaller spaces or have used expanded metal to help with this. Perhaps it's all about the airflow and the SJS just doesn't have it like the 22" kettle. Are you using the stock Weber charcoal grate? Also, are you cooking indirect with your described charcoal setup or direct? Thanks for the help.

Edit. I see from your pic that you are cooking indirect. Do you every use the whole grill for direct cooking?

 

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

the sjs is really ment as a small portable quick cook no fuss grill. many have pushed it beyond its limits as you have found out. yes, with the lid down the fire will die down a bit but it will stay rather hot though. its fun to play with including making a mini smoker out of it. i'd guess that you are ready to graduate to a 22.5 kettle. check craigs list for a good deal and get ready to be amazed.

It will stay hot enough with the Stubb's charcoal with the lid on, but it absolutely will not with the Kingsford using the same setup. I have to take the lid off with the K every few minutes. No such issue with the Stubb's. I have read the entire thread over at the Weber forum on making the SJ into a mini smoker, plus a lot of info here. :becky: I am tempted to try it, but I am worried about the fire staying lit. Also, no WalMarts around here stock the tamale pot and the last time I checked a few days ago, it was out of stock online too.

Boston Craigslist

Weber Performer $150 http://boston.craigslist.org/bmw/hsh/2469262626.html

One Touch Gold $65 - http://boston.craigslist.org/bmw/for/2468229618.html

Can't go wrong with either as an addition. I have the OTG myself and love it.
If it was my market, I would take a look at the Performer. Table would rock.
New these are over 300

I've looked at the new ones at a few place near me. I like the OTG, and as you have said, the Performer would be great with the table and lid holder. I've also seen the Platinum, and it's not bad between the Gold and Performer. The Platinum is about $250 new. I'll check out the links you provided. Thanks.

 

[bigabyte]

I'm using the Weber chimney too. I find that with lump, some of the charcoal falls thru the grate. I have seen that some here have used a second grate set at right angles to each other to make smaller spaces or have used expanded metal to help with this. Perhaps it's all about the airflow and the SJS just doesn't have it like the 22" kettle. Are you using the stock Weber charcoal grate? Also, are you cooking indirect with your described charcoal setup or direct? Thanks for the help.

Edit. I see from your pic that you are cooking indirect. Do you every use the whole grill for direct cooking?

I'm just using the stock grate. I have a bin like the one below that I pour my charcoal into and the fine particles sift down to the bottom and I just reach in (I get dirty) and grab chunks. It's a 60 pound pet food bin with a sealable lid to keep water and bugs out. I've had it a couple years now and it's still in great shape. When I get to the bottom and all that's left is dust, I dump the leftover dust in the trash and refill it.

I cook both indirect and direct. Those burgers were cooked using a reverse sear, meaning I cooked them indirect first, then I put them over direct heat to sear each side for a minute or so. So yes, I use the whole grate even for just burgers, steaks and what not.

Also, on the 22" kettle, I may put some potatoes wrapped in foil over the direct heat side, or maybe an aluminum pan with some cheesy potatoes on the direct side. Later I'll start cooking the meat indirect and when you get your timing down you can pull the taters and stuff off when you are ready to move the meat to the direct heat side. In those cases I'm using the whole grate for basically the entire cook.

 

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

Do you ever use the entire grill for direct cooking, I mean completely covering the charcoal grate with lit coals?

 

[bigabyte]

Do you ever use the entire grill for direct cooking, I mean completely covering the charcoal grate with lit coals?

Yes, I do this for high heat grilling, typically with thinner cuts of meat that get cooked for like only a minute or two per side. Instead of using lump charcoal for these cooks, I typically light a chimney of wood chunks, spread them around and then add more chunks to fill in. I leave the lid off and the intake fully open on these cooks, and don't put the cooking grid on until shortly before putting the meat on. As the wood lights up, it will produce flames that can come several feet up out of the cooker, so make sure your cooker is in a safe spot. This is also a big reason why I don't put the cooking grid on at this time as I have actually had it warp from the heat. When the flames die down and the wood is now ashed over and turned to coals, I add the cooking grid, which quickly heats up, and give it a good scrubbing. I place the meat on the cooker for just a minute or two each side, which is usually sufficient to sear the side to a point of having a nice caramelization. Once both sides are done, that's it. I love doing skirt steak this way for fajitas.

 

[Churrasqueiro Bob]

So most of you think that the problem I am having with the Kingsford is due to insufficient airflow on the SJS? This wouldn't be a problem on a 22" kettle? I don't understand why the Stubb's works fine and the Kingsford gives me a problem. Again, any advice or suggestions are appreciated.