WSM Frustration. With Pics.

[leanza]

On my new WSM I have done two cooks. Two racks, at 225* prox., the first weekend at six hours. One 10lb butt at 16 hrs at aprox 225* aprox., overnight this last weekend (finish temp 192*). I wanted to test my WSM to see what it could do.

I love the set and forget with the WSM, especially after driving my Silver Smoker for two years. But here is my problem... I cant seem to get enough smoke flavor in my Q. I admit I went somewhat light on the hickory on the ribs. But, with the butt over that many hours and several chunks I thought I would taste more smoke flavor. I was about at 65-35, charcoal to chunk on the butt.

So, the question on my mind would be... If I want to increase smoke flavor, I guess I need to add more wood. But wood is differnt that coals and coals provide heat stabilization. Do I go 70-30 wood to coals?

What would be the initial load of wood to charcoal be with the minion method, in mind? How would I maintain the cook (wood to coal)?

Or is this the nature of the WSM and its design?

Here are the Pics.

 

[MilitantSquatter]

I think you're 65/35 ratio is fine and even on the high side for a WSM... 70/30 probably won't producre that much of a noticeable difference to accurately measure anyway just trying to eyeball it.

You're correct in that if you use more wood chunks you'll likely see an inconsistency in heat stability due to the more uneven burn of the wood as opposed to coals.

You may be one of those that just prefers a lot of smoke flavor. For me, the smoke needs to compliment everything else. I don't want someone's first reaction to be "Wow..that's a lot of smoke flavor !!"... that would take away from all the other work spent trying to get the flavors right with rub/injection/marinade/sauce (whichever you use).

 

[ZBQ]

Mabey it's the picture or the angle of it but that doesn't look like what I call a "butt". It also looks like it has skin on it. A butt should have a fat cap but no skin and is usually cut in a square or rectangle with one "T" shaped bone (the shoulder blade). I could be wrong about this but it looks like you have the shank pointing towards the camera, if so, that is a picnic cut. If that is skin that I am seeing, I think that might be your problem with not enough smoke flavor. You can use a picnic cut but it shouldn't have any skin on it.

The 65-35 ratio sounds really heavy on the wood. I can't imagine NOT getting enough smoke flavor with that much wood.

I have always been told and have used the standard of 2-3 fist size chunks (or their equivalent) for a whole cook as a starting point and add or subtract based on your taste. I use a level or slightly heaping charcoal ring of unlit charcoal and add 15 to 20 lit coals to the top and then put the chunks of wood on top of that. Sometimes I will bury 2 or 3 chunks down in the unlit coals for smoke later in the cook. I've never heard of anyone using that high of a ratio, but I am not claiming to be any kind of expert here. Just saying what I have learned from others and from roughly 5 years experience with my WSM.

Hope this helps. :-D

 

[ZBQ]

I think you're 65/35 ratio is fine and even on the high side for a WSM...

See, what do I know?:roll:

No expert here.....

 

[crackerjack BBQ]

We use chips soaked in water. This gives maxium smoke. Add them directly on your coals, we use Lazzari mesquite, when you first start. The chips we use are 1 part hickory and two parts apple.

 

[bowhnter]

What ZBQ said 3 posts up. And I usually go 50/50 RO lump and charcoal. The lump will add some smoke as well.

 

[icemn62]

Wow, I get good results with just 3 or 5 chunks. I have a nice smoke ring, and everybody comments on how good the smoke flavor is. But I find I like it more with the smoke as an additive not the main ingredient.

 

[Kirk]

I do what ZBQ does too. A load of lump or briquettes with 2 or 3 fist sized chunks of smoke wood (or the equivalent in smaller chunks, never chips). I place the wood so that there will be some burning throughout the cook and I always have plenty of smoke flavor. ZBQ was right about the meat too. That there's a picnic, I assume with the skin on. Maybe that skin's what keeping the smoke flavor off you meat? Have you done any other cuts like ribs, brisket or even poultry? If so, how was the smoke flavor with them? If it was good, maybe it is just the skin on that pork that's messing you up.

 

[tony76248]

What type of wood were you using? Hickory should not take very much to give you a good smoked flavor.

I cooked some chickens last night on my Komodo and added very little apple and almost went overboard with the smoke flavor, and apple is a mild wood.

If you want more smoke flavor than you are getting, I would suggest using liquid smoke in a baste mixture. Then apply this throughout the cook.

You can very easily oversmoke a cut of meat which will leave you with a bitter taste.

You should also match your meat with your wood. The flavors should compliment each other.

 

[Smokin Gator]

Another trick for getting more smoke flavor is to put the meat in the freezer for a half hour or so just before you put it on the cooker. This gives you more time under the 140 degree spot that most agree is where the smoke flavor is absorbed into the meat.

That being said... I don't do that. I use only the 3-4 chunks on top of the briqs. Plenty of smoke and smoke flavor.

One other thought... if you were using very old wood that would not give you as much flavor.

 

[HeSmellsLikeSmoke]

Were you getting a lot of white smoke? It may be the picture, but the picnic looks a bit sooty to me. Was the wood wet or green, by any chance?

My pork look redder than that with dry hickory and "blue smoke", but again it may be the color balance in the photo.

I agree that the skin would retard smoke.

 

[Bottles 'n Bones BBQ]

Did it have a lack of smoke flavor the day/night when you took it off the WSM? How was is warmed up the day after or so? Reason I ask is that I can't taste much of anything very accurately, smoke flavor in particular, having been in the smoke and around the cooker for hours on end. Takes until the next day to get the senses back to normal...

 

[Yakfishingfool]

Try switching to "smokier"wood, say mesquite? I too get away with 4-5 fist sized chunks per cook and get plenty of smokiness for me. Good luck on your adventures. Scott

 

[Harbormaster]

Leanza,
I use about 6 fist/baseball size chunks of wood with a load of lump. I bury some of the chunks in the lump so it burns later in the cook with a Minion start.
Looking at your post it also sounds like you are guessing at cooker temps. Do you have a thermo in the dome? If not, I'd pick one up and at least insert it through one of the top vent holes.
Also, the comments about not tasting the smoke right after the cook hold true for me too. The next day I taste way more smoke than right after the cook.

 

[G$]

Opinion Warning:

I don't even own a WSM, but our team has used one in competition, and I have experienced it's results may times!

I basically agree with many of the sentiments above. If you put too many wood chunks in the coal bed, it will effect the way your burn behaves. Most WSMers I know use smattering of fist size or smaller chunks, maybe 6-8 small ones.

I agree with you leanza, this frankly is not quite "woody" enough for my tastes typically. I think it is somewhat the nature of the beast. Note, this has nothing to do with the smoke ring. You will still get a nice ring with a heavy charcoal load. What I am talking about is a distinct "wood" flavor, which is a little different even from a "smoke" flavor.

You may need to experiment with some techniques, but I don't think that you will be able to just load up with a higher wood ratio and set it and forget it. Maybe another quick small chunk added every hour when you can?

Lastly, have you been able to discern a differnece in smokiness depending on where the meat was loaded? If right over the water pan, it may be shielded form a lot of the smoke, as compared with higher in the dome.

I guess I don't have the answers, but I do understand what you are talking about.

 

[leanza]

Thanks for the recomendations. The cut was a picnic with the shoulder portion attached at 10lbs. It had plenty of skin. I criss-crossed through the skin with the knife.

It was on the top grill. I had a temp probe on the grill level and in the meat. Temps were for the most part steady. I had cooking temps 230*+/-.

I used chunks of seasoned hickory with Rancher's. My wife the "Judge" agreed initally, that it lacked a smokeness in flavor although, the day after it did taste somewhat better.

I have never had this issue arise when I used my Silver Smoker and I used alot of sticks in that when cooking.
The wood could be old.

I'm thinking the skin might be the issue but again the ribs I did on the WSM's initial cook were not smokey enough either. I will keep on experimenting, thanks.

 

[Harbormaster]

I used chunks of seasoned hickory with Rancher's. My wife the "Judge" agreed initally, that it lacked a smokeness in flavor although, the day after it did taste somewhat better.

For some reason the meat will taste smokier the next day. IMHO.

I have never had this issue arise when I used my Silver Smoker and I used alot of sticks in that when cooking.
The wood could be old.

If you were using a lot of sticks, is it possible you are accustomed to meat with A LOT of smoke, and the smoke from the WSM is just more subtle? Guys here have said that hickory, if gone unused for a long time, will lose it's flavoring potential and just become BTUs. I hope that ain't true, 'cuz I got a bunch of flavorless BTUs in the rafters of my garage.