First Smoke

[dwayner79]

So this was my first smoke, Drunken chicken and corn. 

The chicken had very strong smoke flavor (family loved it, I thought it was a bit too smokey. Temps were all over the place as I got used to the smoker, but it cooked in about 3 hours.  Skin was a bit chewy. 

IMG_5588.JPG

• dwayner79
• Jul 24, 2013

Forgot to take picture of the plated meat (we were hungry!). 

A good day. 

 

[rdknb]

Looks good, for crispy skin I coat with mayo and smoke around 300-325

 

[smoking b]

Yup - you need a higher temp for crispy skin.  It looks like your first smoke turned out great  

  What are you gonna smoke next?

 

[dwayner79]

I can't seem to get the temp past 300 in the smoker... Scared to make too big a fire :-) (I'll hand over my man card)

I bought ribs and thighs for later this week. 

 

[oldschoolbbq]

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/a/stickburning101  , Dwayner. Hello and welcome to the Family. Hope you decide to call this "Home for all your BBQ needs".

Sorry your Bird wasn't to your expectations. The heat thingy is not as hard as one might think. The above Sticky will help some.

The Bird looked great, I'm disappointed for you in that it wasn't to your   expectations. If you used wood , you'll soon find that there are woods conducive to certain meats and some not so subtle . I like to pair Cherry or Apple (or a combo of each) for Poultry, Ribs and Butt. I use a heartier flavor wood like Hickory or Oaks and Mesquite , on my Beef and some Pork(as I feel - I love the taste of Smoke done right).

Also , the amount of Smoke and the color of it (light and bluish) will have a great effect on the taste of the Food you cook.

Practice with your Smoker for a day to better understand the heat control. Remember to leave the exhaust fully open and control with the Intake .

You should be able to get 300*F easy with your Smoker (what I see looks fairly heavy) and looks as if it will seal around the door well also.

If Skin is really important to you... finish the Bird over an open flame. Use any other trick you feel is good(Mayo, for instance) and keep practicing . Soon you'll bee a Yardbird Wrangler...

Have fun and as always . . .

 

[smoking b]

Yup  -  read Stan's guide he linked you to ^^ It is a great reference - he knows how to get it done with wood 

 

[disco]

I find I am a more demanding judge of my smoked food than the people who eat it. If your family liked it, I suspect it was great. Keep smoking, keep experimenting and you will get it the way you like it.

Disco

 

[dwayner79]

Thanks all, I did thoroughly enjoy it, just will tweek over time.

Read the stickburning 101. Good stuff. Thanks. There are some abbreviations that I am unfamiliar with.

SFB (s? fire box)

TBS? 

IMT (Internal m? Temp)

The tough part is that the only thing that will work is practice. Oh. Darn. 

 

[smoking b]

Thanks all, I did thoroughly enjoy it, just will tweek over time.

Read the stickburning 101. Good stuff. Thanks. There are some abbreviations that I am unfamiliar with.

SFB (s? fire box)

TBS? 

IMT (Internal m? Temp)

The tough part is that the only thing that will work is practice. Oh. Darn. 

SFB = Side Fire Box

TBS = Thin Blue Smoke

IMT = Internal Meat Temperature

Have fun practicing