before my first cook this sunday help!!!

wh0pp3r68 said:

 
So i picked up a master built vertical dual fuel smoker. nothing to glam but i hope for a beginner its a step forward. 

picked up a few briskets (3 roughly 9-12lbs per before timing fat) and 14lb pork butt. picked up some hickory and pecan chunks.

gonna use propane for fuel since i don't think I'm ready to attempt coal/wood only yet.

questions:

what is the typical standard for the wood chunks? directly to flame, or put in a pan dry and guessing they just eventually get hot enough to smoke? or do you expose to directly heat then onto a pan?

i heard a coffee can works well? Put them in the Pan over the flame. You need to season the smoker before using and will know if the stock pan works or a cast iron pan or coffee can is needed.

I've read about soaking the chunks initially for 30 mins prior to heat, but from what I've gather that only initiates steam, and not smoke. so id figured no on that. There are Wood Ships that have been sitting in Seawater for over 100 years and are still water tight. How much water will wood absorb in 30 minutes? Don't bother.

i know there is a back and fourth on fat cap up or down, but for a new comer, which would be i guess you could say, the safer route of the 2 to prevent drying out the meat? Trim to 1/4" and smoke fat up.

pre heat smoker, where do i measure temp, I'm assuming at the very top? inside? With that load, measure temp at the middle rack. Brisket over Pork as the pork is more forgiving and thicker.

using chunks (roughly 3''x3'' cubes) I'm assuming check in every 45- and hour, but at what point do i stop adding wood, to allow the heat to cook and not over power the meat with straight wood influence? IMO, It's a SMOKER if you ain't makin' smoke you might as well put it in the Oven! Add one Chunk as needed to keep the smoke light. The smoke will start White, go Blue and eventually roll off. When you can't even smell the smoke anymore, add another chunk.

would using hickory and pecan at the same time be pointless? will one over power the other or should i do a 1:2 ratio? if not which would you say is the better wood to use? Since you are questioning whether the smoke will be Too Strong. Stick to the milder Pecan the whole time and work your tastebuds up to Hickory. They are very similar. Add some fruit wood for a more varied flavor.

seasoning for brisket- thinking just sticking to corse salt and pepper, any thoughts? That will work. I like Granulated Garlic and Onion also.

any help is appreciated. i really hope i pull this off and i can bring back some good results The beef is done when a Probe slides in with no resistance, somewhere around 195. The Pork will be Pull Apart tender when the bone can be wiggled out. About 205-210. Figure about 2 hours per Pound at 225 to 250 based on the Pork. The brisket will be ready sooner. When the Brisket gets to 190-195, pull them out, wrap in foil and towels and stick them in a Cooler. They will finish cooking, stay moist and stay hot for 8-10 hours. plenty of time for the Pork to catch up...Good luck...JJ

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