- Jul 6, 2024
- 8
- 19
One thing I like about being a beginner is that one doesn't have preconceived notions about what is and isn't possible. In that vein, I picked up four pig's feet this morning in order to fiddle with the vent settings on my WSM 14.5. If I ruined something, I wouldn't feel bad about it.
I didn't get any action shots, but here's the end result:
Pardon the poor contrast, the pic was taken on my stovetop.
I used the Minion Method, starting with 10 briquettes in a coffee can in the center of the charcoal ring. They were lit with a propane torch and the can was removed when the briquettes inside were covered in ash. A few hickory chunks were mixed in with the charcoal.
Vents were fully open for an hour until the temperature on the dome thermometer came up to 225°F. Lower vents were then closed to 25% and the top vent left fully open. I monitored the temperature over the smoke time (~4 hours) until the IT on the feet was 170°F. I'm running a FireDial and didn't have any problems with runaway temperatures.
At 170°F, I removed the feet, wrapped them in foil and then put them back on for another hour (not sure if this was a good thing or even necessary). After removing from the smoker, I let them rest about 30 minutes and unwrapped them.
The end result is what is shown above. They smell pretty darn good, the smoke flavor isn't overpowering on the meat and they are almost falling apart (bones can be pulled out). I think they may be a good substitute for smoked ham hocks.
I didn't get any action shots, but here's the end result:
Pardon the poor contrast, the pic was taken on my stovetop.
I used the Minion Method, starting with 10 briquettes in a coffee can in the center of the charcoal ring. They were lit with a propane torch and the can was removed when the briquettes inside were covered in ash. A few hickory chunks were mixed in with the charcoal.
Vents were fully open for an hour until the temperature on the dome thermometer came up to 225°F. Lower vents were then closed to 25% and the top vent left fully open. I monitored the temperature over the smoke time (~4 hours) until the IT on the feet was 170°F. I'm running a FireDial and didn't have any problems with runaway temperatures.
At 170°F, I removed the feet, wrapped them in foil and then put them back on for another hour (not sure if this was a good thing or even necessary). After removing from the smoker, I let them rest about 30 minutes and unwrapped them.
The end result is what is shown above. They smell pretty darn good, the smoke flavor isn't overpowering on the meat and they are almost falling apart (bones can be pulled out). I think they may be a good substitute for smoked ham hocks.
Last edited:
