Never smoked before. First time. Tips,tricks,advice,secrets.

[Kevin Haynes]

ANYTHING HELPS
I just purchased an old country Pecos offset smoker. I have never smoked before but I absolutely love BBQ. I have visited Franklin's,snows,pecan lodge,blacks,slowbone,hutchins,heim,coopers,kerlins,salt lick,cattlelack, etc...all Texas bbq because obviously we do it best. I just want any tips or tricks you may know. I will be doing a brisket. I think I dont need the tuning plates because I wont be filling up the smoker with multiple meats. What are yalls thoughts on butcher paper wrapping and when I should do it. Best thermometers to use? I will be using oak. Also. I am in north Texas and it is cooling down (weather wise) any info or tips would be greatly appreciated. Will completely note how I did and what I do when I do my very first smoke. Thanks guys!

 

[smokinq13]

Don't start with a tough peice of meat, let's say brisket. I'd start with something inexpensive like ribs or even a chicken or two or even a pork butt, that way you can get to know how to regulate the temperature and how it works! Practice makes perfect and you learn from experience!

 

[Kevin Haynes]

Don't start with a tough peice of meat, let's say brisket. I'd start with something inexpensive like ribs or even a chicken or two or even a pork butt, that way you can get to know how to regulate the temperature and how it works! Practice makes perfect and you learn from experience!

Think beef ribs would be fine to start off with? Only reason I want to do a brisket is because I have been looking up EVERYTHING on how to do a brisket and I think I have read enough to at least make a half decent one haha

 

[smokinq13]

Think beef ribs would be fine to start off with? Only reason I want to do a brisket is because I have been looking up EVERYTHING on how to do a brisket and I think I have read enough to at least make a half decent one haha

Hey if you feel confident on doing a brisket, go for it! You can only learn when you try... brisket is just a little expensive to learn on. I'd compare it to learning to drive a stick in a boss350 rather then a civic... if you understand lol and personally never did beef ribs but from what I've heard, they are harder because they can dry out so easily

 

[Kevin Haynes]

You have a damn good point when you mentioned a

Hey if you feel confident on doing a brisket, go for it! You can only learn when you try... brisket is just a little expensive to learn on. I'd compare it to learning to drive a stick in a boss350 rather then a civic... if you understand lol and personally never did beef ribs but from what I've heard, they are harder because they can dry out so easily

You have a damn good point. Probably best to practice in a 92 civic as opposed to a 68 SS Camaro or something haha.

 

[pops6927]

This is the best place to learn and grow in your new passion! We all started out in the same place, or learned from others who did. THE BEST thing to do is to make a Smoking Log to record every smoke, no matter how minor or major. Here is a link to Jeff Phillips Smoking Log:

https://statich.smokingmeatforums.com/0/07/07104ca2_smoking-meat-log.pdf

You can print these out as you need to, hole-punch and keep in a loose-leaf binder, replace and update, use A-Z dividers to stay organized, and use to whatever extent you see fit! You don't have to fill in all the blanks, just what you need to remember for yourself and to reference to help others. I've filled up 3, 3" binders myself. I've had 6 strokes so for me it is a very necessary Good practice effort! Enjoy the journey!

 

[Kevin Haynes]

This is the best place to learn and grow in your new passion! We all started out in the same place, or learned from others who did. THE BEST thing to do is to make a Smoking Log to record every smoke, no matter how minor or major. Here is a link to Jeff Phillips Smoking Log:

https://statich.smokingmeatforums.com/0/07/07104ca2_smoking-meat-log.pdf

You can print these out as you need to, hole-punch and keep in a loose-leaf binder, replace and update, use A-Z dividers to stay organized, and use to whatever extent you see fit! You don't have to fill in all the blanks, just what you need to remember for yourself and to reference to help others. I've filled up 3, 3" binders myself. I've had 6 strokes so for me it is a very necessary Good practice effort! Enjoy the journey!

I was just thinking about some kind of log to keep with me! This is awesome. Thanks!

 

[Fgignac]

Don't start with a tough peice of meat, let's say brisket. I'd start with something inexpensive like ribs or even a chicken or two or even a pork butt, that way you can get to know how to regulate the temperature and how it works! Practice makes perfect and you learn from experience!

I agree with this. Chicken is a great place to start because it is a short cook. Offset smokers each have their own personality and until you get well aquainted with yours, you might find smoke and temperature control a challenge.

Start out with some shorter cooks. As you start to get the hang of it, move on to longer ones. I feel that this is one of those crawl before you can walk, before you can run things. A long cook like pork butt of brisket can be an unpleasent slog if you don't understand your equipment's behavior and are constantly worrying about fluctuations in smoke and heat. But once you are confident in your skills, experience, and equipment. Long smoked become a breeze.

That would be my approach if I were to start it all over ;-)

 

[daveomak]

As far as butcher paper wrapping goes, I recommend wrapping with the pink / peach BBQ paper... It breathes so the bark isn't soggy.... I would wrap as the meat goes into the stall.... The stall is moisture evaporating, creating evaporative cooling effect...
Pink Butcher Kraft Paper Roll - 18" x 175' (2100") Peach Wrapping Paper for Beef Briskets - USA Made - All Natural FDA Approved Food Grade BBQ Meat Smoking Paper - Unbleached Unwaxed Uncoated

Pink Butcher Paper also known as peach paper or the BBQ paper. It is highly popular among BBQ professionals for wrapping briskets/meat for smoking. This is because foil is non-porous and it does not allow the steam to escape during smoking. It will condense and in turn, soil the crispy bark of the meat. A highly porous butcher paper solves most of these issues by allowing the steam to escape, while keeping the contents protected from the full assault of the smoker.