Pre heating MES 30

[PAS]

The last few times I used my MES 230G, I preheated to 275 then after putting the meat in I reset to the temp I wanted to smoke (225) I figured it would get back up to the 225 quicker once the door was opened and the cold meat was put it.

Seems to being working fine that way. I do use the pellet tray as well.
Any reason this way of thinking is wrong?

 

[normanaj]

That's exactly what I do.Also kills anything nasty that might be lurking.

 

[Bearcarver]

The last few times I used my MES 230G, I preheated to 275 then after putting the meat in I reset to the temp I wanted to smoke (225) I figured it would get back up to the 225 quicker once the door was opened and the cold meat was put it.

Seems to being working fine that way. I do use the pellet tray as well.
Any reason this way of thinking is wrong?

Nothing wrong with doing it that way.
I do the same sometimes, but most of the time I start it about 45 minutes before I put meat in, and i just set it for the Temp I want. It will run (coast) about 20° above anyway on the initial run.
Then it doesn't take me long to put the meat in, and the fact that all the walls & interior parts are real hot, makes the recovery very short anyway.

Bear

 

[SonnyE]

None what so ever PAS.
As long as you remember to set it back to your cooking temp.

Daveomak posted to a member about sterilizing her smoker after use. I picked up on that like hound to a scent.
So, even though I live in a fairly dry climate, I do a 275° run before I do any smoking, and before I put my smoker to bed under it's cover.
I usually do 2 hours on either end. Use your own judgement.

Pre-heating, just like the house oven, gets the smoker oven warmed and ready for action. Less erratic behavior afterwards. Eliminates cold spots, if you will.

Post-heating dries your smoker out, burns off any mold causing spores, and is just good practice for a healthy happy smoker.

I usually wash my racks and mats, then put them back in and fire that muther up. Let it dry out the parts.

OH, and during the Pre-Heat, if you use an AMNPS, fill it with pellets or dust, and roast it in your smoker. Dry fuel never fails to work good. So you get a twofer, happy Pre-heater smoker, and dry fuel for the main event.
Win-Win!

 

[Lonzinomaker]

I like to start my smokes with a cool smoker. I've read a lot of threads that say smoke doesn't get into the meat after it gets to 140 deg, it just stays on the surface. So starting with a cold/cool smoker gives me more time for smoke to sink in.
Sanitizing with heat before hand is a good idea, and I do that. But I let it cool back to ambient temp, especially when doing jerky. Even when doing turkey and chicken, I think if you practice good sanitation with meat preparation the risk is minimal. Remember the air in smoker will be 200+ deg, and the surface temp of meat will quickly get up there to kill any pathogens.
With that said, I anything I brine, I always add some Cure #1 as a safety measure.

 

[joel11230]

I don’t see anything wrong with it but I’ll mention that I don’t put cold meat in the smoker. Many members on here suggest letting your meat sit out until close to room temperature. I do that also. Helps prevent that “sudden temperature drop”. Just my 2 cents.

 

[johnmeyer]

I highly recommend doing exactly what you are doing. The reason? Get rid of the stuff on the walls of your smoker that still generates smoke. In fact, the next time you do this, let your smoker heat at 275 for at least half an hour. During the last ten minutes look at the vent and note how much smoke is coming out.

Where is that smoke coming from??

Answer: from the creosote and other garbage on the walls of the smoker. Your food, of course, won't know the difference between that smoke and the nice fresh smoke from your wood chips. Do you want your food to taste like that gunk that's been sitting on the walls of your smoker for the weeks (or months) since you last used it?

The only downside is that you need to make sure to turn down the heat before you put your food in the smoker. I've made that mistake a few times but fortunately have always caught it when I make a check about ten minutes after I start the smoke, just to make sure my external smoke generator is working.

As for heating at the end of the smoke, I guess I don't see the logic in wasting electricity, propane or fossil fuel continuing to heat an empty smoker. Instead, I prop the door open for a couple of hours to let it air out. Since it is thoroughly heated at the moment you remove your food, there is plenty of heat to drive out any moisture that might later cause mold or mildew to form.

[edit]Some people may respond that in commercial smokers the walls of the enclosure are totally coated with gunk from years of smoking and it is this stuff that helps give character to the BBQ. That is probably true, but the big difference is that those cookers are fired up for at least 8-10 hours 6-7 days a week, and never sit around getting funky. They also have better control of their smoke than most of us so they are always generating "good" stuff, and are unlikely to be adding creosote from the previous smoke.

I posted my thoughts on this earlier this year:

Cleanliness Is Next To Godliness ... But Does It Taste Good?

 

[SmokinAl]

I don't have much experience with electric smokers, except for making sausage & bacon, in which case I do preheat the smoker. On my other smokers I usually just sanitize the grates with a weed burner, then put the meat in right out of the fridge & start the fire at the same time. It only takes my Lang about 20 minutes to heat up to temp & there is very little white smoke. On my Smoke Vault or WSM it is about the same, 20 minutes & everything is running smoothly, however I do use a Guru with the WSM, and let it bring the temp up by it self.
Al

 

[SonnyE]

As for heating at the end of the smoke, I guess I don't see the logic in wasting electricity, propane or fossil fuel continuing to heat an empty smoker. Instead, I prop the door open for a couple of hours to let it air out. Since it is thoroughly heated at the moment you remove your food, there is plenty of heat to drive out any moisture that might later cause mold or mildew to form.

If you were like me, John, a prolific Solar Power Producer, you would be unafraid to use the power pouring from your roof to run your smoker.
My power company will pay me at the bulk power rate of 3-4 cents per kilowatt, for power they sell to my next door neighbors for 34 cents per kilowatt.
So the gal I talked to advised me to USE the power, instead of banking it.

So I tend to use my power as I wish. And still over-produce to contribute to the grid. (So my Power Company can make a 10-fold profit on that power.)

As always, YOUR mileage may Vary.
But you are welcome to apply your thoughts to electric vehicles.

Don't believe every little lie the Power Company feeds you.

 

[Bearcarver]

I don’t see anything wrong with it but I’ll mention that I don’t put cold meat in the smoker. Many members on here suggest letting your meat sit out until close to room temperature. I do that also. Helps prevent that “sudden temperature drop”. Just my 2 cents.

Everything I smoke goes right from the Fridge to the Smoker.
I like to get things through the Danger Zone in less than 4 hours, and setting it on the counter doesn't help.

Bear

 

[SonnyE]

Everything I smoke goes right from the Fridge to the Smoker.

Same for me, Bear.
But my Smoker, or my grill, are pre-heated.
I suppose it comes from a lifetime of being taught to Pre-heat an oven before baking. (Am I brainwashed?)

I don't recall seeing where things need to come to room temperature before beginning to cook besides here. But I admit I'm not a culinary wizz kid.

So far, still alive. (Much to some's dismay.)

 

[johnmeyer]

My power company will pay me at the bulk power rate of 3-4 cents per kilowatt, for power they sell to my next door neighbors for 34 cents per kilowatt ... <snip> so I tend to use my power as I wish. And still over-produce to contribute to the grid. (So my Power Company can make a 10-fold profit on that power.)

Just a quick OT comment: the reason you only get reimbursed at wholesale rates is that paying retail rates (your 34 cents/kwh) to a home-based solar energy producer (you) dramatically increases PG&E's cost of producing electricity. The only way to recover that artificially increased cost was to raise rates. The biggest impacts fell on all the people who are not rich enough to put solar on their rooftops, or who didn't want to deal with the rather dicey financing schemes offered by SolarCity and others. So, in a nutshell, the poor consumers were subsidizing the wealthy. So, I understand why you miss the wonderful deal you had for awhile, but you also need to understand that you were being subsidized by everyone else.

 

[dr k]

Same for me, Bear.
But my Smoker, or my grill, are pre-heated.
I suppose it comes from a lifetime of being taught to Pre-heat an oven before baking. (Am I brainwashed?)

I don't recall seeing where things need to come to room temperature before beginning to cook besides here. But I admit I'm not a culinary wizz kid.

So far, still alive. (Much to some's dismay.)

https://www.seriouseats.com/2013/06/the-food-lab-7-old-wives-tales-about-cooking-steak.html
There's no right or wrong just what individuals like but I do love to read food myths and it gets me to wonder how these came about and is more in alignment with my minimalist preference on smoking butts, brisket and ribs @ 275* no wrap, naked the whole time. Three hours bb ribs. Three to four hours St. Louis spares. Four and a half to five hours whole Kansas City spares. With grilling I like to dry brine steak with kosher salt an hour an inch at room temp because the surface of the steak warms quickly to the exposed room temp air and the hygroscopic effect of salt works faster on this warmer/softer surface than in the fridge. The first of these 7 steak/roast myths talk about a 38* steak right out of the fridge in 70* room temp got the center of the steak to 50* in two hours. A whopping 12* warmer in the center in two hours and 20* yet to go to get to room temp. Now a roast would be even cooler in the center in two hours. Thermoworks has a recipe blog comparing the room temp counter prerest vs. the freezer hour prerest with rib roasts. When searing first it was shown the freezer prerest had a smaller over cooked grey band below the sear and stayed longer in the post rigor dual enzyme action zone longer during cooking and was more tender as a result. The warmer outside of the roast compared to the center from the counter prerest grows a larger overcooked grey band. I want the salt in the steak more than just the surface so if I have the time I dry brine on the counter an hour/inch, then into the fridge for a couple hours to get entire steak to fridge temp, then into the freezer up to an hour, then sear, then finish to desired IT. Thermoworks said cooking a turkey frozen solid takes just 50% longer than completely thawed. Remove the giblets from the cavity after the first hour and season the bird. It can't be half thawed. Only completely thawed or completely frozen. As well as a frozen solid steak placed on a disfiguringly hot skillet/grill seven minutes then flip and season seared side then after seven minutes flip and season off to the side of the coals for indirect cooking, spinning the steak 180 degrees in 2.5 minutes ,then flip in 2.5 minutes, then spin etc every 2.5 minutes till desired IT. It was perfectly cooked between the seared sides np grey band but had a more watery unseasoned result but that's the opportunity cost for wanting a steak and it's frozen and no dry brine prerest. Back to smoking. Thermphoresis of hot particulates migrating to low energy objects is what I want with smoking. In this case it's hot particulates of smoke that migrate to low energy cold meat. So it's out of the fridge and into the smoker for me.

 

[zwiller]

I preheat a little but don't OCD about it. All my smoked stuff pretty much goes fridge to smoker since I do the pellicle night before. Grilled stuff gets fan pellicle for about 15-20m prior to hitting the grill. Yes, pellicle even on steak. Try it once.

 

[dr k]

I preheat a little but don't OCD about it. All my smoked stuff pretty much goes fridge to smoker since I do the pellicle night before. Grilled stuff gets fan pellicle for about 15-20m prior to hitting the grill. Yes, pellicle even on steak. Try it once.

Crisper sear without steaming. I use an el cheapo flexable rubber blade 3vDC fan in the fridge for pellicles. I wired to a transformer so no batteries to fail. It hangs from the upper shelf by a loop in the wires and a skewer.

 

[SonnyE]

Crisper sear without steaming. I use an el cheapo flexable rubber blade 3vDC fan in the fridge for pellicles. I wired to a transformer so no batteries to fail. It hangs from the upper shelf by a loop in the wires and a skewer.

You gave me a great idea Kurt.
I have a small cooling fan from an old computer I doctored up to a 12V power supply I could use inside my Cureing/Beer fridge to help do my Pellical forming.
Just this morning I entered the Pellical stage for two belly slabs for bacon. I'm going to go set it up to see if I can speed up the Pelicans.
I also have one of those tiny fans in my RV fridge that runs for weeks on two D batteries.
But I like the endless supply of battery-less.

Thanks for the brain spark.

 

[zwiller]

Crisper sear without steaming. I use an el cheapo flexable rubber blade 3vDC fan in the fridge for pellicles. I wired to a transformer so no batteries to fail. It hangs from the upper shelf by a loop in the wires and a skewer.

Yeah, overdue to do a fan in the fridge. The surprising part is my wife's acceptance of the fan pellicle stage. Normally it wouldn't muster but the results speak for themselves. Nothing sticks and sear marks look so good they almost look fake.

 

[johnmeyer]

John,
You remind me of why I had you on ignore for so long.
You go ahead and suck down that pablum from PG&E. It's their little tantrum from Solar Producers going off their exorbitant billing.
I'm in SCE country. I used to work for LADWP, retired now. And FYI, I actually worked for PG&E for a time. So I do have some of an inside view to their politics, which are large. Because they are not a Municipal provider, they are a Business.
And Profit is everything to them.
Also, the little people (Me) can get solar installed for free. It's a 20 year lease. I pay a set lease rate, and I am classed as a 5.87 Kw Hour Solar Power Plant by them. Separate billing department and all.
I'm not riding on ANYBODIES back. I am negating my own use, and I am allowing SCE to sell my excess at 10 times what they are willing to pay for it to my closest neighbors.
And since you drink the pablum, my Carbon footprint is drastically reduced.
You need to get smart and stop drinking the Kool Aide.

BTW, You Northerners need to realize that L.A. is not "stealing" water. The aqueduct is State owned and Operated. And Congress caused the drought in the San Joaquin Valley farms. The State, Metropolitan Water District, is the Profiteer from the sale of water that would be wasted into the Eastern San Francisco Bay.

I just happen to live in part of the best real estate there is for Solar production, and have the moxy to utilize it.
But I realize not all can do that.

What did I do to deserve that response?? People are usually so nice in this forum. Oh well ...

 

[SonnyE]

What did I do to deserve that response?? People are usually so nice in this forum. Oh well ...

Right. Now you play all hurt.