Smoking on a weber kettle grill

[bearsfan1985]

I've bought a weber kettle grill and want to do more than grill. I've done a salmon, beer can chicken, and turkey breast on it with success, but I want more. Can you smoke a pork butt on it? If so how? And what else can I do?

 

[forluvofsmoke]

This would probably be more manageable for you if you want to try a larger cut of pork...this was more on the hot & fast side...just a couple hours total cooking time:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/...gold-w-recipes-hope-you-dont-mind-some-q-view

...butts will keep you pretty busy tending the fire, as they need to cook low & slow to get tender (12-15 hours for an average butt @ 8-9lb in a kettle is a lot of work), while the loin is already pretty tender, so a hotter chamber temp won't hurt it at all.

Eric

 

[cliffcarter]

Yes you can-

LaborDay butt (8a).jpg

• cliffcarter
• Jun 30, 2012

This is how I set it up, here I am using Stubbs briquettes and apple wood pieces 3"long

by 1" thick, set on end in the charcoal. About 15 fully lit briquettes go in the open space

to the left of the foil pan-

2012butt (4).JPG

• cliffcarter
• Aug 21, 2012

I like to cook my butts at temps between 260° and 280°, the last one was a 7.25 pounder that cooked to pulling temp in about 8 1/2 hours.

Ash build up will restrict air flow over time so be sure to sweep the ash out of the kettle about once per hour.

 

[bearsfan1985]

Thanks Eric. That looks great. Do you brine your loins, or just rub them?

 

[bama bbq]

I've done ribs, chicken, prime rib, turkey, pork butt, etc all low and slow on my Kettle.  I bank the coal on one side of the charcoal grill and keep temps low with the lower vents.  I've had success by covering the 2/3 part of the charcoal grill that does not have coal on it with alum foil and put an alum pan under the food with water in it. 

 

[JckDanls 07]

I've done butt's , briskets, as well as other big meats on a kettle... just did beef ribs on one Sat. in a competition... http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/135304/county-fair-competition-and-the-results-are-in#post_925025

You just need to do the minion method... put all your charcoal on one side with your wood chunks mixed all throughout ... light about 8-10 briquettes (half lit) and dump them at the very end of your line of unlit charcoal .. it takes a few cooks to get it figured out, but once ya do you can cook for hours without reloading...

 

[pthefree]

I have smoke with great success with my Weber Performer. I spent a little money and purchased a Smokenator 1000. Look it up on YouTube to see how it works. It is a MUST have for kettle owners.

20120616_163224.jpg

• pthefree
• Jan 27, 2013

 

[linguica]

The search bar above is a good starting point," smoking with weber kettle"

http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/charcoal_grill_setup.html

 

[JckDanls 07]

The search bar above is a good starting point," smoking with weber kettle"

yes.. we've been through this with other members so you should find all kinds of info

 

[forluvofsmoke]

Thanks Eric. That looks great. Do you brine your loins, or just rub them?

You/re welcome. I have brined a few in the past...the halved loin I linked you to wasn't.

Ah, here's one that popped into the ol' brain waves just a few seconds ago:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/...osemary-rub-apple-pecan-smoke-q-view-finished

Was a while ago when I did that one...good eats.

EDIT: Oops! Just went back and looked...the brine recipe wasn't there on the above thread...here it is:

7 cups water
1 Tbls Coriander Seed, whole
2 Tbls 5 Peppercorn Blend, whole
2 tsp Chili Powder, coarse grind
2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1-1/2 Tbls Paprika, mild
1 Ancho Chili, dried and broken
2 tsp Fennel Seed
2 Tbls Red Bell Pepper, chopped and dried (sub with 1/4 cup fresh)
2 Tbls Rosemary Leaves, dried
7 Bay leaf, med/large, whole

Mix all ingredients while heating in a saucepan to ~180*. Chill well before adding meat and keep refrigerated until ready to cook. You may want to remove the bay leaves after the brine solution has cooled a bit...they can continue imparting flavor long after the solution has cooled and can get fairly strong in relation to the other spices.

---

This is my latest and probably greatest pork brine and rub recipes...not sure if you'd have all the ingredients, but it's got a very unique flavor profile...in a good way:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/...-rub-2-butts-recipes-q-view-1-sliced-2-pulled

Eric

 

[r ahrens]

Hi, Weber has a great new book out: Weber Smoke.  It has recipes and processes for smoking on the kettle, gas grill and WSM.  They indicate their preferred grill for each recipe but the processes are transferable.  Although I very rarely use my Summit and the WSM is my go to for low and slow, I have a tendency to put some chunks of smoking wood on the coals every time I use the performer.  I love a rib-eye with a bit of oak smoke!  Happy smoking!

 

[mneeley490]

Hi, Weber has a great new book out: Weber Smoke.  It has recipes and processes for smoking on the kettle, gas grill and WSM.  They indicate their preferred grill for each recipe but the processes are transferable.  Although I very rarely use my Summit and the WSM is my go to for low and slow, I have a tendency to put some chunks of smoking wood on the coals every time I use the performer.  I love a rib-eye with a bit of oak smoke!  Happy smoking!

I have that book and it's a great resource.

Also, you may want to go to YouTube and check out the videos made by "BBQ Pit Boys". They do most of their smoking on a Weber Performer. I'm not saying I'd follow all their practices, but it's a great starting point. And the videos are highly entertaining, too.

 

[tstalafuse]

Another option is to buy a Smoke EZ insert if you are want to add capacity.  I can get 3 cooking racks in for a total of approximately 1500sq inches of smoking space. 

.

DSCN1829.JPG

• tstalafuse
• Jan 29, 2013

 

[rubrchickenhead]

Here's a photo of a simple smoker setup on my weber:

wotg.jpeg

• rubrchickenhead
• Feb 22, 2013

I just throw an aluminum pan in there and I also find that some expanded metal grate helps the lump charcoal burn longer and more evenly. 

I've since upgraded to cast-iron grates, but the setup remains the same:

DSC01074.JPG

• rubrchickenhead
• Feb 12, 2013

    View media item 200472
You can have a lot of fun smoking on a weber kettle and it's quite easy once you get used to it.

 

[danksidebbq]

Oh man this is going to be super helpful for my next BBQ I am looking to blow peoples mind and I really want my meat to be delicious and my sauce as well!

 

[raybones]

I myself have done many smokes low and slow with my weber. Looking at getting the smokenator however you can do some great smokes without it

 

[savupoika]

 
Yes you can-

LaborDay butt (8a).jpg

• cliffcarter
• Jun 30, 2012

This is how I set it up, here I am using Stubbs briquettes and apple wood pieces 3"long

by 1" thick, set on end in the charcoal. About 15 fully lit briquettes go in the open space

to the left of the foil pan-

2012butt (4).JPG

• cliffcarter
• Aug 21, 2012

I like to cook my butts at temps between 260° and 280°, the last one was a 7.25 pounder that cooked to pulling temp in about 8 1/2 hours.

Ash build up will restrict air flow over time so be sure to sweep the ash out of the kettle about once per hour.

Great post cliffcarter! I will try with 15 litten briguettes next time i smoke.

 

[cliffcarter]

 
Great post cliffcarter! I will try with 15 litten briguettes next time i smoke.

Since posting this I have changed to using about 1/2 chimney of lit charcoal because it gets me to my desired cooking temp more quickly.

 

[savupoika]

 
Since posting this I have changed to using about 1/2 chimney of lit charcoal because it gets me to my desired cooking temp more quickly.

Thanks i keep this also in my mind.

 

[mneeley490]

Since we were out of town on Easter, I'm smoking a cured pork picnic on my Weber right now. Also doing a batch of beans in a black iron pot at the same time. About an hour and a half in, and it's holding steady at 230°-240°. I'll post the results in a different thread.