WSM Smoke run #2

[blacjac]

5.6lb pork shoulder for PP and 2 whole chicken fryers are the theme of today

I put the shoulder on at 12:30am...it'll come off at 8pm tonight with the chicken....they went on just before 4:30

IMG_0154.JPG

• blacjac
• Sep 11, 2012

OOOOOhhh fire!!!

IMG_0156.JPG

• blacjac
• Sep 11, 2012

Burn baby burn!!!

IMG_0161.JPG

• blacjac
• Sep 11, 2012

This is my goody cabinet

IMG_0162.JPG

• blacjac
• Sep 11, 2012

Coated the shoulder in Trader Joe's Mesquite Honey, Lawrys seasoning salt, smoked paprika and Montreal Steak seasoning for  the crust, sprinkled with some organic sugar for some extra sweetness

IMG_0164.JPG

• blacjac
• Sep 11, 2012

I didn't have a coffee can to make a hole, so I just kinda cleared out a space and dumped the lit coals in, I let my starter coals burn too long so they didn't really fill the hole :/ 

IMG_0166.JPG

• blacjac
• Sep 11, 2012

this morning at 9:30 am I went to check on the progress and the fire was dead....this is what was left...some of the charcoal wasn't even burned as you can see :(  There were still embers lit, but not putting off any measureable heat...

I shoulda have taken the shoulder and stuck in the oven but I didn't think about til later....I was just scrambling to reload and refire.

As soon as I had it going again, I opened all vents and put the meat back on, and let it stay at 300 for 1 hr n half, then backed it down to 225.  I just really wanted to try and get the meat back up in temp and hopefully stave off any problems.

We will see

 

[pgsmoker64]

Wow, just wondering...did you leave the meat on and let the fire die?

Is your unit the 18" or the 22.5"?

In my experience the lump charcoal will not last through a 12 or 16 hour smoke even when its packed in tight and I always have to add more coals.

For long smokes I use Mr. Stubbs all natural briquettes.  They leave no weird charcoal flavor and if you pack them tight in a coal ring of a 22.5" WSM they will go for about 16 hours without a reload.

The longest I have been able to keep lump going is about 8 hours.

You also need to be sure that your vents are open enough to allow air flow to keep the coals going.