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Frank-Likes-Beer · 03-07-2011, 01:57 PM

It should be here before the weekend and I would like to put it to use right away. What would be a good first project for someone who's never smoked anything before?

Also, will I need anything other than charcoal and utensils to get started?

**passedpawn** · 03-07-2011, 02:07 PM

Pick up a Boston butt / pork shoulder (or 2) and do pulled pork. Mmmm.

Aluminum tray with water (do they come with that?).

If you are smoking, perhaps some hickory chips. Soak overnight before using. Do you have a local bbq / grill shop?

Remote (wired or wireless) meat thermometer. This is a must have I think.

Beginner's Grilling/BBQ book with recipes (I love this one). It has excellent rubs and sauces, with a billion pictures. EVERY recipe has numerous pictures. You might find this book at Home Depot or local Weber dealer.

ClassicXJ · 03-07-2011, 02:26 PM

I also plan on ordering a WSM in the next couple of weeks. Did you end up buying the biggger one or the smaller one?

I haven't had much experince with smoking measts but have been doing alot of online reading and looking around for good recipes. Have you seen this website dedicated to WSM smokers,

http://www.virtualweberbullet.com/tour.html

tons of good info.

Frank-Likes-Beer · 03-07-2011, 02:26 PM

Looks like there is a water pan as part of the setup.

Does anyone know if the thermometer in the lid is useful. Should I get a remote thermometer to monitor temp within the smoker in addition to the meat itself?

Frank-Likes-Beer · 03-07-2011, 02:27 PM

I got the bigger one. Not sure I will need that much room to start, but I figured down the road I might.

I'm on the virtual bullet site now reading up.

cricky101 · 03-07-2011, 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frank-Likes-Beer

Looks like there is a water pan as part of the setup.

Does anyone know if the thermometer in the lid is useful. Should I get a remote thermometer to monitor temp within the smoker in addition to the meat itself?

I would guess the built-in Weber thermo is better than some of the other brands, but you really want to know the temperature of the meat, too. I've cooked multiple pork butts at once and had them each finish at different times.

I just use a couple of the digital thermometers with the long probes and stick them in the meat after the first few hours.

**dataz722** · 03-07-2011, 03:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by passedpawn

Pick up a Boston butt / pork shoulder (or 2) and do pulled pork. Mmmm.

Aluminum tray with water (do they come with that?).

If you are smoking, perhaps some hickory chips. Soak overnight before using. Do you have a local bbq / grill shop?

Remote (wired or wireless) meat thermometer. This is a must have I think.

Beginner's Grilling/BBQ book with recipes (I love this one). It has excellent rubs and sauces, with a billion pictures. EVERY recipe has numerous pictures. You might find this book at Home Depot or local Weber dealer.

I would reccomend not using chips and using chunks instead. Other than that I agree with all of the above.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frank-Likes-Beer

Looks like there is a water pan as part of the setup.

Does anyone know if the thermometer in the lid is useful. Should I get a remote thermometer to monitor temp within the smoker in addition to the meat itself?

I do not personally have a WSM but I have heard that the thermo is very accurate but the only problem is that is only gives the temp in the lid and not the temp on the actual grates. The top grate should be about the same but the lower grate will probably be considerably warmer.

Frank-Likes-Beer · 03-07-2011, 03:16 PM

On the VB site, it says the top grate is actually hotter than the middle grate. Would that be because the water pan is directly below the middle grate?

**BARBQ** · 03-07-2011, 04:48 PM

In BBQ you always want to know what the temp is where the meat sits (grate). You can buy temp gauges that actuall sit on the grill, but then you have to remove lid to see what temp is or you drill a hole and thd a temp gauge at the grill level or you can get fancy and get one of these:

http://www.academy.com/index.php?page=content&target=products/recreation/grilling/accessories&start=16&selectedSKU=0260-00575-0993

sebs · 03-07-2011, 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frank-Likes-Beer

On the VB site, it says the top grate is actually hotter than the middle grate. Would that be because the water pan is directly below the middle grate?

I think it depends if you're using water or not. With water the lower grate will be the hottest, without water it's the upper grate.

Personally I don't use water. It's just a heat sink to control temps easier. You won't be able to get higher temps than 225-250 with water.

If you watch the smoker carefully, you don't need water to soak up all your heat. You will save a lot of charcoal. Just foil the water pan to make cleanup easier.