Outside was black and crusty but not burnt, too much smoke for my taste. However the smoke only penetrated 1/4" or so into the meat.
I wanted the smoke to penetrate deeper instead of just building up on the outside. Smoked 8 hours at 180-240F using wood only. Would have tasted better if I smoked it for 1-2 hours at 400F.
There are many successful ways to make good bbq. Different temps, different fuel sources...different wood choice, wrapping methods or not...on and on. There is no one set way to produce good Bbq. However, while good bbq can be made from many different temperatures...400f is not one of them. Not saying you wouldn't produce a good piece of meat, but the fat and connective tissue won't get converted to gelatinous goodness at that high of a temperature.
Having said that...you want to cook at a low, consistent, temperature. The temperature you cook at can vary in temperature...but if you decide on a set temperature you want to try and maintain that near that set temperature. Your temperature of 180-240f is very wide. Also, was this at the grate, where the meat was being cooked, or from the pit thermometer? If it was at the pit thermometer your temperatures may have been further off than you realize.
For pork shoulder I would use a temperature range of 250f-275f. Anywhere between these temps is great for pork...but which one really depends on your smoker and where your temperature reading is from. On my BackWoods smoker I cook at a consistent 275f with really good results...on my off-set smoker at work...I'll cook with a target of 250f trying to keep between 240f-265f. It's a leaky smoker and we have pretty good winds out there. My point being, use smoking temps as a guideline. Listen to your smoker and listen to your meat. You'll need to take different approaches for a dry off-set Vs a vertical wet smoker. This doesn't mean, either, that all off-sets cook the same, they do not. This also doesn't mean that all vertical wet smokers cook the same, there are some pretty large differences...and you need to tailor it for your smoker. and the meat your cooking. (bbq is about breaking down muscle fiber and connective tissue...if I get a store bought pork shoulder it's going to cook different than the Berkshire I get from the farm)
The most important thing you can do at first, is learn your smokers habits...how does it burn, what's the appropriate amount of fuel to add and how often, etc, etc. Best advice to learn this? Get some beer and spend time with your smoker...at first...make sure you're out there watching it, learning it, for a good portion of the smoke. Take notes if needed. As you learn the smoker, have confidence in it and keep that darn pit door closed!
Moving from your 180-240 temps, what target temperature did you cook it to? You want to cook for your preferences and choose a target temp that you like. I like to cook mine to 195f-203f and then pull it out an give it a good long rest in an igloo cooler, with or without a few crumpled up newspapers. Bbq meat will hold in a cooler for a good long time...use that to your benefit. I prefer to let it rest at least an hour in the cooler and have gone of 5 hours and the meat was still piping hot.
Back to target temperatures, I said I like my shoulder to 195-203f...don't think one persons 197f is going to be the same as another persons 197f. If George cooks his shoulder to 200f and has dried out pork doesn't mean that Pete's shoulder will be dry at the same temperature. It's more important how you get to that target temperature (consistency in temp), your smoker and the meat.
To my liking, if I find I have to shred or pull apart the pork I don't feel I did my job correctly. For me, if the meat and gelatin are smoked to my liking, I more of squash the shoulder to prepare for serving.
You can have ten people bbq a shoulder to a target temp of 203f and likely get ten widely varying results because of the methods they used to get to their target temp. Target temperature is certainly important...use your target as only a goal but also read how the meat looks and feels to let you know what's going on. Cooking is about reacting and interpreting...this is the reason recipes are only slightly useful, the important stuff is technique.
I do have some beginner questions:
1. Fuel Source, what to use? Most people use commercial charcoal squares, some use lump charcoal, few use wood. I have a bunch of oak from storm downed trees that I have been using.
Doesn't matter, good results can be had using any fuel.
I usually use lump for my main fuel...I know how it works with my smoker and I have confidence in it. I also use local woods to smoke with...I'll use Oak, Hickory, Cherry, Alder and more than a few others from local trees. I use my MAPP torch to light my charcoal, works great
2. What determines smoke penetration? How do you get really deep smoke penetration like a store bought smoked ham? At what point does the smoker just become an oven?
Like someone else mentioned, use smoke as an ingredient or as a spice. Like beer, smoking is about cooking with balance.
Nitrates give ham it's "hamy" taste. While it changes the flavor, it will also, slightly, change the texture as well.
While the smoke ring looks cool and does make you feel good...don't worry about it. There are reasons that it forms and, sometimes, reasons that it doesn't form. There are tricks you can do to enhance the smoke ring...but it's better to use good smoking practices and proper bbq'ing skills. This is what will give you a tasty piece of bbq'd meat...smoke ring goes however the smoke ring goes...don't worry about it.
3. How do you balance the amount of smoke being produced vs the amount of heat being produced?
You don't.
You manage the heat...you manage the heat...you manage the heat. If you're using good smoking woods the flavor will get there. Don't manage the smoke, mange the heat with a mix of your charcoal/wood. You don't want to manage or see tons of smoke pumping from your smoker...just a nice slight trace is good...but you get this by proper heat management, focus there.
4. Seasoning, grilling vs smoking? Would I season my ribs the same if I was to grill vs smoke?
What hop schedule do you use in beer?
You get the idea...to cook is to create
5. My smoker leaks around both doors, fire box and meat box. What can be done to improve temperature control, gasket material?
You can let it leak and still get good results. On my off-set at work I made a few gaskets out of tin foil. You don't want to go too big...just enough to help. What type of smoker do you have?
6. What do you smoke? I have only smoked pork and fish, I know brisket is often smoked but I don't care for brisket.
pork, fish, beef, chicken, meatloaf, bacon, corned beef, salt, paprika, etc, etc, etc.
). Smoking is different also from curing. A ham may have smoke flavor on its surface, but the meat is cured internally (through brining or salting). You can smoke cure, but that is a whole other beast.
