Pulled Pork and Brisket overnight on the Excel

Howdy folks...


Just fired up the Excel for an overnighter via the minion method.
I´m cooking a 5 pound butt and 3,5 pound brisket, both seasoned with texasbbqrub (Pork regular, brisket "Brisket blend").

Added some hickory and cherry chunks and enjoying
the smell and a beer atm.

I´m using 2 Stackers, even though one would have been enough
I wanna learn how the cooker performs.
The water pan holds almost 2 gallons, so those of you who care could easyly boil their ribs in the smoker.









Its 12.44 am, the maverick reads 225 F and i´m going to bed.

So long,

DM

DM

Did you get any sleep?

Seven hours without disturbance by the maverick.
Propably because it los connection but thats another story...

Since the meat looked good and the Ecel had 225 F i assume it was like that all night.


Cheers,

DM

You mention using water in the pan. I have started running the WSM dry and w/out sand, and still holding my temps where I want them.

I am curious to know how it goes if running with a dry pan, no sand. Guess you'll need another test cook today

Man this was some serious good eats. The Excel rocks !

I´m too stuffed to write, enjoy the pics. be back later.


Maaaarge, beer me !









































DM

Mike, i also used to use sand in my WSM, covered with foil and sometimes some water on top of that.
I´m propably gonna do the same with the excel, controlled with the guru.
For the first long cook i wanted to test it in comparisation with a standart WSM setup though.

DM

Looks like a lot of room on that, and dammit you just made me hungry again...(not that it takes much)

I am asking how it would hold temps with a dry pan just foiled up...no sand or water?

bowhnter wrote:

I am asking how it would hold temps with a dry pan just foiled up...no sand or water?

I expect it to be about the same as in the WSM since its the same system basicly.

In my experience water smoers are very vulnerable to wind when the pan is empty since then you have almost no thermal mass that
can fight temperature drops and spikes.
Thats why i a bit of sand in the pan, about halfway full.


DM

bowhnter wrote:You mention using water in the pan. I have started running the WSM dry and w/out sand, and still holding my temps where I want them.

I am curious to know how it goes if running with a dry pan, no sand. Guess you'll need another test cook today

I would think you can run the cooker that way but you will be choakin it down a lot and restricting air flow into the smoker to keep the temps down which will cause some nasty smoke. For me, the cooker, without water in the pan want to run hotter than the normal low and slow of 225 - 250 ish.. More like 300 plus... with proper ventilation.

Both the WSM and ProBBQ Frontier need to breath well to work at their best.. There is a correct formula of air/temp/fuel ratio to get the best results from the frontier. This also applies to the other inferior smoker that WSM thingy...

Nice pix but.....

I guess that is not bad BBQ for German..

First off.. you cut the brisket cross grain as any one knows you cut a flat at a 45 degree angle to the shape of the meat.. Your pulled pork looked good... again.... for a European.. I guess this is not bad... But it does not look like it pulled so easily...

My suggestion/recommendation to you is this...

Pay for a air ticket and I would be more than happy to come over there and teach you a few things...

Seriously.. never cut a brisket at a 45 degree to the shape of the flat.. cut at a 90 degree to the grain of the meat. That means you start at a corner and work your way back.

Roxy wrote:
I would think you can run the cooker that way but you will be choakin it down a lot and restricting air flow into the smoker to keep the temps down which will cause some nasty smoke. For me, the cooker, without water in the pan want to run hotter than the normal low and slow of 225 - 250 ish.. More like 300 plus... with proper ventilation.

Both the WSM and ProBBQ Frontier need to breath well to work at their best.. There is a correct formula of air/temp/fuel ratio to get the best results from the frontier. This also applies to the other inferior smoker that WSM thingy...

Not to argue with ya, but I have the bottom vents open MORE when I am runnning with no sand or water.

Now what DM said about the wind affecting....I have only done this the last 3 times I have cooked, and there has been no wind to speak of. So then, that airflow just could be affected like you point out.

I do not think it's any better this way, and really don't benefit with easier cleanup than using sand. I guess it came up in my mind because of some drum building threads I have read...

Sorry DM, back on topic.

Roxy wrote:again.... for a European...

You say european like its a bad word... hey, remember who found your continent ?

Actually, i cant compare my Que to some of american pitmasters. Been to the states a couple of times
but that was before i became a serious bbqholic.
Next trip will be a total que-journey though. Where´s your location again ?


[quote="bowhnter"]

Roxy wrote:


Now what DM said about the wind affecting....I have only done this the last 3 times I have cooked, and there has been no wind to speak of. So then, that airflow just could be affected like you point out.

I do not think it's any better this way, and really don't benefit with easier cleanup than using sand. I guess it came up in my mind because of some drum building threads I have read...

I dont think the wind affects the smoker much in a way its blowing into the vents. It rather cools the smokers surface pretty much
and thusly it consumes way more coals.
An easy wind shield will fix that though.
Regarding sand cleanup, when i have foil on top of the sand the cleanup is basicly the same. Discard the foil, wrap with new foil and youre ready to go.
I like the added mass of the sand.
If i cook at higher temps i use an empty pan too.

DM

Don Marco wrote:I dont think the wind affects the smoker much in a way its blowing into the vents. It rather cools the smokers surface pretty much
and thusly it consumes way more coals.
DM

Oh, Gotcha! now that I think back, that it did.

[quote="Don Marco"]

Roxy wrote:again.... for a European...

You say european like its a bad word... hey, remember who found your continent ?

Actually, i cant compare my Que to some of american pitmasters. Been to the states a couple of times
but that was before i became a serious bbqholic.
Next trip will be a total que-journey though. Where´s your location again ?

bowhnter wrote:

Roxy wrote:


Now what DM said about the wind affecting....I have only done this the last 3 times I have cooked, and there has been no wind to speak of. So then, that airflow just could be affected like you point out.

I do not think it's any better this way, and really don't benefit with easier cleanup than using sand. I guess it came up in my mind because of some drum building threads I have read...

I dont think the wind affects the smoker much in a way its blowing into the vents. It rather cools the smokers surface pretty much
and thusly it consumes way more coals.
An easy wind shield will fix that though.
Regarding sand cleanup, when i have foil on top of the sand the cleanup is basicly the same. Discard the foil, wrap with new foil and youre ready to go.
I like the added mass of the sand.
If i cook at higher temps i use an empty pan too.

DM

As I recall, ifI am not mistaken, it was the vikings who were here first by a couple hundred years and got to say I am happily married to one blonde, blue eyed viking girl..

I live in Canada, just north of Toronto and we got some fine BBQ comps here and I would love to have you in my camp any day... Maybe I could show ya some brisket pointers as I have been known to cook them on accasion.

Ask Ian, he was here last summer for the Canadian Open as my official beer taste tester..

Roxy wrote:As I recall, if I am not mistaken, it was the vikings who were here first by a couple hundred years..

Hate to bring it up, but the Native American Indians were here before the Vikings and the Europeans.

Brisket hint...smoke to perfection then slice across the grain...mmmm...nice and tender!

Come on down (or over) to Illinois sometime...13 sanctioned contests this year alone...no telling how many unsanctioned contests! You will be my guest!

Carpe 'Que,
Jim Rhino

hi there y'all.
correct me if I'm wrong but I always thought that it was the German immigrant butchers of the East Texas meat markets who sold slices of smoked meats [including brisket]on pieces of butchers paper from the back of their shops that kick started this whole slow cooked bbq thing off anyway. Some of the best bbq that I seemed to find whilst on that side of the pond was also heavily influenced by Mexicans and Afro- Americans who rarely seem to get a mention on many of the bbq forums. To me this suggests that our passion for smoke and spice is one of the few things around that can bring many cultures together...BBQ for World Peace...
Chicago Jack

Chicago Jack wrote:hi there y'all.
correct me if I'm wrong but I always thought that it was the German immigrant butchers of the East Texas meat markets who sold slices of smoked meats [including brisket]on pieces of butchers paper from the back of their shops that kick started this whole slow cooked bbq thing off anyway. Some of the best bbq that I seemed to find whilst on that side of the pond was also heavily influenced by Mexicans and Afro- Americans who rarely seem to get a mention on many of the bbq forums. To me this suggests that our passion for smoke and spice is one of the few things around that can bring many cultures together...BBQ for World Peace...
Chicago Jack

Your right about how Texas BBQ got going but they were doing BBQ in the east hundreds of years before. There is a book I read a while back about George Washington attending a BBQ that lasted 2 weeks.. Now that be some good times if ya ask me.

In the east, it would have been African Americans who would have been the cooks making BBQ.. In those days, almost all cooking was done by the indentured.