Hitman Posted August 26, 2009 Report Share Posted August 26, 2009 Pork loin roast (6-rib) is on the grill right now. I definitely need to refine my technique. First step was getting the charcoal lighted. I used a starter packet, put it on top of the charcoal basket, with a chimney partly full of lump charcoal over that. The chimney lit up OK, got some lumps going pretty good, then I dumped the chimney load on top of the charcoal basket. So far, so good. Next I wanted to get the KK heat soaked. I put the heat deflector on (bad move). I should have waited, but like a dummy I also put some wood chips on the fire. Lots of smoke as a result. By the time the KK got up to 250 degrees, all the chips had burnt up. Bad. Next I put lower grill on, and the drip pan filled with a cup of vinegar and a cup of water. Then the upper grill with the roast on it. Temp is right now sitting at 275, internal meat temp is 75. Per JeffB's advice, I wrapped my thermometer wire in aluminum foil to protect it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman Posted August 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2009 One hour in, dome temp has inched up to 310. Top vent is open 1 turn, bottom vent cracked just enough to slide a dime in the crack. Meat temp is now 117. I think I will want to pull it off around 150. The roast was marinated in Levi Stubbs pork marinade for 3 hours, then rubbed with Grill Masters pork rub. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firemonkey Posted August 26, 2009 Report Share Posted August 26, 2009 A full turn on the top is going to let your temps climb even more, but I think you probably want to be cooking that roast in the 325 range anyway. If you get too hot, close the top a half turn and maybe double the gap on the bottom. Next time, try chunks for your smoke, and add them 10 minutes before the meat. Dont forget the rules...Unless there are pictures, it didnt happen! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman Posted August 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Cooking time was a little over 2 hours. Took the meat off at 150 degrees, probably should have waited until 155, but the wife was hongry! We cut off the end pieces, popped the rest back on the grill for 5 minutes. Perfect. Very juicy and tender, flavorful as well. Keep getting time-outs from ImageShack, so I'll post the photos later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisLinkletter Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Re: Second cook all the chips had burnt up. Bad. Next I put lower grill on, and the drip pan filled with a cup of vinegar and a cup of water. . I prefer chunks of wood but when they are not available and I only have chips I make a big pouch out of tin foil and only make a few holes in the bottom leaving the top closed. This will slow down their burn and clean up the smoke as it will be forced down thru the hot coals which will burn off some of the acrid volatiles.. sort of an after burner effect. General consensus here is that fluid in the drip pan in unnecessary.. I'm not sure how much flavor from the vinegar if any would actually would actually end up on the roast.. All in all sounds good.. an most importantly it was "very juicy and tender, flavorful as well." Thanks for the report.. Moved to Cooking General.. This area is for new members to check in and say hello.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman Posted August 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mguerra Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 probe wires A number of the other BBQ forums have suggested wrapping probe wires in foil may actually be worse than no wrap. Depending on the model of thermometer you use, you may not need to worry about this. The trick is to keep direct heat and fire off the probe wires, and not exceed the max temp indicated in the documentation that came with the product. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primeats Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 I've been using a insulated black fiber sheath to cover the probe cables I bought a spool of it from Mcmaster Carr. Good up to 1200 degrees if I remember correctly. I'll try to find the listing later.Fits perfectly through the probe hole in the side of the KK. After multiple cooks it gets kind of tar soaked from the smoke and condensation. Works great at protecting the cheap temp probes. I've burned up a few of them even in the oven when they've touched the heating element.The little silicone plug in the end of the cable and top of the probe starts to pop out after a while and I'll get random readings. I even use the sheath on the Guru wires. Here's the link showing the sheath... viewtopic.php?t=2923&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mguerra Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 source So if you bought a spool of it are you able to supply it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Re: Second cook First step was getting the charcoal lighted. I used a starter packet, put it on top of the charcoal basket, with a chimney partly full of lump charcoal over that. The chimney lit up OK, got some lumps going pretty good, then I dumped the chimney load on top of the charcoal basket. Hi Hitman!! You might want to consider buying one of those bernzomatic torches for starting your fire. I got one from Amazon for $32.23 with free shipping - model 19425 JT850 Self Igniting Outdoor Torch. The small canister it uses is $3.00 at the hardware store. It is fantastic! All I have to do is dump in the charcoal and zap it with the torch and it gets an area of the charcoal lit within 30 seconds. The hotter I want the fire, the more areas I light. I also pull the draft door open an inch or two and open the top a couple of turns until the temp gets to within 50 deg of where I want it. Then I set the wheel and top according to the manual. The fine tuning after that you need to hear from the experts. Total beginner that I am, I've done six fires and starting them has not been a problem at all. Your roast looks delicious!!! Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primeats Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 I don't have much left, gave several lengths away to a couple of friends, I've got enough to make a length for my gasser and my pig roaster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman Posted August 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Thanks for all the great advice. I think I will get one of those torches, will check my local Home Depot, use Amazon as my fallback. I have a little cast iron smoker box, will use that for my chips (upside down per Dennis's suggestion). I plan to continue to put water plus maybe a little vinegar in my drip pan. Perhaps the consensus is that it is not really needed, but I like the idea of the extra moisture, and that it will make cleaning the pan easier. Also, no need to keep wrapping the pan in foil. I also got one of those 24" shallow pans for a water heater, found it to be very convenient for cleaning the grill. I'll post some pics later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firemonkey Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 also got one of those 24" shallow pans for a water heater' date=' found it to be very convenient for cleaning the grill.[/quote'] You're supposed to clean your grates?? With soap and water?!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Poppa Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 season that baby! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman Posted August 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 As the saying goes, cleanliness is next to goofiness, dangerously close to obsessive compulsive behavior! I am a neat freak, so I clean everything. I am always polishing our silver, use chrome polish on my toaster, and have several boxes of car polishes, wax, various cleaning products. One thing that surprised me was when I looked down into the firebox, saw that I completely burned up a whole basket of Cowboy lump. So much for being able to re-use the charcoal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffB Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 Thanks for all the great advice. I think I will get one of those torches' date=' will check my local Home Depot, use Amazon as my fallback. [/quote'] I have one of the Bernzomatic outdoor weed torches. It works well and is long enough that you can stand well back during the lighting operation -- something really important when lighting lump that has a tendency to pop (don't ask me how I know). I got mine from Lowes as the Home Depot near me didn't carry them. Lowes sells them for MSRP so you are better off going with Amazon unless you want it right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loquitur Posted August 27, 2009 Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 .....One thing that surprised me was when I looked down into the firebox' date=' saw that I completely burned up a whole basket of Cowboy lump. So much for being able to re-use the charcoal. [/quote'] Hi Hitman: I have seen that there is a huge difference in how much charcoal is burned in a higher temperature cook as opposed to a lower temperature cook. My first cook was a 7 lb chicken at 350 - 400 deg and I used about half a basket of Cowboy. I don't remember how long I cooked it exactly but it was definitely less than 2 hours. My next cook was ribs at 250 for 6 hours and I barely burned a tiny bit of charcoal in the center of the basket. I was very surprised at how much less charcoal the 250 cook used up than the 350-400 deg cook. And I've since been doing some super hi temp cooking on the sear grill and that really burns it up between getting to the high temp and cooking just a minute or two. It's very interesting, to say the least!! Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman Posted August 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2009 I may also need to be a little more careful about sealing the KK airtight after the cooking is done. I read a post about not sealing the top vent too tight when the cooker is hot, may have gone a little overboard and left it too loose. Lots to learn......but lots of fun too. Gary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisLinkletter Posted August 28, 2009 Report Share Posted August 28, 2009 No problem cranking it down a little.. I may also need to be a little more careful about sealing the KK airtight after the cooking is done. I read a post about not sealing the top vent too tight when the cooker is hot, may have gone a little overboard and left it too loose. Lots to learn......but lots of fun too. Gary No problem cranking it down a little.. what you don't want to do is tighten it and then re-open it before it cools.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman Posted September 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2009 The refractory liner, yes. The cooking surface, no. IMHO..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
