Did I make a mistake?

[Kebab Man]

I did my first burn today and thought it all went well. Kept the temp between 475-510 degrees F for over 3 hours. The problem is I just found out from reading this forum the latch has two catches! I reread Dennis's instructions 5 times and apparently missed it!! Did I damage the gasket? How can I tell?

Gary

[MadMedik]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

Probably not. Half of us have done that. Next cook, close it tight...if no leaking smoke around edges then good. That is my opinion.

[5698k]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

Look at the gasket, does it look deformed? When you close to the second position, is it tight? It will loosen over time. My guess is no problem, it's a very common mistake.

Robert

[Kebab Man]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

The gasket looks fine - like new. It closes tight and appears to be working. Quick question: when I use wood chips for smoke - I understand I soak them in water and wrap in aluminum foil. Do I put them directly in the fire basket?

[5698k]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

Yes, put that foil pouch directly on the fire, poke holes in the foil also. Soaking wood isn't necessary, it just creates steam. If wood absorbed water, it would sink. Do you have chunks? If so, get your fire to temp, add the wood, let the white smoke clear a bit, then add your meat. The initial white smoke that burns your eyes also adds an acidic taste to your food, so burn that off.

Robert

[Kebab Man]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

Thank you. I do have chunks. I see I have much to learn.

Gary

[5698k]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

We're all still learning!

Robert

[playbook]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

Question? I understand about burning off the white smoke on wood chunks before putting in the meat. What about when you are doing a low and slow pork butt and only starting a few coals in the center of the basket. How do you do the burn on the wood chunks?

[mguerra]

Re: Did I make a mistake?

Lots of people mix in the wood chunks through the lump. So how do you burn off the initial smoke of a chunk that eventually catches fire 2 or 3 or 4 hours in to the cook? You don't. Just do it a few times and let your taste buds tell the tale. If you don't like how it comes out, put all the wood chunks in on top of the lump next time and burn off the white billowy smoke. No need to soak, it's a myth...

Now if you contain your wood in a foil pouch or an iron pot, with the holes facing down, the theory is the white billowy gaseous smoke gets consumed in the fire. That's what Syz does.