Kettle Pulled Pork - Losing temp...

[Geordie888]

Hi folks

Trying pulled pork today.

Got my drip pan (rectangular) on the charcoal grate, surrounded by briquettes and some lump on 3 sides. Lit a few briquettes in the starter and placed them at the end of the U. Put some boiling water in the drip tray. Waited. Kettle eventually got up to temp so I put the pork on the cooking grate with my brand new ET732 food probe in it.

Temp slowly started dropping off, opened the vents gradually to try to save the cook until they were fully open. But ended up under 200. So, filled the chimney starter with some lump...

Got both vents at half-ish. Put the new lump on at both sides of the drip tray and temp eventually settled around 265.

Now, after 45-60 minutes, it's slowly dropping off again. Is it the water in the tray? There were mixed opinions about using it.

Is my fuel no good? I'm about to go open the vents a little more...

Shoulder is only at 100 degrees internal now. Got quite a way to go!

I know that 225-275 is spot on...but I get the feeling I'm dropping below that...

[Riverrat]

I smoke on a kettle a lot, at the point of the cook you are at I dare not advise you on how to proceed (might make things worse!) (I put all the charcoal in one bank on one side of the kettle)

Here is a good thread from the VWBB with loads of information for smoking on a kettle which might help with your next cook.

http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?25107-A ... onger+burn

[Geordie888]

Yeah. Just want to make sure it lasts. The pork seems to be cooking and hope it turns out OK. I'm planning another for tomorrow, lessons learned and all that!

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[Riverrat]

It's all about what works for you and learning from your previous cooks. I bank the coals behind two fire bricks and foil the remaining exposed part of the charcoal grate so any incoming air has to pass through the coals and not up and out the vent.

[Geordie888]

Vents fully open. Down to 237 and dropping. Pork at 151. Had a look in with head torch and can see plenty of unlit charcoal. Not sure what to do at this point. It's as if fire has gone out.
Any advice?

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[Riverrat]

Vents fully open. Down to 237 and dropping. Pork at 151. Had a look in with head torch and can see plenty of unlit charcoal. Not sure what to do at this point. It's as if fire has gone out.
Any advice?

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To rescue this cook I would suggest that you foil it and put it in the oven.

[Toby]

Sorry didnt see this post yesterday.

If you have your charcoal in a u shape you need to consider how the air is going into the cooker. the airflow may be on one side but nothing on the other which could kill the coals. I wouldnt use water, using a tray in a kettle is more for cleanup and creating a cold area to cook over.

As already mentioned for future cooks bank the charcoal on on side, if you want to use minion then keep the charcoals straight and make sue the vents are open to allow a flow of air over it in a single direction.

I hope you managed to salvage the cook!

[Geordie888]

Will update from my PC later. Pork was rescued albeit a little dry in the middle.

Learned some lessons and having another go today.

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[keith157]

Take your time and remember it's supposed to be fun, besides if it was easy everyone could do it it, then what do you show off to your family and friends. there is a great element of theatre in BBQ & Grilling both in the cooking and presentation. Keep on keeping on and it will get better (if you don't pick it )

[Geordie888]

- Coals

- Pork Resting

- Pork on plate - Dry bits on top of pic

- Dinner

This was how round 1 ended up. There were a few dry bits inside, I lost control of temps at one stage and it cooked fairly hot.

I did round 2 on Sunday and temps stayed between 230 and 250 for most of the cook. Pork came out much nicer (very few dry bits). I still used the U shape but used a smaller tin and more coals around it. No water in the tin. I rubbed it the night before but forgot to inject. So got up at 6am and gave it a few stabs. Then it eventually went on the grate at 0945. It was at 195 at about 1615 (6.5 hours for 2KG shoulder). I wrapped it in foil and put it in the cool box for an hour. When it came out, it disappeared almost as soon as it hit the plate. My family couldn't get enough of it!

Followed by chicken (failed...burned to a crisp), homemade chilli burgers, homemade "plain" burgers and some frankfurters.

Maverick was invaluable really for the pork. Money well spent.

Thanks all for the advice!