Mark Gibson wrote:
> HOW YA'LL ARE!!!!
>
> I just got a Brinkman smoke and grill; it was on sale at wally world
> so what the fug, why not. I've never smoked anything before, always
> been a gas grill guy so I'll try something new.

Congratulations on joining the world of barbecue. Have you seen the FAQ?

http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/toc.html

> after 7 hours of not knowing if I was going to screw up a 7 lb pork
> butt and a 6 lb roasting hen, TAA-DAA!!!!! I am a hero to my family.
> Who woulda thunk it?

Once you get the hang of Q, you will amaze your family, your friends,
your coworkers, and even yourself.

> One thing that did come up is that things turned out really smoky
> flavored. I used a kingsford mesquite charcoal. Next time I think
> I'll use plain regular charcoal to sort of set up a base for future
> evaluation. Maybe I shoulda done that first? Anyway it turned out all
> good.

Uh oh, you said the "K" word. You must do penance for that. <g>

> I brined the butt and hen overnight then dried them off and did a dry
> rub on the butt and left the chiken naked, then let the smoker run.

You didn't need to brine the butt - all the moistness comes from the
breakdown of collagen already in the tissue. But you did good by
brining the hen.

> What I'd like to know is whats the difference between commercial
> briquets and this lump charcoal i hear about.

Briquettes have charcoal powder, binders to hold it together, clay to
make it burn longer and keep a steady temp, and coal and petroleum
products to help it burn. Lump charcoal is simply carbonized wood.
Briquettes stink. People use it 'cause it's easily available. Lump has
a pleasant smell. And it's not that much more expensive than
briquettes, just a few cents more per pound.

> Another thing is that a guy i work with has access to a hickory
> orchard (it's in his family} and he recomends using basic cheapo
> charcoal from wally world and using the hulls from the hickory nuts
> because they have a higher resin content than the hickory wood chips
> and therefore give more flavor with less material.

I suppose you could use the hulls. Like smoke wood, make sure they're
dry before you put them on the fire. Oh, and if you wrap it in foil
before putting it on, they won't burn up as fast.

> Then there is that water pan deal in the base. Any advice on what
> works well; and more important, what not to use? I used plain water-
> had to refill about 2/3 thru the process.

I use sand: foil the bowl, fill 2/3 with play sand, cover with another
layer of foil. This has a tendency of running hotter than water, but
with my WSM I can control the temps pretty well. So well that I am
contemplating going pan-less on my next cook.

> A guy i work with says i can use the smoker to make jerky. The
> directions and recipies that came in the box did not address this.
> Whattcha thank?

If you can keep the cooker below 100*, it might work.

> Thanks in advance for any advice, recipies, and voices of experiance.
>
> Mark in alabama

Once you learn how to handle your cooker, you may never use your gas
grill again.

--
Aloha,

Nathan Lau
San Jose, CA

#include <std.disclaimer>