Preparation:
To make a foil liner for the bottom of the PBC: Take 2 sheets of heavy duty aluminum foil and crimp them together. Use the lid of the PBC to make an impression on the foil. Fold the foil just inside that impression so that it will fit neatly into the bottom of the barrel. Make sure the foil is as flat as possible so that it won't compromise air flow under the basket.
Place the temperature probe in the meat before taking it to the smoker. That way you can be sure it's exactly where you want it.
Slide the smoker probe through the rebar hole so it can monitor the smoker temp during the lighting procedure as well as through the rest of the cook.
Lighting using a chimney
My method:
Note 1: See the PBC-recommended method of lighting the PBC by clicking here.
Note 2: I now use the Char Broil Half Time Chimney for my PBC. It's short and wide and the coals heat up in it quickly. For years I used the Weber Compact Chimney, but it took almost 10 minutes longer to get the topmost coals ashed over, compared to the Char Broil.
Note 3: I edited this method after several months of using the PBC and having greater success by inserting Steps 11 and 12.
*****
David Parrish's method (from the PBC forum):
I used the chimney method for the lighting process. I didn't really pay attention to times, but I can speak to the process.
1) Fill PBC basket full of charcoal. Transfer coal into Weber Chimney until it is 3/4 full.
2) Light chimney using a Weber lighter cube. Let coals mostly ash over.
3) Once chimney coal is mostly ashed over, pour lit coal back into PBC basket and put basket in PBC.
4) Let coals continue to heat up for a few minutes until all are mostly ashed over.
5) Throw on the meat, close the lid, watch for peak temp about 5 minutes later. The peak temp is the best indication of how well you lit your charcoal. I aim for 380 to 420. Anything lower means I didn't get the charcoal lit well enough. Anything higher means I've got too much airflow. Usually this is due to the lid being cracked.
Attached are pics of how the coals looked at the end of steps 2 and 4. I also added a pic of the meat on the PBC just before I closed the lid. The temp peaked at 419F about 6 minutes later. Success!



Lighting using charcoal starter:
The method for lighting the coals using charcoal starter is shown in the PBC video on their website.
Many PBC users say that the temperatures are more consistent when using the charcoal starter method.
Notes from PBC users:
To maintain temperatures:
Temperature too high:
Stuff some aluminum foil in the holes surrounding the rebars. That will cool things down pretty quickly.
Temperature too low:
Crack the lid a half an inch or so and watch the temperature closely or it will get away from you. Overshoot your desired temperature by 20-30 degF and then re-seat the lid.
More temp tips:
Jerod B. says that the side nearest the vent runs hotter for the first couple of hours of the cook, then the other side seems to take over but never gets as hot, probably due to the drippings.
One PBC user has had success in maintaining the desired temperature by putting a square of foil over the air intake hole, adjusting it as necessary to control the amount of oxygen getting to the coals. I haven't tried this yet but it sounds like an idea worth investigating.
Many PBC users add the coals to the basket outside of the PBC and then quickly pick up the basket with an insulated glove on the hand and set it inside the barrel.
One PBC user recommended using a garden rake to lift the hot basket up by its handle (when lit outside of the PBC) and place it in the barrel, or to remove the hot basket from the barrel at the end of the cook and to place the coals in a closed grill or some other receptacle to save them for the next cook. On occasion I forget to align the basket's handle with the rebars at the beginning of the cook, so the rake method would be a good way to align it the way I want.
At the end of the cook:
After dumping the cooled coals from the basket, I carefully fold up the foil liner, trapping all of the ash inside and dispose of it as well.
Kathryn
To make a foil liner for the bottom of the PBC: Take 2 sheets of heavy duty aluminum foil and crimp them together. Use the lid of the PBC to make an impression on the foil. Fold the foil just inside that impression so that it will fit neatly into the bottom of the barrel. Make sure the foil is as flat as possible so that it won't compromise air flow under the basket.
Edited to Add: in Oct 2015, the Pit Barrel folks came out with an ash-catcher tray that easily attaches to the legs of the basket. It does a pretty good job of catching most of the ash.
In my experience with a full basket of Kingsford Original, about 1/2 cup of ash deposits around the edge of that ash-catcher on the bottom of the barrel. Because I'm lazy but meticulous about keeping my PBC clean, I still put the aluminum foil under the ash-catcher to get that spillover ash.
Thermometers: It's always good to monitor both the temperature of your PBC smoker and the temperature of the meat. That's the best way to achieve consistent results. Refer to the Thermometer Reviews and Ratings section of this website to decide which thermometer will work best for you.In my experience with a full basket of Kingsford Original, about 1/2 cup of ash deposits around the edge of that ash-catcher on the bottom of the barrel. Because I'm lazy but meticulous about keeping my PBC clean, I still put the aluminum foil under the ash-catcher to get that spillover ash.
Place the temperature probe in the meat before taking it to the smoker. That way you can be sure it's exactly where you want it.
Slide the smoker probe through the rebar hole so it can monitor the smoker temp during the lighting procedure as well as through the rest of the cook.
Lighting using a chimney
My method:
- Place the foil liner next to the PBC barrel. Place the empty coal basket on the foil.
- Fill the basket level with its brim (Kingsford Original), then take 40 briquets out and put in the chimney. (For my cooks so far, there's something magic about this 40 briquet number so I count carefully.)
- Put 2-3 sheets newspaper (single page width) in the bottom section of the chimney and set aside. Or forget the newspaper and use a Weber wax lighting cube set on the grate and put the chimney over it when ready to light.
- Set the basket aside and discard the fine bits of charcoal that have fallen onto the foil.
- Place the foil into the bottom of the PBC barrel. Make sure it is pressed down flat so as not to block the air intake hole or compromise air flow under the basket.
- Place the basket into the barrel and align the handle in the same orientation as the rebars. That way longer pieces of meat won't touch the handle and the meat will drip directly onto the coals.
- Place chimney on the grate in the PBC and light the newspaper. Note: you can also use a Weber Lighter Cube instead of the newspaper as noted above.
- Allow about 15 min for the chimney burn (10 min at sea level, 20 min at 5000+ feet). The goal is to get some ash around the edges of the topmost coals in the chimney before pouring. The time varies depending on the type of charcoal and on the design of the chimney. For example, compact chimneys can take upwards of 20 minutes for KBB coals at the top of the chimney to start to ash over.
- Holding the chimney in one hand, remove the grate and set aside. Pour the hot coals over the cold coals in the basket.
- Use one end of the rebar to evenly distribute these glowing coals.
- Leave the lid off and rebars out and let the fire burn for 10 more minutes.
- Add wood to the coals (if using). Put the lid on but leave both rebars out for another 10 minutes.
- Insert the rebars, position the smoker probe, and then add the (already temp-probed) meat.
- Holding one rebar (if necessary, use gloves to protect from heat), slip it out of one hole and push the plug end of the meat temp probe through the hole. Re-seat the rebar. Connect the plug to the digital thermometer so the meat temp can be read out real time.
- Close the lid securely. No smoke should come out of the lid's lip where it joins the barrel edge. This is important!
- If after 5 to 10 min the temp has not come up to 360 to 400 deg F, crack the lid but watch closely because the temp can run away. Get the temp up to 360-400, re-seat the lid firmly. The temp should settle in the 270 to 290 range.
- For a 225-250 deg F range, Step 16 is not usually necessary.
- If the PBC temp is too hot, stuff some aluminum foil into the holes around the rebar until the temp comes down to the desired level. Then remove the aluminum if/when necessary.
Note 1: See the PBC-recommended method of lighting the PBC by clicking here.
Note 2: I now use the Char Broil Half Time Chimney for my PBC. It's short and wide and the coals heat up in it quickly. For years I used the Weber Compact Chimney, but it took almost 10 minutes longer to get the topmost coals ashed over, compared to the Char Broil.
Note 3: I edited this method after several months of using the PBC and having greater success by inserting Steps 11 and 12.
*****
David Parrish's method (from the PBC forum):
I used the chimney method for the lighting process. I didn't really pay attention to times, but I can speak to the process.
1) Fill PBC basket full of charcoal. Transfer coal into Weber Chimney until it is 3/4 full.
2) Light chimney using a Weber lighter cube. Let coals mostly ash over.
3) Once chimney coal is mostly ashed over, pour lit coal back into PBC basket and put basket in PBC.
4) Let coals continue to heat up for a few minutes until all are mostly ashed over.
5) Throw on the meat, close the lid, watch for peak temp about 5 minutes later. The peak temp is the best indication of how well you lit your charcoal. I aim for 380 to 420. Anything lower means I didn't get the charcoal lit well enough. Anything higher means I've got too much airflow. Usually this is due to the lid being cracked.
Attached are pics of how the coals looked at the end of steps 2 and 4. I also added a pic of the meat on the PBC just before I closed the lid. The temp peaked at 419F about 6 minutes later. Success!
Lighting using charcoal starter:
The method for lighting the coals using charcoal starter is shown in the PBC video on their website.
Many PBC users say that the temperatures are more consistent when using the charcoal starter method.
Notes from PBC users:
- You must wait until all the coals are ashed over before putting the lid on to be sure the fluid has burned off. (Max Good)
- One PBC user (on the general PBC forum) said that "the biggest mistake is not using ENOUGH lighter fluid. The more, the better. When I first light it, the PBC should look like a scene out of Rocky--a trash can with flames shooting out of it. This will quickly burn off any lighter fluid and get a consistent top-layer of coals heated up. After 10 minutes (I am at sea level), I put the lid on and am ready to roll.You must absolutely follow Noah's instructions on this, including pouring the lighter fluid on the coals when it is still outside the PBC, then immediately put the basket in the PBC and light the coals. My cooks have become much more consistent this way."
To maintain temperatures:
Temperature too high:
Stuff some aluminum foil in the holes surrounding the rebars. That will cool things down pretty quickly.
Temperature too low:
Crack the lid a half an inch or so and watch the temperature closely or it will get away from you. Overshoot your desired temperature by 20-30 degF and then re-seat the lid.
More temp tips:
Jerod B. says that the side nearest the vent runs hotter for the first couple of hours of the cook, then the other side seems to take over but never gets as hot, probably due to the drippings.
One PBC user has had success in maintaining the desired temperature by putting a square of foil over the air intake hole, adjusting it as necessary to control the amount of oxygen getting to the coals. I haven't tried this yet but it sounds like an idea worth investigating.
Many PBC users add the coals to the basket outside of the PBC and then quickly pick up the basket with an insulated glove on the hand and set it inside the barrel.
One PBC user recommended using a garden rake to lift the hot basket up by its handle (when lit outside of the PBC) and place it in the barrel, or to remove the hot basket from the barrel at the end of the cook and to place the coals in a closed grill or some other receptacle to save them for the next cook. On occasion I forget to align the basket's handle with the rebars at the beginning of the cook, so the rake method would be a good way to align it the way I want.
At the end of the cook:
After dumping the cooled coals from the basket, I carefully fold up the foil liner, trapping all of the ash inside and dispose of it as well.
Kathryn
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