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**Duanessmokedmeats** · July 17, 2023, 10:01 AM

On July 5th, did a 4.5 chuck roast, on hooks. Both rods in.
3/4 basket with a round cut out coffee can(like RY on you tube) at opposite side of air intake, 1/2 chimney, 3 small chunks pecan. ashen chimney, dumped in coffee can, lifted out can. Probe hanging from rod.
Started 12pm
12pm: 260, IT-46
1pm: 252
2pm: 299, IT 140; had to crack the lid for 3-4 minutes, earlier due to temp drop.
3pm: 275, IT-145
4pm: 266, IT- 145
Do not have any other temps or ITs
Took off @815pm, due to temp drop-unknown on temp.
Finished in oven at 275.
But notes show Finished at 845pm, delicious Burnt ends.

**fzxdoc** · July 22, 2023, 09:06 PM

Sounds like you've got the hang of your PBX and PBC, Duanessmokedmeats . Thanks for providing the info on your cooks.

Keep us posted on future cooks, and continue to enjoy using your smokers.

Kathryn

**Green Caribou** · September 30, 2023, 04:30 PM

Today was mid-50s to low 60s and it seemed to really struggle to keep the temp up without cracking the lid.

This lead to a couple questions:

Is the PBC particularly susceptible to lower temps? It makes sense that might be the case because of the amount of surface area exposed to the air and the relatively thin metal. Is there a lot of varibility within the cooker?

Where/how do you measure your temps with the PBC? Since there isn't a grill to clip a probe to I have just been hanging it, but I am not sure where is optimal: as close to the center as possible? When there are 7 or 8 racks hanging in there how does that affect readings? It's difficult to get it away from the meat when it is just hanging from a wire and early in the cook I suspect it makes it read a little low.

**RichieB** · September 30, 2023, 05:37 PM

fzxdoc you're up to bat.

**fzxdoc** · October 1, 2023, 10:05 PM

Originally posted by Green Caribou View Post

Today was mid-50s to low 60s and it seemed to really struggle to keep the temp up without cracking the lid.

This lead to a couple questions:

Is the PBC particularly susceptible to lower temps? It makes sense that might be the case because of the amount of surface area exposed to the air and the relatively thin metal. Is there a lot of varibility within the cooker?

Where/how do you measure your temps with the PBC? Since there isn't a grill to clip a probe to I have just been hanging it, but I am not sure where is optimal: as close to the center as possible? When there are 7 or 8 racks hanging in there how does that affect readings? It's difficult to get it away from the meat when it is just hanging from a wire and early in the cook I suspect it makes it read a little low.

Green Caribou , I don't find the PBC particularly susceptible to lower outdoor temps, especially not in the 50s and 60s. I find the temp struggles if the PBC is out in the rain during the cook, as would most cookers. In the wintertime at very cold temperatures, the PBC may not run as solid either unless situated in a more protected area. Some people wrap part of the barrel with a fireproof smoker blanket in very cold temperatures. I've never had to do that, but then I don't cook outdoors in temps much lower than 30°. I suspect that your problem possibly has more to do with the initial lighting procedure or the status of your charcoal, particularly how it was stored. If a good initial burn is well-established early on in the PBC's cook, it can run quite solidly.

About keeping the ambient temp up:
If the initial light is not a good one, then the PBC can have a hard time maintaining a solid temperature somewhere in the vicinity of 250°-290° which is where it usually likes to hang out. That's why I let it burn for about 10 minutes or so after pouring in the lit coals, before adding the meat. Adding the meat too soon after pouring in the chimney of hot coals can lead to an off-taste due to the early burning phase of the unlit charcoal in the basket, and/or to trouble keeping the temperature steady through the cook.

Another reason is a loaded cook, say 3 chickens or 6-8 racks of ribs. The PBC can handle full loads like this pretty easily, but will want to settle in sometimes at a lower temperature. This is particularly the case with chicken, which dumps a lot of moisture into the fire as it cooks. This is another reason why getting a good initial light on the coals is key to maintaining consistent temperatures.

If the charcoal has been stored in an environment where it is exposed to humidity, it does not burn as consistently in the PBC, at least in my experience. I keep mine sealed in large plastic Rubbermaid bins to help keep it dry.

About temperature variability within the cooker:
PBC ambient temps can certainly vary throughout the cooker. It's preferable to hang the temperature probe at about the level of the midway point of the hanging piece of meat, at least 1 inch away from the meat and also about an inch away from the wall of the cooker. I usually wrap the probe wire once around the rebar before letting the probe dangle at the desired level.

In all of my cooks, I hang 2 ambient probes, one on the vent side and one on the side opposite the vent. Those two probe readings can differ from each other by as much as 40-60°, often coming closer together as the cook progresses, but not always. Plus the higher temp can switch from one side of the barrel to the other during the course of the cook. By taking the average of these two probe readings, I find that I almost never have to fiddle with maintaining the desired temperature in the PBC.

I hope this info helps to answer some of your questions. Enjoy cooking on your PBC.

Kathryn

**John C** · October 9, 2023, 02:19 PM

Great info, thanks.

**Foehn Watts** · November 19, 2023, 02:18 PM

fzxdoc - I have looked at this before, but never posted: This is a great resource. I used it today to get a ballpark smoke/cook time on a tri-tip.
Thank you very much!

**Smoker_Boy** · December 11, 2023, 07:57 AM

@fzxdoc,

I just found this thread. What a wealth of information!
Although I don't have a PBC, the times and temps are a welcome collection of good advice.

Thanks so much for all you do here.

**racertrader** · December 24, 2023, 08:21 PM

Did my first prime rib on the PBC. Turned out okay, but not as great as I expected/hoped. 5.2 lbs. bone-in, temps hovered around 325-350 and pulled at 110 degrees (about 2 hours-ambient temp 70 degrees). Rested for 30 minutes to 125. Had large flames initially from the herb butter coating, but that settled down once the lid went back on. I laid the roast on the grate (worried the hooks wouldn't hold and I'd have a prime rib flambe). Not bad, not great.

**racertrader** · February 8, 2024, 12:37 PM

well...apparently I don't watch my posts too often :-).

Hi Kathryn and Duane, I had expected the roast to be more like restaurant quality (nice crust, pink interior). I had the roast frenched (?-bones cut and then tied back on), and the pit temps, while high, weren't too much of a concern for me. When I've done roasts in the oven (X minutes at 500, X hours oven off for finishing) I get a better bark and more even/tender cooking. That's probably my biggest complaint, that it wasn't as tender as I hoped for. Apologies for the lateness of my response.

**racertrader** · February 11, 2024, 03:58 PM

I dry brined the roast for 48 hours, but didn't flip it. I'll try that next time. thx

**Simple_man** · March 13, 2024, 06:50 PM

Kathryn, I'm curious if you have data on chicken thighs, quarters, drumsticks, etc. I cook these on a not infrequent basis because they're so darn cheap and it's done even if I start late in the day.

Also as an aside, seems like we could crowd source a lot of cook time data from this forum and come up really cook info about mean, upper and lower quartile cook times.

**fzxdoc** · March 14, 2024, 06:41 AM

Simple_man , I do not have info on times for cooking chicken parts in the PBC. I have done it when I first got my PBC over 10 years ago, but quickly switched to using the Weber kettle instead. Perhaps others will chime in.

As far as crowd sourcing the info here goes, I don't have much interest in it. It seems to fill a need here for Pit members, and I wouldn't want to step on the toes of the Pit Barrel Cooker folks whose times are often markedly different for given cuts of meat. Seems like we all have a place somewhere on the interwebs!

I'm glad you enjoyed seeing the data.

Kathryn

**johnec00** · April 1, 2024, 09:10 AM

Simple_man Here's a link to my chicken leg quarter cook on the PBC. At the end is a chart that shows time and temperature.

Show Us What You're Cooking! (SUWYC) - Volume 33, Spring 2024 - Pitmaster Club

https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/forum/food-recipes-techniques-show-us-what-youre-cooking/show-tell/1572863-show-us-what-you-re-cooking-suwyc-volume-33-spring-2024?p=1576293#post1576293

Yay! Spring is here! As the days get warmer in the northern hemisphere we know we'll all be cookin' more, and here is where to post proof! For the now-expired Vol 32, Winter 2023/2024 click here: https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/forum/food-recipes-techniques-show-us-what-youre-cooking/show-tell/1525086-show-us-what-you-re

**Paintedr3d** · May 27, 2026, 02:48 PM

@fzxdoc

If possible can you update the sticky so new commers can find this and another entry I made in the post.

Smoked oxtail

I smoked for 2 1/2 hours till they were above 170

Then I braised in red wine, tomato sauce, and beef broth for 3 1/2 hours then rested for about 45 min total cook time about 7 hours.

Attached Files