Why are PBC recipe cook times so ... optimistic?

[carolinastyle]

A whole packer brisket in 4-6 hours. An entire pork shoulder in 4-6 hours. A smallish turkey in 3.5 hours. Amazing claims, but in my experience, they just don't hold up. My briskets usually aren't done in fewer than 8 hours, and a pork butt can take as many as 12. I got up at 5:00 am this morning to do a turkey, and now 7 hours later I'm moving it to my gas grill to finish up, as I always have to.

Am I the only one that is not getting expected cook times out of this thing? I find it's also very difficult to keep it up to temp without adding charcoal every hour after the first few. Are others having similar experiences, or am I just doing it wrong?

No complaints about the taste ... just the cook time.

[Huskee]

I agree. But, are you monitoring your temps and making adjustments to stay at or near 225-250? PBCs as you know run much higher if left alone to their own ebb and flow, and perhaps topping 325 a small brisket could get done in 6hrs. Turkeys, if spatchcocked really only take 3 anyway at 325 in any cooker, so that seems legit.

[HawkerXP]

I'll agree a brisket and a butt will take longer then advertized but no way with a turkey. I'll get to 8 hours easy with a jumbo load of charcoal. Ribs 3 hours, 2 for chickens. How old is your charcoal or what brand?

[LDimick]

I have seen the same thing. This whole smoking thing is a different world. It is based more on temperature than time. Anything can be cooked in 15 minutes if it is hot enough. The edible parts may not survive though.

[carolinastyle]

Just using the regular old Kingsford briquettes that this thing is supposedly designed for. Bought them at the grocery store in September for my last cookout.

To be fair, I am cooking two turkeys at a time today, so that could be why it's taking so long. But still wondering how people manage to keep the heat up for 4+ hours without adding new coal (which is a royal PITA depending on what & how many meats you're hanging).

[Huskee]

Are you following PBC's lighting procedure or our own resident PBC Queen, fzxdoc's? If you've not tried hers, try it next time. Also, heap more unlit coals in if you're doing a big load of cold meat.

[Bob's BBQ]

I find cook times are longer when you really load them up. If single briskets or shoulders are wrapped at 155-160, I find that the estimates on the PBC site are pretty close.

[fzxdoc]

I usually find the estimates of many of the cook times on the PBC website to be way too short as well. Plus we have no idea as to the temperature of the barrel during the cook, so it's hard to get a handle on it. That's why I began compiling cook times of actual cooks done here on AR with added details about the weight of the meat, whether/when it was wrapped, PBC temp, etc. If you haven't seen that compilation, click here.

Getting a good light on your coals is essential to solid cooks as well. You may want to give this method (or a variation of it) a try.

It's somewhat puzzling to me why you have to add coals after 4 hours, assuming you're filling the basket with KBB and taking 40 coals out to light in your chimney to get things started. FWIW, I don't think I've ever had a full basket run low enough to add coals until the 8 hour mark. The exception is when I'm cooking poultry at 350-400° PBC temps and have started with a half full basket; that basket will burn down in 3 hours or so.

But it actually sounds as though you're using lit chimneys of coals to maintain the desired temperature, regardless of how many coals are still in the basket. That usually points to a less than optimal lighting procedure to start with. Could you explain to us your lighting method? Do you monitor your PBC temps with a remote thermometer probe, or do you just go by the rates at which the meat is cooking?

So many of us happy PBC fans here are more than willing to help.

Kathryn