I smoked a plate of short ribs today. They turned out ok. I noticed a slight bitter flavor on a couple of bites. Am thinking its creosote. Lit coals Noah's method. Temp was at 300 when I hung the ribs. It dropped to 250 within 15-20 minutes. Cracked the lid for a few minutes to bring temp up to 320, then left it alone.
Anyone have problems with bitter flavor on their food? What did you do to fix it?
When I was first learning, I had this happen. Narrowed it down to unseasoned wood, or not enough airflow. Started leaving exhaust vents wide open, and using seasoned wood, and now over a decade later no issues.
Yep I always keep my top vent about 3/4 open and control temp with my bottom vent. I know this is backasswards from what the instructions says but it sure cuts down on the build up in the lid. Now I have a DigiQ and it controls the temp.
Yeah, but I'm using the PBC. Just has the bottom vent. Its set where I should be for my elevation. Use regular Kingsford Briquettes, as is recommended.
My toys:
Weber Summit Charcoal Grilling Center (WSCGC) aka Mr. Fancypants
Pit Barrel Cooker (which rocks), named Pretty Baby
Weber Summit S650 Gas Grill, named Hot 'n Fast (used mostly for searing and griddling)
Weber Kettle Premium 22" named Kettle Kid, eager to horn in with more cooks in the future
Camp Chef Somerset IV 4-burner outdoor gas range named AfterBurner due to its 30kBTU burners
Adrenaline BBQ Company Gear:
SnS Low Profile, DnG, and Large Charcoal Basket, for WSCGC
SnS Deluxe for 22" Kettle
Elevated SS Rack for WSCGC
SS Rack for DnG
Cast Iron Griddle
Grill Grate for SnS
Grill Grates: five 17.375 sections (retired to storage)
Grill Grates: six 19.25 panels for exact fit for Summit S650
gasser
Grill Grates for 22" Kettle
2 Grill Grate Griddles
Steelmade Griddle for Summit gas grill
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Additional control unit
Additional probes: Competition Probes 1" (3) and 4" (1), 3 additional Ambient Probes. 1 additional Food Probe
2 Driver Cables
Pit Viper Fan (to pair with Fireboard Fan Driver Cable)
Pit Viper Fan new design (to pair with Fireboard Fan Driver Cable)
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Thermapen MK4 (pink)
Thermapen Classic (pink too)
Thermoworks MK4 orange
Temp Test 2 Smart Thermometer
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Timestick Trio
Maverick ET 73 a little workhorse with limited range
Maverick ET 733
Maverick (Ivation) ET 732
Grill Pinz
Vortex (two of them)
18" drip pan for WSCGC
Ceramic Spacers for WSCGC in Kamado Mode: 2 sets each 1/2", 1", 2". The 2" spacers work best with the 18" drip pan. The 1+1/2 inch spacers work best with the 14 inch cake pan.
Two Joule Sous Vide devices
3 Lipavi Sous Vide Tubs with Lids: 12, 18 and 26 quarts
Avid Armor Ultra Pro V32 Chamber Sealer
Instant Pot 6 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Instant Pot 10 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker
Charcoal Companion TurboQue
A-Maze-N tube 12 inch tube smoker accessory for use with pellets
BBQ Dragon and Dragon Chimney
Shun Classic Series:
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Gokujo Boning and Fillet Knife
3 1/2 inch Paring Knife
Some PBC folks reporting a creosote taste have tracked it down to one of two sources:
1. The fire is not well-lit at the beginning, and as new charcoal takes up the burn, it can release some creosote-tasting components. The problem is solved by letting the fire burn 5 to 10 minutes at least before adding meat. That way all the charcoal in the basket is pretty warm/hot and not likely to release those bad-tasting components.
2. The lid's surface is really gunked up with possible mini-stalactites hanging from it. Humidity from the cook condenses on the lid and drips back on to the meat down those stalactites. That can cause a bitter or off-tasting flavor. I keep my lid clean by setting it ajar (about 1/3 or whatever allows it to keep its balance) at the end of a cook and letting the fire heat it up. When the lid is nice and hot I take a putty knife and scrape all that gummy buildup off. Then I reseat the lid and let the fire burn itself out (rebars removed). That cleans it up nicely. I do this lid-cleaning routine every 8 to 10 cooks.
I always make sure the fire is burning clean and hot before I add the coals to the basket. A good, solid shake of the chimney before adding them gets all of the ash off and ensures that you have a ripping hot bed of coals to add to the fire.
I also let the barrel run, with the lid off, for 5 mins to make sure the fire is taking.
Dont worry to much about your damper setting, get it to where it needs to be and leave it. I control the temp more by cracking the lid or not cracking the lid. I usually run my bottom damper at about 1/2 open, most of the time.
Also, letting the PBC settle in at 250 F is nothing to worry about. You can let it run there without issue for hours and hours. When I am cooking with the PBC, I let is move between 230 F and 300 F all the time. Let it do its thing.
Spinaker is half open for the bottom damper based on your elevation or have you found that that works better for you regardless of elevation? Mine never settles in down near 250. I have to plug top vent holes to get down that low. Also what charcoal are you using?
Weber S-335 gas grill
Weber 26†kettle
Weber 22†kettle
Camp Chef XL Smoke Vault
Camp Chef 3 Burner cook top
Camp Chef Woodwind 36 Pellet grill with sidekick burner
PBC
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SnS XL
SnS standard
Vortex
Weber Rotisserie for 22†Kettle
1st gen FireBoard
2nd gen FireBoard
Griddle for Camp Chef cooktop
Several Thermoworks items
Set of Grill Grates
I figured out that if I follow the lighting procedure on the PBC website I get that weird kind of flavor...which is what I'm thinking you have and in my opinion it's from not letting the charcoal get a good burn going. Since I've started using the lighting method that fzxdoc has written up i'm having way better cooks.
I've also stopped chasing temps on the PBC....mine loves to run at 325 and that's where i let it run.....it makes some awesome pulled pork and chicken!!!
Same experience here. My first few cooks had some nasty flavour issues, up untill I started with firing it up with some more power. My pbc runs up to 375 sometimes......but I let it goooo, let it gooo
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