If you click on this link HERE gents, at Post # 1252, you can see my setup in my kitchen oven which I used for quite awhile as a "Faux Holding Cabinet" for my briskets.
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Thanks for all the input Bill. Can I ask how your setting up your water and drip pans. Obviously the water is on the bottom, but are you leaving a slot open above the water?
And what are you using for the drip pan? Another hotel pan? Seems like I'm losing a lot of real estate with all these pans in there. Also the bottom two slots are blocked
by the door hinge can't get a pan into them. Maybe a door kit of some sort would help with that. Got any ideas on that?
Were gone next week from our business so won't be there to receive packages but will be ordering your door kit when we return.
Thanks,
DaveComment
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I was asked some questions that I would like to attempt to answer here in this thread in hopes that others will add their experiences (both Positive and Negative) as well.
Some of what was asked is a bit of a "Gray Area" for me, but I hope we can all learn from the posts to follow.
So... please do feel free to add your thoughts regarding this as we all can benefit from each others mistakes, successes and sweet discoveries.
So here's a BIG Thank You to all who post follow-ups!
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Questions asked me: (Regarding the KBQ)
1) What effect do the bottom water pans (cookie sheet and 2-1/2" steam pan) have on how the inside of the cook box and fan unit foul up, due to the increase in moisture circulating inside the cook box? (I think probably more build-up)
2) Is the build-up less than or more than when using no pans? (I think probably more with pans)
3) Is it easier or harder to clean off? (It depends... see my ramblings below )
The control unit is a real PITA to clean up as it is with no added moisture and I am wondering what effect the moisture will have.
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Okay...
After Mr. Bill Karau advised me to try the double pan method to help prevent drying brisket bottoms, I have used water pans in every smoke in both machines ever since.
I know another KBQ owner posted that he believed that increased moisture in the cook box fouled his fans with a heavy dark coating.
Now... I DO know from my experience after reading and following Professor Greg Blonder's advice, that moisture attracts smoke.
This means that the more moisture the two fans move, the more smoke adheres to the blades and surrounding fan box.
HOWEVER, I honestly believe that there is also more water vapor mixed in with the smoke causing better adhesion of the smoke to the meat, which is what I want.
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Now, in looking at hardness of deposit as well as color, my fan blades and surrounding area get coated with a tan/gray somewhat easier to remove deposit if I focus on the following:
1) Keep a good layer (about 1 to 2 inches) of gray coals covering the holes in the coal tray.
2) Use the bottom poppet at full open only.
3) Guard the top poppet from being "bumped" open during wood adds.
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IF, I decide to open the top poppet a touch to get a bit of "dirtier" smoke too, and/or don't keep a good layer of gray coals covering the holes in the coal tray allowing "dirtier" smoke to be sucked in through the holes, my fans get black, REALLY black and hard coated.
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In looking at Aaron Franklin's brisket, he gets a combination of very clean smoke and some dirtier smoke too or he would not get thick black bark in 9 hours (which is how long he smokes before wrapping).
Attached here below is a composite photo of the bark on two of my briskets.
One was smoked with focus on the three points above.
The other was smoked with the bottom poppet full open and the top poppet open to about 1/8" and not much concern for keeping the holes in the coal tray covered.
I do not recall but would bet that my fan blades would be black after the smoke that produced the bark as seen on the right.
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Now, is it hard to clean the fan blades and surrounding area?
I don't know because I don't worry about them anymore after Mr. Bill Karau said they don't have to be cleaned super well.
He explained that they are designed to run well even though somewhat dirty, and that suits me just fine.
To clean my fan blades and surrounding area I use an old toothbrush and compressed air at 120 PSI.
What comes off is fine and what does not come off stays on there, smoke after smoke.
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Yes, I could disassemble by removing the blades and clean all really well, but I see no need to do that, so I don't.
After each and every smoke...
the thermostat bulb and spring get the same treatment, the old toothbrush rub and high pressure compressed air.
(Because this IS important to keep somewhat clean, and not covered to where you cannot see the bulb anymore)
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As far as the inside of the cook box, I power wash after each smoke and occasionally spray it while still hot with canned Easy Off Oven Cleaner. (Thanks to another KBQ poster here)
I then later go out and power wash it out real well and all is good at BBQ Bill's again.
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The racks are an entirely different matter in my book as they touch the food.
After every smoke they get soaked in a soapy hot tub of water along with the doors and rack holders.
After the long hot soak they get Scotch Brite pad rubbed with liquid Dawn and an Ajax Scouring powder scrub to a shiney clean.
Then a thorough hot high-pressure water rinse.
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I hope some of this rambling helps!
Smoke On!
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When I use my KBQ I open the top poppet an 1/8" when the wood on the top of the firebox has started to coal. This method does definitely add extra smokiness to the taste profile. It adds all the smoke profile I need. As far as increasing the moisture level in the cookbox goes, I believe that moisture helps smoke stick because of the tests done here. It would follow that smoke will stick to everything the moisture comes in contact with including the fans and inside the controlbox. I have not cleaned my fans yet, but I'd say that a cleaning is due though. I have cleaned the inside of the cookbox by taking out the racks, rack holders, and taking off the door and scrubbing all and the inside with a stainless steel scrubber and vinegar. This is very effective. I'll most likely use vinegar to clean the fans too, being careful not to allow the vinegar to go down the motor shaft into the motor. I have only cleaned the cookbox once that way, mosty I just spray it out with a garden hose and sprayer.
I use cabbage to increase the moisture level in my cookbox. I put quartered cabbage, with olive oil, salt and pepper, on the bottom rack. Cabbage is tasty when cooked this way. This will definitely increase the moisture level. I tried this on a 22.5" WSM that had just finished smoking salmon. It almost extinguished the coals. I had to open all the vents all the way to keep things cooking. And there was a lot of moisture around the vents on the exterior of the WSM.Last edited by lostclusters; February 22, 2018, 07:07 PM.Comment
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As memory serves me, I copied and pasted Bill Karau's instructions regarding cleaning the Control Box and Fans in a post found HERE.
For those of you that do not own a KBQ, Mr. Karau is the Genius that designed, built and sells them.
He is a great guy, with EXCELLENT customer service, and is just a call away when you need help with your KBQ Smoker!Last edited by BBQ_Bill; February 28, 2018, 08:57 PM. Reason: Added an explanation as to who Bill Karau is.Comment
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Fired up the KBQ yesterday and did 4 racks of baby back. I have some pictures of the cook, but none of the finished ribs...they went that quickly!
Now I'm going back over all the posts I read before...everything makes a lot more sense now...
My wife (the foodie who studied the restaurant industry until she got tired of being yelled at in kitchens) felt that the ribs were a bit dry and overcooked, but absolutely loved the flavor! We gave all the ribs away, so she's on my a$$ to make more, immediately! Fortunately I have two racks set aside for the sous vide experiment. I'll get that going in the morning...
I think I need to grab a water pan for the bottom of the cooker...
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I have been researching pork ribs for a few weeks now Livermoron, wanting to KBQ some, but not wanting to fail with my "Maiden Voyage" smoking them.
Basically, "Failure" is NOT an option for me in this venture.
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Done Beef Brisket, Beef ribs, Salmon, and Chicken, but never any pork...
My buddy James out at JL's Smokehouse here in Phoenix does some pretty tasty pork ribs, and I purchase them from him fairly often.
Am wanting mine to be better than his, "right out of the gate" so I am procrastinating.
And... reading and stalling, and looking at the 3,2,1 method at this time.
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Would you be so kind as to share what you did to produce your awesome ribs?
These are your very 1st KBQ smoke of pork ribs right?Comment
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The ones in the pictures were done sous vide. Baby backs, sprinkled with salt and dry brined overnight. Rubbed with Memphis Dust and cooked sous vide at 165 for 12 hours. Dried, another light rub and cooked in the KBQ at 230 for 45 minutes, with sauce applied every 7 minutes for the last 14. -
The first batch was done at 230 for about 3 hours, with an apple cider spritz every time I put in wood. They came out a bit drier, but a bit more smokey than the sous vide ribs. I don't have any pictures of the finished product, because everybody took them before I could get to my phone!
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Livermoron - beautiful!
BBQ_Bill - ribs are easy. Here are some that are just plain with a bit of a decent rub. Nothing to fret over. Just figure an hour less than on more traditional cookers.
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I am not a newbie to the KBQ, but AM a newbie in the use of my weed-burner, charcoal/wood lighter, meat-searing-torch.
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Yes my friends, I've made a bad mistake and wanted to share my error in hopes to help others.
Basically I "blew" one of my KBQ doors open, and damaged it a bit.
Yeah, my KBQ smoker exploded... sort of.
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Damage:
The "cool" handles (bent the bolts) and sprung the door latch.
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The sound was a rather loud "HUFF" and the KBQ door suddenly slammed into the concrete.
I am SO glad nobody was in front of the door when this happened.
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So...
When lighting the wood, or lump charcoal in the firebox please...
DISCONNECT THE POWER TO YOUR KBQ!
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Here is what happened...
The large propane weed burner torch was burning well at first.
Then, I positioned it above the firebox opening and pointed the flame downwards onto the wood inside.
The flame went out for some reason, and the KBQ draw fan quickly sucked in some propane and oxygen.
I re-lit the torch, and while this VERY dangerous mixture of fuel and oxygen was being circulated inside the cook chamber, I re-lit the torch and... well, you get the picture.
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The sprung latch was repaired and the bent handles repaired.
I thank God that there were no injuries except to my pride.
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Therefore, now that I have been educated by my ignorance and stupidity, I humbly pass this "near-miss" experience on to my fellow KBQ buddies.Comment
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The KBQ's Poppet Adjustments can be difficult to know what settings are best and how to set them for various products.
A new thread has been started, devoted to the KBQ Poppets and the smoke derived from popular settings.
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Go HERE to read what other KBQ owners have said about this important subject.Comment
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So you are thinking of Using GREEN wood in your KBQ?
Really BBQ Bill?
Howdy my fellow KBQ buddies!
Hey, I just had a conversation with Mr. Karau where we discussed my thoughts regarding burning green wood in my KBQs.
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My questions were...
IF there is a good bed of coals in the coal tray, why couldn't you burn green, non-seasoned wood?
My reasoning was...
The basic point of the KBQ inverted flame and the well maintained coal bed it to burn large molecule smoke turning it into the highly desirable small molecule blue smoke, so if your fire is hot and well established, the possibly darker sooty smoke from a piece of green wood becomes light blue smoke as it is purified by the KBQ, right?
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Well folks, I am happy to say that Mr. Karau agreed!
I then said, wouldn't the green wood introduce more moisture into your cooking chamber? (ALSO a good thing)
Again, there was an affirmation that the moisture level in the cooking chamber would rise from using green wood.
Bill went on to mention that you would have to make the stack of wood in the firebox taller to dry the wood out as time passed.
I'm thinking it might even increase the time interval in which we "feed" wood to our KBQs.
Please post your thoughts on this as in time, I plan to do some experimenting and posting my results here as well.
Right now I am processing a few cords of green Mesquite and too busy, but will try to find time to BBQ again.
Smoke On!
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I don't see the wood being able to burn down well enough to make a solid, consistent coal bed. You might have a solid bed when you start out, but I could see it degrading as more green wood is added. My thoughts are that the wood might not have time to break down into coals as all that moisture must be burned off in order for the wood to coal up. I have placed wood in my KBQ that sizzled, because there was still too much moisture in the wood. I found that it did not coal up very well, and I removed it all from my cooking cache and moved it back to the drying rack. That being said, I am curious. And I love this idea. Not trying to rain on the parade here Bill, these are only my initial thoughts on the matter after some limited experience with most wood. I will be really curious to hear what your results are.Originally posted by BBQ_Bill View PostSo you are thinking of Using [SIZE=16px][SIZE=20px]GREEN wood in your KBQ?
Smoke On!​
I also wonder what the flavor will be like. If you are using the fire to clean the smoke, as the KBQ is designed to do. I wonder how much moisture will actually get through the fire. Will it be noticeable? Will it have a more acrid flavor profile? Not sure, but I await your results, good sir! I love this!
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