Ham on the KBQ

[Larpaul]

Greetings and good evening all!

Well, my first KBQ cook will be a bit odd. My wife has requested that I do ham for our part in a family get together for Christmas. I was going to do a "naked ham" on my BGE but that was before I knew I would be getting the KBQ. Over on the Big Green Egg forums, they rave about the smoked "naked ham". It is a popular cook meaning smoking a pre-cooked ham but naked in that it has not been cured or cooked with anything other than the necessities (no brown sugar, honey and NO smoke). I’m going with a Cook’s bone-in half ham. The way it’s done in the egg is with sugar maple and cherry wood cooking at anywhere from 300 to 350 until internal reaches approx 145 internal. I’m going with a mix of oak, maple and cherry. Would there need to be an adjustment to temperature given the convective heating process of the KBQ?

I’d like to do a chicken this weekend but once again the weather is not cooperating. We’re getting sunny days during the week, but rain on the weekends. Getting real tired of this. I spent last night pouring through all the great info on cooking chicken with the KBQ. Simply unbelievable at all the info that is available here! I feel like I'm cheating!

[Spinaker]

I generally use Oak and cherry in my KBQ cooks. I absolutely love that flavor profile.

I would run the KBQ at about 225 F. I almost never run it that low, unless I am cooking huge piece of meat. You will get some crazy crust on that baby with the convection action. It will cook much faster than it would in your BGE. However, you will still be in for a long cook.

Finally, I would also throw a hot water pan in the bottom of the KBQ. This will help the center of the ham to catch up. The water pan will help mitigate the effects of the convection fan by forcing KBQ to evaporate more moisture from the surface of the meat.

[Spinaker]

The added moisture settles on the surface of the meat. The smoker must then evaporate this excess moisture before the meat temp will rise. Basically, the added water makes more work for the smoker. The convection fan must plow through all of that added moisture in order to cook the meat, thus slowing the cook. This is why I don't use a water pans in my kamados, there is very little airflow, and added moisture would make cooks take days. hogdog6

[hogdog6]

Thx Spinaker!

[Larpaul]

Thanks Spinaker! Good stuff! I don't mind the long cook at all.

[EdF]

Given the BGE temps, I'd go with 300F on the KBQ. Maybe even 325.

[JGo37]

I don't have either appliance, but can suggest how to smoke a chicken in the rain:

[Larpaul]

My luck, I'd burn it down, lol. However, might could go with some of that composite fake wood. My smallish deck will be replaced this spring with composite and I might add some sort of roof structure. That would be nice.

[lonnie mac]

Say, I grew up and graduated just above ya up in French Camp MS just up the Natchez Trace.

I wish I could tell ya about the KBQ but I have no idea.

As to the ham, well if ever my freezer gets down to two ham steaks or less I go grab another and smoke it up. It seems to be one of the staples that must always be around. Nothing liked a double smokes ham and some mashed taters... I have tried these in so many ways, they are all so good in just about any way you try. My favorite is just using peach wood.

Let us know how it turns out brother!

On my WSCGC, I usually shoot for 250. It could take several hours but ham is worth the time.

[Larpaul]

lonnie mac Know French Camp well. We send an office crew up there once a year to help with outdoor cleanup projects, etc. I'm still searching for a local source for ham that is cooked but not smoked. May have to experiment with what's available though. Take care!

[goldp18]

Years ago I did a peach glazed ham in my cheapo upright and it came out great. I think we did it at around 250, but I'm not positive. I do remember the sauce mixed with the smoky flavor was what really made it incredible.

There's a recipe here that might be worth reading through and taking notes. If you do have a glaze, the part about high heat and letting the glaze brown a little seems worthwhile.

From one KBQ newbie to another: don't expect the different types of wood to impart the same flavor as wood chunks over charcoal. I would expect the maple to be overpowered with oak and cherry, so it might be worth saving the maple for a maple only cook.

Even if it cooks faster than you expect, it's a big enough chunk of meat that it should stay warm for a while if you toss it in a cooler.

Keep us posted with the results!

[Larpaul]

Was not able to find cooked ham without smoke or other flavorings already added. However, I did settle for a pack of Smithfield ham slices that was supposedly hickory smoked, but we could not taste any smoke flavor. With that in mind, I may get another and smoke it anyway or keep looking for what I'm really after. Weather has continued to be rainy every weekend and during the little time I took off during the holidays but I have been able to do my first cook. Spatchcocked 6lb chicken with breast up & toward the front of the box with legs & thighs in the back. Mesquite used with a cycling temp between 360 and 380 on the thermapen that Bill sent with the KBQ. It was inserted into the control box. Bottom poppet wide open the entire cook and the top poppet closed except for 3 or 4 times that I partially opened it for just a couple of minutes each time. At around 45 minutes, the legs and thighs hit 165 however the breast was only at 125. Did not rotate but continued for another 30 minutes until the breast hit 165. The thighs were near 200 at that time. I feared the thighs would be dry but much to my surprise, they weren't. Had a great smoke taste and best of all the wife was pleased that the smoke was not overwhelming as it has been with the Egg. This is a welcome change for her! The weather is breaking today and it will be sunny so I'm smoking a couple of burger patties this evening and will do another chicken tomorrow. This time I think I will use cherry for the burgers and oak for the chicken. I think I will also try rotating the chicken when the thighs hit 135. Hope you guys are having a good weekend!

[EdF]

My wife has the same reaction to the relative levels of "smokedness" between the BGE and the KBQ. The former was kind of a delicate business for me; the latter is really easy. She likes it light!

[hogdog6]

Ditto for me EdF. My wife is not a fan of smoke flavor but every time I run the KBQ she has seconds. The delicate some and unbelievable color it produces are heavenly.

[Backroadmeats]

I generally use Oak and cherry in my KBQ cooks. I absolutely love that flavor profile.

I would run the KBQ at about 225 F. I almost never run it that low, unless I am cooking huge piece of meat. You will get some crazy crust on that baby with the convection action. It will cook much faster than it would in your BGE. However, you will still be in for a long cook.

Finally, I would also throw a hot water pan in the bottom of the KBQ. This will help the center of the ham to catch up. The water pan will help mitigate the effects of the convection fan by forcing KBQ to evaporate more moisture from the surface of the meat.

Respectfully.. I would never put a water pan in a smoker.. you steam vegetables but smoke meat.. not saying don't do it but I won't..no disrespect spinaker but I am old school..

[lonnie mac]

Do you spritz while cooking?

[Spinaker]

High air flow on the KBQ. I find I have better results with the water pan. This is the only rig I run a water pan in.

[Backroadmeats]

I learned how to smoke stuff from a crotchety old farmer.. first smoker I bought was a upright propane smoker he saw I had water in the water pan and asked if I was cooking vegetables.. I replied I was not and he told me to get that damn water out of there then.. I suppose all smokers are diffrtent. I was just looking at my big vortron and it actually has a humidity control on it.. maybe something I need to play with..

[pmillen]

BUMP! I’m trying to learn as much as I can about the KBQ by reading most threads in this forum. Admittedly, I have a lot to learn about the KBQ, but I know a bit about water pans in other pits and the associated science. As a result, I can’t agree that it’s a good idea to put a water pan in the KBQ.

Water never gets above 212°F, so a water pan creates a cold spot in a 225°F pit that sucks up heat energy for no good reason. It only causes the controller to call for more heat. That may result in more smoke, but adjusting the poppets is probably a better way to do that.

A poster wrote that the added moisture created by a water pan settles on the surface of the meat. I can’t agree with this. For the water vapor to settle (condense) on the meat, the meat surface must be cooler than the 225°F air holding the water vapor. After a few minutes the meat surface is also at 225°F.

Am I missing something?

[pmillen]

Yes, a good review, tbob4. What portion of it is germane to the question of water pan advisability?

[frigate]

My last rib cook last weekend, my water pan lost a 5/8 inch of water. If it is just a cold spot heat sink where did the water go?

[pmillen]

I'm sorry that I didn't make myself clear, frigate. The water got to 212°F and boiled off as water vapor in the pit. It'll never get above 212° because at that temperature it ceases to be liquid. So it's a cold spot in a 225°F pit. Some of the heat from the burning wood is used to change the state from liquid to vapor. Then it exits, still water vapor, in the exhaust.