How to improve---Keep a BBQ log ?

[bbqLuv]

How many of us keep a BBQ Log or Journal? Use A Cooking Log Or Diary (amazingribs.com)

"Take notes! Whenever you cook, keep a log, at least until your methods are instinctive. There are so many variables to master. You should be making notes on the meat, its grade, its weight, where you bought it, how you prepared it, what rubs and sauce you used, the cooker temperature, ambient air temp, the wood you used, when you added wood and how much, etc. When you are done, note what it tasted like and what needs improvement. Study the info. Put your cooking logs in a notebook. You learn a lot about the performance of your cooker and the cook when you keep a log of them."

I now use Paprika. I tried a new to me technique, here is an example

8-8:15 Trim ribs & removed membrane placed in the refrigerator, dry marinade
first lightly seasoned with SPG, medium to heavy coat of Cabela's Sweet Rib Rub
10:55 Started up Traeger at 225°F with Super Smoke on, Placed rack of ribs in the center of middle rack.
12:00 Set Traeger to 275°F
12:30 Spritz with 50/50 apple juice and apple cider vinegar
13:00 Inserted probe into the thickest part of the ribs, read 170°F
14:00 Internal temperature 190°F.
14:25 Internal temperature 195°F and close to probe tender
15:00 Internal temperature 200°F removed from the grill, wrapped on foil to rest.
15:30 Rested, tender, juice, bite through.

Notes: This a smoke at 225*F for 1 hour, finish at 275*F
Over seasoned. so Next time replace SPG with Course Black Pepper

[WillTravelForFood]

Another vote for Paprika!

(for those of you still on the fence -- feel free to wait until they have their Black Friday sale to pick it up at a discount.... but even at full price, it's worth it)

[Richard Chrz]

I’m horrible at keeping a log, I really should focus on that, I use paprika for searching, but have not used it to it’s abilities.

[RichieB]

I use Paprika but before that I adopted meatheads cooking log and I still use it. I did get lazy but I've reverted back to full time use. An example.
The journal I purchased here
I keep notes while I cook.
Then I transcribe to the log form which is excel.

[Rob whatever]

I don't keep a log but I have a good memory for the sources and inspirations for my cooks. I have, on occasion, written a detailed recipe but I usually use that as a launching pad.

Rob

[jfmorris]

I *NEED* to keep a BBQ log.

Case in point - this morning I wanted to smoke an 11# Boston butt on my SNS Kamado, with a cooking temp of 275F, in kamado mode. Easy, right? I've been cooking on this smoker for over 2 years, so thought to myself that I would just do this by manually setting the vents - no need to bust out a fan controller. I had prepped the grill last night, and all I had to do was light a starter with my butane lighter at 6am. Got the meat on about 6:40, as it was pushing past 225 or so.

Well, fast forward several hours, and I've fussed with the vents every 15 to 30 minutes, been all over the place, mostly around 250. That would be fine - except the wife expects this to be done about 5pm, so she can take pulled pork to another family who had a knee replacement this week.

So I finally resorted to grabbing my PartyQ fan controller (old BBQ Guru model) and setting it to 275 a couple hours into the cook. And I am so far behind I am fixing to go change the set point to 300F, and go hot and fast, and wrap in foil once the meat hits about 150.

I need to start a paper journal or something where I record vent settings for different temps at the very least, for all my cookers. I ought to be able to know, by know, EXACTLY where to set top and bottom vents for an exact temp range. Obviously I don't!

For recipes, I do use the notes section in Paprika to make notes to myself after a cook.

[efincoop]

Going back to my days with my Vision kamado... I used the bottom vent for the big adjustment (getting close) then the top vent for fine adjustments to get to my desired temp. That said it wasn't always as easy as it sounds. Wind was the biggest factor that would give me fits.

[LA Pork Butt]

efincoop describes the principles I used on the BGE. The bottom vent for 25 degree increments and the top vent for smaller increments. I have used a PartyQ because of the gusty winds in Dallas. Currently I use a Smobot which works in reverse drafting air though the bottom vent by adjusting the top vent. The bottom vent is set to be open between 1/3-1/2 of the way. This gives you more burn and less smoldering.

[jfmorris]

Well, the PartyQ did the trick today and always works. I would just like to be able to get there the old fashioned way too, haha…

I need to reread the kamado info available here and what you are both telling me makes sense - bottom or large adjustments, top for fine within that range,

[Rod]

Combination of Fireboard and Paprika. With Fireboard I can create all kinds of notes and pics real time during the cook. It already has the date, target temps, length of cook etc. If it turns out to be a successful cook and one I want to repeat, then it goes into Paprika. I really only need to do it for "complex" recipes. Some cooks I'll just use Fireboard. Like ones I don't do often so I can at least get a real good idea how long to plan for.

[Richard Chrz]

I really need to start utilizing my FireBoard more.I’ve only used it for monitoring,

[TripleB]

Been keeping a BBQ/Grilling log book for over 10 yrs. now. I keep two - one for general BBQ on various pieces of equipment and one log book specifically for my Jambo & KBQ.

[Finster]

I started keeping one last year.
Going back and reviewing it kind of reminds me of high school.
I was terrible at taking notes then, and that hasn’t changed a bit….lol.
Its somewhat helpful, but nearly so much as it could/should be

[Clark]

I keep logs on each cook so that I can refer back to "remember" what I did on the great cooks. I just write what I bought, price, source, and weight. Then I list my brine, rubs, what fuel I am using, how much, and any other pertinent detail.

Then I write time on, and every 30 minutes I log the smoker temp for trends plus the internal temp of my protein, again watching trends. Any changes on my part are logged such as flipping, rotating, basting, saucing, etc.

Final entry is time off and time of resting.

While eating, my wife gives me her opinion on three things: Flavor, moist, tender.

This sure helps me to remember what made a cook good for future reference.

P.S. If the cook is bad, I don't keep the finished log!

[RichardK]

I keep the log of the bad. I of course label it "Do Not Do This!". LOL

[Clark]

RichardK If I kept the bad cooks, I would need several more 3 ring binders.

[RichardK]

I started smoking before doing a lot of reading on smoking; I was eager to start. At the suggestion of my wife, I kept a log so that I had a reference point for future smokes. First two smokes were ~6 lbs. Boston Butts on a Weber Kettle grill. For the log I simply write down setup info and any changes made as I go along. I am a computer programmer and text editors are my go to tool, so as a result my smoking notes go into a text file. The biggest advantage of a text file is ease of use and searchability, also I do not have great handwriting skills. I can get a great picture of what happened before, by pairing my log file and the graphs and temperature data points from the Thermoworks Signal. I have enough cooks for the last 2 years, that I can compare the current temp to previous data and get a very good estimate of when dinner will be, or the milestones I need to hit for "dinner to be on time". My cooks take a long time. I average about 3 hours per pound for Boston Butts at 225 degrees.
I found Amazingribs.com well after I started. When I did find the site, I compared my log to Meathead's, and found I was collecting all the information he recommended.
I find the cooking log invaluable. I have a good memory, but with the log, nuances are captured and conclusions from the data can be determined. My first cook was Saturday, October, 17, 2020, with a 5.9 lbs. Boston Butt using Alton Brown's brine, and Adam's Rib Rub. Came out delicious, but a little too salty.

[jfmorris]

This is what I should have been doing the past 5-6 years!

[Rob whatever]

What is your record for the longest cook? 3 hours per average is quite a chunk of time.

[smokenoob]

definitely keep a log or two

[DaveD]

I can't believe it took 12 posts before someone did this!

[bbqLuv]

Now I am going to split.

[barelfly]

I do that I reference still from prior to Paprika. I don’t use it as I did, but still add some notes here and there.

[smokenoob]

you can snap a pic of your old notes and add it to your Paprika recipe list

[barelfly]

smokenoob hmmmm I’ll have to try this out! I’ve added a photo or two of recipes and edit. But have never thought of doing that from my book. Thank you for that!

[Mosca]

I don’t keep a log. I stick to basics for low and slow stuff: ribs, brisket, pork butts. I’d better be able to remember that. Everything else that I cook, I’ve done it enough that I know what’s going to happen, and I know how to deal with it if it goes sideways. I’m just not that adventurous. Anything I want to try new, I can look it up.

I will say that when I make something new that I just thought up out of the blue, I’d like to have written it down; but even that stuff isn’t so far off the beaten path that I can’t reasonably figure it out again.

[Richard Chrz]

I think that is why I don’t use a log, practice has just lodged it in my head,

[DaveD]

I absolutely log every cook, but I'm an outlier - as a former lab rat, I could no more not have a logbook/notebook than I could stop breathing. The Fireboard app is really excellent, and I've been using it on darn near every cook since getting it. It was the same back when I was brewing beer. In fact, if I were to open up an old lab notebook, an old brewing notebook, and my smoking notebook and lay them side by side, you couldn't tell which was which from across the room, I lay them out exactly the same: starting materials, process, run log, outcome. More data are ALWAYS needed!

[Richard Chrz]

I wish I could have that regiment to life. I’m always impressed by your documentation, but I would also expect it with your education.

[DaveD]

Aw, thanks. For me, it's so ingrained that not having one would be like not fastening my seatbelt in the car... just doesn't feel right.