Hey everyone. I bought myself a cheap Brinkman firepot smoker a little over a month ago and I am absolutely hooked. After reading multiple websites I now figured out that I have not bought the best smoker in the world, but I have made some awful good food on it. Here is what I have smoked so far:
Hickory smoked Ham
3-8 lbs rolled pork roasts
2-4 lb pork loins
6 baby back ribs
4 beef ribs that I absolutely ruined
13 lb sirloin roast
13 lb turkey
2-4 lb chickens
about 30 lbs of country style rib roasts
Tried cooking with only wood and that was a disaster, and then also with chucks of wood with charcoal and that was just too heavy of a smoke flavor also. I have been reading on here now that I should not be using any full pieces of wood at all with this type of smoker, so this weekend I will be trying a few apple wood pellets. I have been using a combination of lump and briquet charcoal and that is how I have made the best meat. This weekend I will be cooking for about 20 people so I am doing 8 baby back ribs with 20 abt's for friday, and then 20 lbs of chicken thighs for saturday. I will have my mods done by then and i hope to not have to baby sit it quite as much. I have extended the smoke stack so it almost touches the grates and then I am putting 18" of double layer duct work for a baffle sealed on the top with some fireplace caulk. I will also be sealing up the sides of the lid with some heat gasket to try to keep more that precious heat in. The last thing will be putting my 2 new thermostats in at meat level on both sides of the smoker.
Little about myself. 38, Married, 6 kids, am the local high school athletic director, and also do construction. I coach alot of youth sports (wrestling, football, and baseball), and we do alot of camping and just last week got a permanent site at a local camp ground.
Hickory smoked Ham
3-8 lbs rolled pork roasts
2-4 lb pork loins
6 baby back ribs
4 beef ribs that I absolutely ruined
13 lb sirloin roast
13 lb turkey
2-4 lb chickens
about 30 lbs of country style rib roasts
Tried cooking with only wood and that was a disaster, and then also with chucks of wood with charcoal and that was just too heavy of a smoke flavor also. I have been reading on here now that I should not be using any full pieces of wood at all with this type of smoker, so this weekend I will be trying a few apple wood pellets. I have been using a combination of lump and briquet charcoal and that is how I have made the best meat. This weekend I will be cooking for about 20 people so I am doing 8 baby back ribs with 20 abt's for friday, and then 20 lbs of chicken thighs for saturday. I will have my mods done by then and i hope to not have to baby sit it quite as much. I have extended the smoke stack so it almost touches the grates and then I am putting 18" of double layer duct work for a baffle sealed on the top with some fireplace caulk. I will also be sealing up the sides of the lid with some heat gasket to try to keep more that precious heat in. The last thing will be putting my 2 new thermostats in at meat level on both sides of the smoker.
Little about myself. 38, Married, 6 kids, am the local high school athletic director, and also do construction. I coach alot of youth sports (wrestling, football, and baseball), and we do alot of camping and just last week got a permanent site at a local camp ground.
