Temp adjustments during smoking

[goldmine1965]

Was curious how to handle drops in temperature when cold meat is introduced to the MES 30 Gen 1 smoker. I smoked a 7 pound bone in turkey breast. Smoker temp was 230. Adding the turkey dropped it to the 190 range and it did not rise over 220 for several hours. At 5 hours the internal temp was 148 and I decided to finish it in the oven.

Should I continue to adjust the settings so it maintains the 230 or be patient and let it do it on it's own?

Goldmine1965

 

[SmokinAl]

The best way is to heat the smoker up to 275.

Then add the meat & set it at 230.

It will recover faster that way.

Al

 

[joe black]

Al's got you started in the right direction. I use an offset stick burner and I put my meat in when the temp is at the top of my cooking range. Then the cooker settles down to a good mid-range.

 

[goldmine1965]

 
The best way is to heat the smoker up to 275.

Then add the meat & set it at 230.

It will recover faster that way.

Al

Thanks Al.