# smoking in/with pans??



## doughboysigep (Jun 19, 2019)

So I have been watch BBQ Pitmasters a lot and have picked up a few ideas.  One thing I see them do a lot is put their meats in a pan for smoking.  I did it with my recent brisket cook and it certainly helps with clean up.  What are people's thoughts/experience smoking in/over trays?  Is there a difference in smoke flavor or cook times??  Better with meat in pan or pan under meat (next rack down)???  Any other tips/tricks????


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## bluewhisper (Jun 19, 2019)

It would depend on what meat you are cooking and how much fat it will release, along with whatever sauce or marinade, etc.

Putting the meat in a pan will not prevent the smoke smoke flavor, but it can capture grease and keep your rig cleaner. Plus, in some situations, you can use the pan drippings for a gravy or something like that.


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## JC in GB (Jun 19, 2019)

As with almost all things BBQ, it comes down to what works for you and what end result you are expecting. 
I use pans when I am trying to collect drippings, shield something on a lower rack, or create a steam chamber. 
I like the idea of the hot smoky air inside the smoker touching all parts of the meat.


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## sigmo (Jun 19, 2019)

Sam's Club here has disposable foil steam table trays in half and full size.  They're cheap.

I always use these 1/2 size trays when smoking pork butts.  I can easily move the butts from place to place in the smoker to get even smoke.

And I can put a foil tent over them once they've had enough smoke and I'm just going for the final IT, but want to retain more moisture.

And when they're done, I can move them into the house to rest and pull without having them fall apart in my hands at the wrong time.

I do a lot of smoking with the meat in pans.  I still get great smoke flavor.


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## JC in GB (Jun 19, 2019)

I agree with Sigmo in that using pans makes it much easier to move your food items around and also makes it easier to wrap if you need to.


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## zwiller (Jun 19, 2019)

JC in GB said:


> As with almost all things BBQ, it comes down to what works for you and what end result you are expecting.
> I use pans when I am trying to collect drippings, shield something on a lower rack, or create a steam chamber.
> I like the idea of the hot smoky air inside the smoker touching all parts of the meat.



I am with you but I am huge Mixon fan and pretty much everything he does gets panned and foiled.  Like you say, it depends.  Stick burner vs MES.  Stick burner moves a ton of air and MES very little.  WSM in the middle.  I don't really think panning is a trick or anything special other than preventing bark for getting too crunchy and speeds up the cook.  If I ran a stick burner I would probably try it but I don't (MES).


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## EdP (Jun 19, 2019)

I've used pans with country ribs, but that's it


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## CigarLlama (Jun 20, 2019)

On my WSM, I've only used pans on the middle grate while the meat is on the top grate. It might be a placebo effect, but I like the smoke making contact with all the meat.


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## JC in GB (Jun 20, 2019)

zwiller said:


> I am with you but I am huge Mixon fan and pretty much everything he does gets panned and foiled.  Like you say, it depends.  Stick burner vs MES.  Stick burner moves a ton of air and MES very little.  WSM in the middle.  I don't really think panning is a trick or anything special other than preventing bark for getting too crunchy and speeds up the cook.  If I ran a stick burner I would probably try it but I don't (MES).



Myron Mixon is a BBQ legend and I am sure his methods will give you great results.


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## sigmo (Jun 24, 2019)

Here's another trick I like:

I really like making seasoned smoked pecans.  Other nuts are good, too, but pecans are my favorite.

There's a whole sub forum here dealing with this, but speaking of pans, here's something I use a lot.

I tediously sat and poked a shitload (I love that expression, I heard it first when my dad and I went to see "Blazing Saddles" back in '75).  Anyhow, I sat, watching some TV, and laboriously poked a shitload of dimes, I mean holes, in the bottoms of four of the foil half-size steam table pans from Sam's.  I poked the holes from the inside outward, down through their bottoms, with a Philip's screwdriver, I believe.  This results in a smooth inner surface even though the outside (bottoms) are rough and sharp.

When I'm making a batch of smoked pecans, I buy two 32 oz bags (Sam's, again).  I melt 3/4 of a stick of butter in a big cooking pot, add my spice blend (that I've pulverized to a fine consistency in a small coffee grinder that I have just for spices) and mix that well with the butter.  Then I stir in one bag of the pecans.  I do two bags this way, one bag at a time, stirring to get them uniformly coated.

Then I spread the treated pecans into these four holey pans and smoke them at 225 degrees F for three hours.  Every 45 minutes, I move the pan that's at the bottom up to the top position, and rotate the rest down one level.  I have the pans staggered to get good smoke-flow. and I stir the pecans as I'm shifting the pans.

This is in my modified MES40, with an AMNPS, usually using Pitmaster's Choice.

The smoke can pass up through the holes in the pans.

When I'm done, I bring them inside, and cool them in the pans.  Finally, I put the cooled pecans back in the original zipper lock bags, and then they go into a refrigerator.  The butter could go rancid, but in the fridge they never do before we eat them.

The butter makes the spice blend stick, and the holey pans can be reused.  I just run them in the dishwasher between uses.

I buy raw pecans, and the bit of cooking they receive while being smoked changes their texture and flavor in a way that I really like.  They're sort of roasted, but not too much.  Nice mouth feel, if that makes sense.  They sort of explode in your mouth as you bite into them.

Darn.  Now I need to do another batch.


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## SmokinAl (Jun 24, 2019)

I do a lot of smoking in pans, with the meat sitting right in the juices. I think you get a better outcome, and as said above, cleanup is a breeze!
Al


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## Bearcarver (Jun 28, 2019)

doughboysigep said:


> So I have been watch BBQ Pitmasters a lot and have picked up a few ideas.  One thing I see them do a lot is put their meats in a pan for smoking.  I did it with my recent brisket cook and it certainly helps with clean up.  What are people's thoughts/experience smoking in/over trays?  Is there a difference in smoke flavor or cook times??  Better with meat in pan or pan under meat (next rack down)???  Any other tips/tricks????




I smoke many things in a Pan, including Double Smoked Hams & Prime Rib, however I put a wire cooling rack in the pan, under the meat, so the smoke can get all the way around the roast, and underneath, and the meat doesn't sit in the juices, because I don't want it to be like a stew.
Like This:


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## mike243 (Jun 28, 2019)

Bearcarver has got it right, put a cooling rack under the meat so its not swimming in the grease, That's what I have done for years ,it will keep the bottom moist also so no hard crunchy bottoms, kinda like running a water pan lol


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## forktender (Jul 3, 2019)

When I'm smoking chicken or waterfowl I almost always use a cooling rack in a pan, unless I have a smoker full. I put about 1/2'' of water in the bottom of pan and squeeze a couple of lemons into the water with a few rosemary sprigs. I use four small stones to keep the cooling rack out of the water. The birds turns out great, nice and moist, then I'll pop it under the broiler to crisp up the skin.


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## tallbm (Jul 3, 2019)

I use pans to catch mess and keep things well organized BUT I rarely rest any meat directly in the pan.  I have a system with crisper baskets, q-mats, and foil pans that makes getting meat in and out of the smoker a breeze and keeps my smoker from getting messy.  Also it allows smoke to completely circulate around the meat so I don't end up with 1 side "unsmoked" like when setting directly in a pan. 

The solid tray does not go in the smoker but is super handy when carrying the meat and pan together.  The crisper basic does go in the smoker and often directly on top of the foil pan as the pictures show :)
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## sigmo (Jul 8, 2019)

This thread is making me hungry!  :)


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