Grease fog - I've just about had it

[Bart57266]

I have an idea, sir...

Why don't you plan to come to Fall Cookout and meet some of these guys face-to-face.  It will be a great time to share ideas and pick a few brains (we'll only have a few).  We'll be cookin' and tellin' lies if you get my drift.

Thank you for the invitation!

[salarcon1]

Hello, I'm new to the Pit Barrel forum but I've been an avid reader of your discussions and I also pulled the trigger on a new Pit Barrel about 5 months ago. The closest I've come to experiencing the grease fog you mentioned happened on some of my first cooks where I hadn't perfected the Pit Barrel  lighting methods. Regardless of the method you choose, it's important that all it is lit and hot. Sometimes it gets to temp in 20 minutes and sometimes it takes longer. Patience through the process is key to getting the best flavor.

I love moderate smoke flavor on my meats so  whether I am using Kingsford or Royal Oak lump, I almost always have a few chunks of wood into the mix. Personally, I think the best chicken that's come off the Pit Barrel has come when I used lump charcoal with no smoking wood chunks!. There was not grease smoke flavor just roasted, moist goodness! (Tip- Keep the bottom of your Pit Barrel clean...make sure there is no ash or old drippings that can jump on your chicken. I like to lay foil at the bottom of the Pit Barrel as some of the other members have suggested. This helps keep my cooks fresh with the flavors I want).

[Bart57266]

Thank you. Given all of the advice about building a hotter "fire," I may try that. However, I do have reservations because it runs contrary to the advice I get from Noah and Amber.

They each recommend exactly what's in the instruction manual, to let the coals burn 12-15 minutes, then hang the meat and add the lid. Otherwise, they say, I'm just burning up the fuel and it won't last long enough. From all of the comments in this thread and elsewhere, it sounds like very few owners actually light their PBC's this way.

Is this the case?

I'll likely try the hotter fire method just to see what happens.

[jjjonz]

Thank you. Given all of the advice about building a hotter "fire," I may try that. However, I do have reservations because it runs contrary to the advice I get from Noah and Amber.

They each recommend exactly what's in the instruction manual, to let the coals burn 12-15 minutes, then hang the meat and add the lid. Otherwise, they say, I'm just burning up the fuel and it won't last long enough. From all of the comments in this thread and elsewhere, it sounds like very few owners actually light their PBC's this way.

Is this the case?

I'll likely try the hotter fire method just to see what happens

Just try it one time and see what you think......I'll bet you will be a happy camper. jmo

[1Bigg_ER]

Sometimes you have to go against Noah and Amber's advice. Make it your own, come up with your own PBC ways.
2 hours and 10 minutes is not hot and fast for chicken. 1 hours is hot and fast

I use lump charcoal for chicken, hot and fast, 1 hour, no issues.
Have you tried cleaning it? Give it a good scrub, then burn it.

Gotta start HOT! Those drippings are not just for flavor, they help control the temp. If you start cool, the drippings will just get your coals even cooler.
Maybe get the bottom vent wide open to give more oxygen to the coals. No, temp won't spike unless you mess with the rebar vents or crack the lid open

[smokeasaurus]

Nothing smells worse than smoldering briquettes. Also helps to trim your meat a little bit more than you usually are used to. This fat rendering through the meat is a bunch of crap. The fat cap can help protect the meat from intense heat.

I once trimmed a brisket (select grade) of all fat just to see how it would cook up. Just as good as the ones I would not trim. So go ahead and trim a little bit more and have those coals white hot........might just help.......

If for some reason the PBC is not right for you, there will be no problems selling it and you can move on to your next cooker 

[spuds]

I do love smoke flavor from real wood, but that isn't the same as the smoke/fog from dripping juices.

Yup,completely different,agree.

[Bart57266]

Well, I haven't sold my PBC yet, and there have been a couple of suggestions I hadn't tried, so I did one more cook with the same meat (chicken leg quarters). This time, however, I changed a whole list of other factors, and guess what? Most of the problems went away.

Here's what changed:
 - Humidity was only 47%, compared to 90%+ in all previous cooks.
 - Bottom vent was open wider (a little less than 1/2, according to PBC instructions).
 - Charcoal pan was lifted 3/8" on small scraps of ceramic tile.
 - Used brand new bag of Kingsford Original, never opened, stored indoors.
 - Used lighter fluid lighting method, lit at four points around outside edges of grate.
 - Two large wood chunks added, between charcoal grate and edges of PBC.
 - Burn-in time was 20 min with lid off, and 80-90% of coals ashed over during that time.
 - Coals were so hot when lid was added, flames were rising from the middle.

And... What I think was the most important change:
 - I trimmed all extra skin and fat from chicken prior to hanging.

There was no excessive dripping or sizzling from the chicken during the cook, no thick white smoke (just thin blue), and NO greasy taste to the chicken - a first for me.

Here's how the barrel temps went:

Hit 311º peak temp a few minutes after adding lid, then it quickly fell.
0:15  272º
0:30  246º
0:45  232º
1:00  227º

Probe was moved to a chicken thigh at this point, and it read as follows:
1:00  159º
1:15  160º
1:30  163º
Cracked the lid (slid sideways) to crisp up the skin
1:45  165º
1:50  169º and a lot more smoke was rolling
Pulled it for dinner

It was delicious, and a lot closer to what I was expecting when purchasing the Pit Barrel.

Bottom line:

 - I think the barrel temps are still dropping too fast, but would like to hear some opinions.
 - Trimming the chicken skin & fat made a huge difference. Less grease drippings = almost no grease taste.

So that's the chicken you've all been raving about!

I've posted these issues in a couple of other threads, so this will be duplicated in them, as well. Hopefully it will help others.

[jjjonz]

Bart sounds like you are hooked....I am going to try to start trimming my meat more.

[Bart57266]

Cooked ribs this evening:

Kept all changes as mentioned above, and trimmed as much fat as possible off the racks.

Awesome results! The family is very happy - and stuffed!

[smokeasaurus]

Great news 

[jjjonz]

I am so glad Bart....At one time I thought about selling mine...so glad I didn't. I still think the grease fog is from not have a hot coals when starting. Think about it, when the drippings fall on hot coals they should evaporate immediately, if not it just causes steam.....grease fog.  It also cools the coals causing a temperature drop that people talk about.