Lump Charcoal
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pr0wlunwoof Chef I agree low cost charcoal is the way to go. Some charcoal is crazy expensive like Jealous Devil.
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pr0wlunwoof A Fireboard with Drive fan is my go to setup for temperature control. It’s not fool proof, because for the best results you need your cooker pretty well dialed in from the start to the temp you want, then just use the fan to maintain. I think many people think right out of the gate all that they need to do is hook the fan up set the temp and walk away and everything will run perfect which isn’t the case.
Sounds like you are on your way to figuring it all out. Allot of what I like about this area of culinary arts is the amount of information that is out there to dig into. Meatgistics has been super informative when it comes to sausage making and I can’t wait to get my equipment and seasoning in. I wish someone had done this style of marketing/packaging/community when I started in BBQ several years back because I spent allot of time digging to get the same level of information Meatgistics is putting out there with their products.
Yeah I have not tried a controller on my ceramic cooker, but I have been using one exclusively on my gravity feed I built. The gravity feed has allot of advantages when it comes to controlling temperatures and fire because it only has one possible route for air which the fan is attached too and it has a damper built in so when it goes to 0% it totally shuts off air.
I use a Heatermeter which is a do it yourself controller and paired it with a ducted fan which I put in a 3d printed case that holds a servo controlled damper. Allot of advantages to this system is you can use various types of thermometers and you have unlimited calibration.
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Sounds like you are on your way to figuring it all out. Allot of what I like about this area of culinary arts is the amount of information that is out there to dig into. Meatgistics has been super informative when it comes to sausage making and I can’t wait to get my equipment and seasoning in. I wish someone had done this style of marketing/packaging/community when I started in BBQ several years back because I spent allot of time digging to get the same level of information Meatgistics is putting out there with their products.
Yeah I have not tried a controller on my ceramic cooker, but I have been using one exclusively on my gravity feed I built. The gravity feed has allot of advantages when it comes to controlling temperatures and fire because it only has one possible route for air which the fan is attached too and it has a damper built in so when it goes to 0% it totally shuts off air.
I use a Heatermeter which is a do it yourself controller and paired it with a ducted fan which I put in a 3d printed case that holds a servo controlled damper. Allot of advantages to this system is you can use various types of thermometers and you have unlimited calibration.
pr0wlunwoof You are so correct that there is a lot of really good information to be had, way more than when I started. So, just where do you do BBQ? Did/Do you do it commercially?
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I worked as a line cook for a few years when I was high school and I’m happy to not pull those hours anymore. I BBQ in South East Georgia. It’s a hobby, but I get pretty serious about my hobbies. I would like to get into competition BBQ at some point, but I lack the extra time at this point, maybe in a few years. Most of my hobbies feed each other (welding to smoker fabrication, fabrication to cooking, electronics to controllers, brewing cause beer makes everything better) so sausage making is the next venture.
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pr0wlunwoof That’s awesome that you did that, thank you for sharing! What do you like to do for BBQ? Have you heard of or tried the Steak Cookoff Association? We were going to host an event for them but it got canceled (Covid-19) and then we were going to have one of the founders on the podcast but he had to cancel last minute. Still, last years event was awesome and we look forward to having them in future years.
Get more help with your processing questions and learn more about processing meat by subscribing to our waltonsinc.com youtube page at https://wltns.link/waltonstv I am a Gorilla, love yourself
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pr0wlunwoof That’s awesome that you did that, thank you for sharing! What do you like to do for BBQ? Have you heard of or tried the Steak Cookoff Association? We were going to host an event for them but it got canceled (Covid-19) and then we were going to have one of the founders on the podcast but he had to cancel last minute. Still, last years event was awesome and we look forward to having them in future years.
First off thanks for the great content on youtube. It really got me hooked on researching sausage/cured meats.
I had not heard of the the Steak Cookoff Association, I will have to look over their site.
Here is a link to the Retort build.
Few pics for perusal.
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pr0wlunwoof Looks great, once I get my wife and I out of the suburbs and onto some land I might give that a try! If I did now the HOA would probably have an enormous issue with it because they are stupid and annoying! Actually, I have never made charcoal, I am assuming that it smokes excessively but…am I wrong on that?
Get more help with your processing questions and learn more about processing meat by subscribing to our waltonsinc.com youtube page at https://wltns.link/waltonstv I am a Gorilla, love yourself
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Don’t get me started about HOAs. I got introduced to them around 40 years ago & had high hopes wanting to be part of it all & help folks with real solutions, etc. Then I realized in a short while what I was really dealing with & want nothing to do with the boards. They are not about helping folks, but controlling folks & they really have no idea what they are doing in many cases, at least regarding building & design, but are just about control. I will no longer live in an area that has them if I can help it, so we have pretty much stuck to rural settings. I will say nothing more as I have probably said more than enough. I did not think there was that much smoke when making my own once I shut it all down & sealed it off. However, mine never looked quite as good as yours, Prowling Wolf, I don’t believe. Your operation looks very serious.
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pr0wlunwoof Also thank you for the compliment, it actually does mean a very large amount to Austin and I that we have so many users who have enjoyed or benefitted from the videos we have put out. Some videos like the will it bbq or recipe for disaster stuff is more so we can do something fun but it is nice to know.
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pr0wlunwoof Looks great, once I get my wife and I out of the suburbs and onto some land I might give that a try! If I did now the HOA would probably have an enormous issue with it because they are stupid and annoying! Actually, I have never made charcoal, I am assuming that it smokes excessively but…am I wrong on that?
It does smoke a good bit as your pushing off the moisture up until you get the combustible gasses ignited. After ignition it is pretty clean. I think the worst part of my setup is the noise the Air Compressor makes.
The setups which use two 50 gallon drums would probably be the best setup for a suburban area. I will try and find that video. Most ordinances/HOAs require you to burn/bbq in an enclosed apparatus such as a drum anyway so you might be able to argue that your following the rules etc.
If I had a more unlimited source of wood I would probably go that route as the oil burner is a PIA to get dialed in. I have a good supply of waist oil though and we were talking at one point about getting into forgery so it was a two bird one burner type project.
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pr0wlunwoof Looks great, once I get my wife and I out of the suburbs and onto some land I might give that a try! If I did now the HOA would probably have an enormous issue with it because they are stupid and annoying! Actually, I have never made charcoal, I am assuming that it smokes excessively but…am I wrong on that?
Found the video. Its a 3 part series, watch it at 1.5 to 2x. Based on supplies and effort I think his method has a great ROI.
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Found the video. Its a 3 part series, watch it at 1.5 to 2x. Based on supplies and effort I think his method has a great ROI.
pr0wlunwoof THANK YOU , not sure I would do this on a regular basis, but great information to know if we ever need it (not trying to be political, just want to be prepared just in case…)
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pr0wlunwoof THANK YOU , not sure I would do this on a regular basis, but great information to know if we ever need it (not trying to be political, just want to be prepared just in case…)
Yeah Its not that hard, and for those who like projects its a fairly easy one to accomplish. I have read about Chefs that make their own charcoal out of the bones of the animals they process on site and then cook the meat over that bone char. That seems pretty cool even though charcoal by definition should impart no flavors being pure carbon. Still an interesting approach to farm to table and cutting down on the waste cycle of production.
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I worked as a line cook for a few years when I was high school and I’m happy to not pull those hours anymore. I BBQ in South East Georgia. It’s a hobby, but I get pretty serious about my hobbies. I would like to get into competition BBQ at some point, but I lack the extra time at this point, maybe in a few years. Most of my hobbies feed each other (welding to smoker fabrication, fabrication to cooking, electronics to controllers, brewing cause beer makes everything better) so sausage making is the next venture.
pr0wlunwoof Just be careful about those “serious hobbies”. Look at what it did to me!
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pr0wlunwoof Just be careful about those “serious hobbies”. Look at what it did to me!
That is a very nice cooker. You must cook for entire Armies. Fortunately I do not have that many friends or I would have my whole paycheck going towards feeding them. This is my little cooking space with my other cooker I built, a reverse flow tow behind from an old 120 gallon propane tank. It also has a gas burner down the middle which helps it double as a grill for burger burns. I am still in hobby land, but maybe one day I will get to play for a living.
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pr0wlunwoof He does, he posts pics of some of his spreads and they are pretty amazing, color me slightly jealous!
Get more help with your processing questions and learn more about processing meat by subscribing to our waltonsinc.com youtube page at https://wltns.link/waltonstv I am a Gorilla, love yourself
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That is a very nice cooker. You must cook for entire Armies. Fortunately I do not have that many friends or I would have my whole paycheck going towards feeding them. This is my little cooking space with my other cooker I built, a reverse flow tow behind from an old 120 gallon propane tank. It also has a gas burner down the middle which helps it double as a grill for burger burns. I am still in hobby land, but maybe one day I will get to play for a living.
pr0wlunwoof This is my living now. Sadly, only about 20% BBQ, but I still love it. That’s a very nice rig you have. So glad you joined us, I have really found this community to be some of the best people. Everyone helping each other enjoy what we love best. ( Okay, making sausage as well, but eating does come first LOL)
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pr0wlunwoof He does, he posts pics of some of his spreads and they are pretty amazing, color me slightly jealous!
Jonathon BTW I have done 3200 people, but before I die, want to do 5000. Time to have a party!
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Jonathon BTW I have done 3200 people, but before I die, want to do 5000. Time to have a party!
Chef Well Chef, then just make sure you at least invite all of us & don’t forget the Tequila & the Topo Chico too! By the way, isn’t that ##!!%4 storm headed your way or are you far enough to the west of it. We hope you are all OK.
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Chef Well Chef, then just make sure you at least invite all of us & don’t forget the Tequila & the Topo Chico too! By the way, isn’t that ##!!%4 storm headed your way or are you far enough to the west of it. We hope you are all OK.
calldoctoday I’m about 50 miles west of Houston, and we got nothing. It’s been so long since we had any rain, my poof well pump has been running 24/7 for weeks.
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