My #2 has been puttin' in work

[UK_CATS_FAN]

So far: a Boston butt, brisket, baby back ribs and today a whole turkey. All turned out pretty well, but the turkey was the best. One thing I have noticed was almost everything has been just a tad on the dry side, any tips????
I always use a liquid boat with apple juice or shiner beer and a Maverick 732 to monitor internal temp. 
Taste was there, although I got over zealous on the ribs and pulled at 5 hours on the dot.  They were cooked, but needed another hour in the oven to get tender.  Any tips appreciated and thanks for all the information y'all post. 

 

[NDKoze]

I think we need some more information to help with what is causing the dryness.

Such as:

• Type of meat
• Smoker temp
• Internal meat temp when you took it out of the smoker
• What shelf was it on
• Did you open the door during the smoking cycle
• Did you brine or inject the meat

Brining is the first thing that comes to mind that will help with the dryness. But answers to the questions I listed above will help even further.

 

[UK_CATS_FAN]

Boston butt: brined, 225 pulled at 195 internal, highest shelf it would fit on and never opened the door til it was pulled.

Brisket: injected, 225 pulled at 195 internal, highest shelf it would fit on and never opened the door til it was pulled.

Ribs: not brined, 225 pulled at 5 hours, highest shelf it would fit on and never opened the door til it was pulled. Side note did not remove the bone side sheath, but will next time. 

Whole turkey: brined, 250 pulled at 165 internal, highest shelf it would fit on and never opened the door til it was pulled.

 

[tnlyne]

When I did brisket I brined it and injected it with ~12hr rest after the injecting before going to smoker.  Also, do you nestle the apple cider on the floor next to the smoke box? When I did a brisket I could see the moisture/smoke coming out the top for about 8-10 hours on an almost 12 hour smoke for the 12 lb brisket.  Did you also leave some or most of the fat cap on the brisket? Did you rest your brisket and butt after the smoke in foil wrap and blanketed in a cooler for at least an hour?


My last round of ribs was a "little" dry but I figured that's because I opened the door 2-3 times to spritz the ribs with apple juice. Tomorrow I'm doing ribs and going to do a 5.5 hour no peek method. I haven't tried a boston butt yet.

 

[UK_CATS_FAN]

Always used a pale of liquid next to the fire box.  I left the fat cap on the brisket only slightly trimmed it and all meats were doubled wrapped in foil and and towels then kept in a cooler for at least an hour sometimes longer.

Today I set the smoker at 250 and it never dropped until 4.5 hour.  It hovered around 280-285 once it reached peak heat.  Other smokes it seemed she was "running hot", but it figured it would balance out. 

 

[NDKoze]

Always used a pale of liquid next to the fire box.  I left the fat cap on the brisket only slightly trimmed it and all meats were doubled wrapped in foil and and towels then kept in a cooler for at least an hour sometimes longer.

Today I set the smoker at 250 and it never dropped until 4.5 hour.  It hovered around 280-285 once it reached peak heat.  Other smokes it seemed she was "running hot", but it figured it would balance out. 

Hmm, well I have to admit that I am a little stumped. It seems like you did everything right.

It is possible that your smoker is running a little hotter than the dial says.

You said you ran it today and it was running around 280-285? Was that with an empty smoker or with meat in? An empty smoker will run hot and have wild swings.

Just a remote possibility, but can you double check to make sure that the small cardboard protective piece that comes wrapped around the smoker's internal thermometer has been removed? I didn't notice this on mine for the first two to three smokes and my smoker ran really hot during that time.

 

[Barrel99]

I have a #3 and never had temps as high as 285. That seems awfully high for these boxes unless you are using an Auber. At 250 I get swings from 230 to max 270 in the box. Of course it depends on where you put your probe in the box. Next time just try dangling your probe in the box being careful not to touch your meat or metal. A few inches is enough and watch you temp. If it hovers at 280+ turn down you temp control 10-20 degrees to get to 250.

 

[DivotMaker]

Tony - sounds like your unit runs a little hot.  You can calibrate the knob to adjust for it:

http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=1219.0

 

[Barrel99]

I had the opposite problem. Mine was running too low. I used the calibration method Tony provided the link for and was able to compensate for it. Just be careful when you poke the inner knob out. I chewed mine up a bit by not being careful enough and now the control knob has a little play in it.

 

[DivotMaker]

Good tip, Arnie!  Yeah, that center section can be a bit tricky, but becomes clear once it's apart.