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Emergency...help required

Ohio Boy in DC
Ohio Boy in DC Posts: 67
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Smoking my first Butt today (I got the egg on Sunday), started ok at 1:40 and 2:15 therm temp was around 225, just checked at 3:45 and the temp was 400 with a lot of flame...[p]1) Any tips on cooling it down and saving the butt?
2) Can the butt be saved at this point or will I be chewing shoe leather...[p]Thanks for any help...
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Comments

  • Car Wash Mike
    Car Wash Mike Posts: 11,244
    OhioBoy in DC,
    If you can, get the butt off, wrap in foil. Add more lump and stabilize at 225 or your desired temp.
    For future uses, when the temp gets to 25-50 degrees below what you are wanting to cook at, close the vents to about 1/4 inch and monitor, that should elminate the 400 degree.[p]CWM
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  • Ohio Boy in DC
    Ohio Boy in DC Posts: 67
    Car Wash Mike,[p]Thanks...any tips for a quick cool down...[p]many thanks

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  • Car Wash Mike
    Car Wash Mike Posts: 11,244
    OhioBoy in DC,
    Add more lump. Just a couple handfulls on what is burning, the lump that is. Don't put the butt back on until you have temp stablized. A lot of people have this trouble when first starting. It takes a lot of practice to get it where you can leave. I can light lump, set vents and leave for 5- 6 hours without a problem but it took time to learn.
    You will get it.[p]CWM
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  • BBQfan1
    BBQfan1 Posts: 562
    OhioBoy in DC,
    As CWM says, start to gear down as your temp rises toward your 'goal', not when it's there.... If you're getting flamage, closing the vents to slits will eliminate that, but the thermal retention qualities of the Egg will mean that it will take a while (What's a while? Maybe 30 mins to get from 400 to 275).
    On the plus, plus, plus side... you are doing a pork butt roast, which is the most forgiving all bbq cooks. The main rule is: Don't make DRASTIC changes... just ease the throttles back a bit and the Egg will stabalize in good time. The butt roast is chuck full o' fat and flavor, so it's hard to dry out.... You'll soon find that just a finger-tap on the vents will create a 20-25 degree fluctuation if given time.
    I'm just off to put a rib loin roast onto the Egg....
    Good luck with that pulled pork cook!
    Qfan
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  • QBabe
    QBabe Posts: 2,275
    OhioBoy in DC,[p]As Mike and the others have mentioned, close up the vents some and let her come down a bit. I find that usually I end up with maybe a credit card's width opening on the lower vent and the daisy top mostly closed for a 250° cook on my egg.[p]One question, did you have it set up for an indirect cook? Some kind of barrier between the lump and the meat (platesetter, firebricks)? Also, did you have a drip pan to catch the fat drippings (sorry, I guess that was two questions)...[p]QBabe
    :~)

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  • Ohio Boy in DC
    Ohio Boy in DC Posts: 67
    Many thanks...big difference between the egg and my old water smoker....I had to really get that going to maintain dome temperatures....[p]Great part is I got the bloodshot eyes of a pro now...[p]My wife thinks I've hit happy hour early!
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  • Ohio Boy in DC
    Ohio Boy in DC Posts: 67
    QBabe,
    No platesetter, but a roasting pan and broiler rack with a little apple cider in it...[p]Thanks..
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  • Ohio Boy in DC
    Ohio Boy in DC Posts: 67
    Car Wash Mike,
    Many thanks...big difference between the egg and my old water smoker....I had to really get that going to maintain dome temperatures....[p]Great part is I got the bloodshot eyes of a pro now...[p]My wife thinks I've hit happy hour early!

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  • bigmikej
    bigmikej Posts: 216
    OhioBoy in DC,
    Be careful putting liquids containing sugar in the drip pan. On a long cook the liquid will evaporate leaving the sugar to burn in the bottom of the drip pan, leaving a rock hard mess to clean up and an unpleasant taste (though not inedible) on the meat. This has happened to me on butt and rib cooks before I finally figured it out.
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  • Ohio Boy in DC
    Ohio Boy in DC Posts: 67
    bigmikej,[p]good tip...would you take the cider out at this point...(I used to do use cider with my water smoker)

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  • bigarms
    bigarms Posts: 136
    OhioBoy in DC,[p]If you have been raising the lid, I suspect the daisy wheel is opening up on you. There is a correct way to position it so it stays at the same setting. Also, having the temps set and then putting the butt on will change your temps, so shoot for a temp slightly higher than what you plan to cook. Make sure the Daisy wheel is back to the right setting if you open the lid. It has got us all.....just part of getting use to coooking on the BGE....also Mickey T rings will solve this problem.
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  • Car Wash Mike
    Car Wash Mike Posts: 11,244
    OhioBoy in DC,
    Let us know how it turned out.[p]CWM

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  • wdan
    wdan Posts: 261
    OhioBoy in DC,
    If you haven't done so already, try putting water in your drip pan. You've done this with your old smoker to help keep the meat moist. But the other thing the water does, is absorb a lot of heat. Firefighters know this trick and mechanical engineers can go on for hours about entropy and the vapor dome on h-v plots and all kinds of other stuff I have long forgotten. But I think you'll find the water will help.
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