I love this 22": Weber kettle grill I picked up at a yard sale, $25! i have several cooks logged, but still struggling with temp control. T-bones seared last night were excellent. i'm playing with the vents and barely open on bottom, full open on top keeps just out of the chimney coals under 300f. Keeping top open, an hour later, i open up the bottom as coals cool. Using a pile of charcoal on one side, foil of the coal grate, wall of the pile with tin foil for indirect 2 zone cook. any tips and methods appreciated, thanks.
Uncle Google tells me to open the bottom vent to match stick, top full open. It's a pain to kneel under the kettle to see the vent, but it's worth it. my whole chicken, temp held at close to 300.
My grilling really improved when I actually watched the bottom vents as I opened and closed them. From fully closed to fully open is only about 1/4 of the total travel allowed by the handle design....... the last 3/4 of travel does nothing (it's already open fully). I marked mine with a Sharpie so I know when it is 1/4 open, 1/2 open and fully open.
I only run mine barely open or wide open. Steaks- direct heat wide open Chicken- indirect heat wide open. Smoking meats- indirect barely open. You can make a kettle run a long time @225° with the fuse method or with a charcoal basket.
Direct Indirect Like said before, in between temps take practice. Think of the bottom vent as coarse adjustment and the top as fine adjustment
Make a fuse out of the charcoal around the walls of the kettle. Light one end and let it burn to the other.
Ok thanks. I have seen that setup called the snake method also. when doing this, do the the unlit coals starting to burn produce much smoke? I like to start with Small amount of wood smoke, add a little more Ann hour or so later, and that's it for smoke.
Yea, makes sense. I have been hesitant to try, but adding more charcoal to to a dying fire is necessary. moving up to the next level
In my opinion the snake works best for really long cooks. It's not needed to go 4 hours or less. The snake will go for 10+ hours.
The ol' smoke snake method. Good stuff. They make metal boxes with a channel that snakes around and you fill with chips for a long slow smoke too. I don't have one but I hear they work really well.
One tip for using the fuse/snake- like in the photo above, use smaller chunks of wood spread over about the first third of the snake. Big chunks sometimes don't burn completely.
Accidental success. I usually tinfoil off top of the charcoal grate in front of the coal pile. I had a brain fart,and tin foiled the whole charcoal grate. Coals on top of tinfoil, restricting air flow, even more than the intake bottom vent, I presume. Temps never went over 310 before I started to adjust intake vent, or added any meat. Temps much reduced and stayed around 220 when a pork loin and two half racks of top loin ribs added
any one use fire brick in their weber? I spent 2 bucks at Lowes for two bricks. I placed the bricks in front of the Weber charcoal holding dish, or it just so happened to be where the fire side of the bricks touch the bowl on the bottom, laid end to end. then cut laid out a compound miter cut one brick to fit it snug against the wall of the bottom bowl. the cut off piece fits perfectly on the other side of the second brick, so I have a straight wall of brick across the grill. The brick walls off the heat area, provides a heat sink. temps are much easier to keep low and slow
that's a branch of peach wood in the pic above. gives chicken anice yellow color, but with my heavy on the paprika rub, it turns out a bit orange.
