c/bbq-pitmasters

I finally stopped using expensive rubs and started making my own

For years I was buying those $12 bottles of rub at the store thinking they were magic. Then at a comp in Memphis last fall, a pitmaster named Ray told me his secret was just salt, pepper, garlic powder, and a touch of brown sugar. I tried it on a pork butt the next weekend and it tasted way better than any pre-made stuff I ever used. Anyone else ditch the fancy rubs and go simple?

Vent: A guy at a comp told me to wrap in butcher paper instead of foil. He was right but I almost threw a fit over it.

So I'm at a backyard comp in Kansas City last summer, first time doing brisket in a real competition. This older dude, name was Rick, walks by my setup and sees me wrapping in foil. He goes 'You're steaming it, son. Use peach paper.' I got so defensive. Like who is this random guy telling me my method is wrong? I ignored him. My brisket turned out good but the bark was soggy and I placed 12th out of 15. Next weekend I tried his advice with some Costco butcher paper. Bark was perfect. Moisture was still there. I felt dumb for being stubborn. Has anyone else gotten advice from a stranger that stung at first but ended up being the best tip you ever got?

Overheard a pitmaster say 'low and slow' is actually a lie

I was at a competition in Kansas City last weekend and this old timer said 'low and slow is a myth for most cooks, cook at 275 not 225.' I always thought you had to go 225 for everything. Tried his advice on a pork shoulder at 275 and it came out just as juicy but took 4 hours less. Has anyone else bumped up their temp and still got good bark?

TIL wrapping brisket in butcher paper instead of foil changed my whole cook time and bark quality

For 3 years I wrapped in foil like my uncle taught me, but after watching a pitmaster from Lockhart, Texas do a demo at a local event last Saturday, I tried pink butcher paper on a 12 pound packer and the bark came out crisp instead of soggy and it finished 2 hours faster, has anyone else noticed a huge difference switching between the two wraps?

Tried wrapping my brisket in butcher paper instead of foil and got a bark that was way too soft

I did my usual 12 pound packer last Saturday on my offset smoker in Austin. Wrapped it at 165 in peach butcher paper like everyone raves about. Pulled it at 203 after 14 hours and let it rest for 2 hours. The bark was almost mushy and the fat didn't render as clean as when I use foil. I'm wondering if I wrapped too early or if butcher paper is just not for my cooker setup. Has anyone else had this issue with paper on a stick burner?

The worst brisket day I ever had at a comp in Kansas City last June

I showed up at the American Royal with a brand new offset smoker I had tuned all spring. The wind shifted hard around 4 AM and my firebox temps dropped 40 degrees before I caught it. That brisket came out dry and tough as leather, and I placed 47th out of 60 teams. Has anyone else had one of those days where everything just fights you?

I was totally against pellet grills for years until I used one at a cabin last weekend

I grew up with stick burners and always said pellet grills were just glorified outdoor ovens that couldn't bark a brisket properly. My buddy Tom has a Camp Chef at his place up near Lake Tahoe and he begged me to give it a shot while we were there for his birthday. I figured I'd smoke some pork shoulders just to prove my point, but after 14 hours of dead steady temps at 225 with no babysitting, I had to admit the bark was solid and the smoke ring was actually there. What really got me was the flavor - it wasn't as deep as an offset, but it was cleaner and the meat tasted like pork instead of just campfire ash. I'm not throwing away my WSM or my Old Country Brazos, but I get why people use these things now for overnight cooks or when they want to sleep. Has anyone else made the switch away from stick burners or do you use both like I'm thinking about doing?

Visited a little BBQ joint in Kansas City last weekend and changed my mind about burnt ends

I always thought burnt ends were just overhyped scraps, but the ones at Joe's Kansas City were so tender and smoky they melted. The bark had this deep pepper crust that totally won me over. Anyone else have a place that changed their mind on a classic?

That time my brisket stall lasted 6 hours and nearly ruined dinner

Last Saturday I fired up my offset smoker for a 14-pound packer brisket at 6 AM, thinking I'd have it rested by 6 PM. The stall hit at 160 degrees and just sat there for 6 hours, barely moving, while the family started texting asking when food would be ready. Anyone else ever have a stall that felt like it would never break and had to improvise a late-night meal?

That old pitmaster in Lockhart who said to leave the lid shut

I was at a BBQ competition last March in Lockhart, Texas. An older guy named Hank, who had a trailer full of trophies, told me I was opening my smoker too much. He said every time I lifted the lid, I was losing 15 degrees of heat and adding 20 minutes to the cook. I didn't believe him at first because I wanted to check on my brisket every hour. But I tried his advice on my next batch, only opening it twice during a 12-hour smoke. The bark came out way better and the meat was more tender. Anyone else had a veteran pitmaster give advice that seemed wrong but worked out?

Used to think charcoal was the only way for real smoke flavor, but then I tried a pellet smoker at a competition in Kansas City last month

I was always that guy who said pellet smokers were just set it and forget it ovens, not real BBQ. But my buddy let me try his pulled pork off a Traeger at a KC competition and man it was moist and had great bark. Meanwhile my stick burner brisket came out dry and I was up all night adjusting vents. The flavor difference was close enough that I honestly couldn't tell a huge gap. I still like charcoal for steaks but for long cooks I might grab a pellet smoker next. Has anyone else jumped ship from one method to another and regretted it or been surprised?

Pork shoulder battle: Slow cooker vs smoker, and it's not even close

I did a side by side test last weekend with two 8 pound butts from Costco. One went in the slow cooker on low for 10 hours with some apple juice, the other on my offset smoker at 225 for about 14 hours. The slow cooker one was fine and juicy, but the bark on the smoked one and that deep hickory flavor just blew it away completely. Has anyone else tried this and felt the same way, or am I just biased toward smoke?

Tried the snake method vs minion method on my WSM last weekend and snake blew me away

I've been using the minion method for like 2 years on my 18 inch Weber Smokey Mountain and always got okay results but temps were all over the place. Last Saturday I tried the snake method with some Stubb's briquettes and it held 225 for 8 hours without me touching a single vent. My pork shoulder came out so much more consistent too, no hot spots or flare ups. Has anyone else switched methods and saw a big difference like that?

Shoutout to the pitmaster in Kansas City who showed me why I was over-trimming my brisket

Last Saturday I watched him take off maybe a quarter inch of fat cap and leave the deckle completely untouched, and my briskets have been dry for 2 years because I was shaving everything down like I was prepping a steak.

Talked to an old pitmaster in Lockhart last weekend and he said he never uses wood chunks, just splits, and now I think I've been doing brisket wrong for 3 years.

He told me chunks burn too fast and give you dirty smoke if you're not careful, and after trying his method on a 14 pound packer I got the best bark I've ever had, has anyone else made that switch and stuck with it?

I finally learned why my smoker kept dying at hour 6

Last weekend I was doing a brisket for a church cookoff down in Austin and everything was going perfect for the first 5 hours. Then around hour 6 the temp just started dropping like a rock and I couldn't figure out why. I kept checking the vents and adding charcoal but nothing helped. Turns out I had been using a bag of lump charcoal that got left out in the rain and it was basically wet chunks of dirt. I didn't realize until I dumped out the ash pan and found a soggy mess that wouldn't hold a flame. Ended up running to the grocery store at 10 PM for a bag of Kingsford just to finish the cook. The brisket still turned out okay but I learned to check my charcoal supply before the weekend. Has anyone else had a batch of charcoal totally ruin a cook like that?

Overheard a guy at the BBQ competition say 'just flip your brisket once' and it changed everything

I was at the Kansas City Royal BBQ contest last Saturday, just walking around the vendor area. Some older pitmaster was talking to a rookie, telling him to stop opening the smoker every 30 minutes to flip or spritz. He said 'you're letting out all the heat and moisture, just flip it once halfway through and leave it alone.' I tried that on my last cook, a 14 pound prime packer. Set my temp at 250, flipped it at the 6 hour mark, wrapped at 165. Bark came out perfect, not soft or soggy. Has anyone else gotten better results from keeping the lid shut most of the cook?

Had a pitmaster tell me "if you can't hold it steady, you can't hold it right" and it stuck with me

Ran into this old timer named Chuck at a competition last weekend in Austin. He was talking about how so many folks get obsessed with fancy rubs or expensive smokers but can't keep their temps within 20 degrees. Said he watched me tending my fire and pointed out I was adjusting the vents every 5 minutes. Told me to just let the thing breathe and focus on airflow basics. I thought about it and he's right - I've been chasing gadgets when the real skill is just staying consistent. Has anyone else had a veteran pitmaster give them a piece of simple advice that changed how they cook?

I keep seeing people trim brisket like it's a steak

Was at a competition last month in Kansas City and watched three teams remove almost all the fat cap. They said it was for a better bark but those briskets came out dry as hell. I've been behind a pit for about 6 years now and you need at least a quarter inch of fat on there to keep it moist through the stall. Anybody else run into folks over trimming and having to explain why their meat turned out tough?

Talked to a pitmaster in Lockhart who changed how I see trimming brisket

I was at Black's BBQ in Lockhart last Saturday and got to chatting with one of the guys trimming briskets. He told me I was leaving too much fat on the point and that I should follow the meat shape closer instead of trying to make it pretty. After trying it on my last two cooks, I got way better bark and less grease pooling. Anyone else ever get advice from a pro that totally flipped their process?

Pro tip: Hit 200 briskets this past weekend and it scared me how fast my burn rate changed

I had to swap out my firebox grate after only 12 cooks because the heat concentration warped it thin, has anyone else seen that happen once you cross that many cooks?

Rubbed my brisket the same way for 5 years until I saw a 15 degree temp swing ruin my bark

Tried a snake method on my offset smoker and ate crow

I always told people snake method was just for those little bullet smokers, not real pits. Then my fire management went sideways during a 12 hour brisket cook last month. I was adding splits every 45 minutes and still fighting temp swings. Finally tried a modified snake with some pecan chunks around the edge and it held 250 for almost 3 hours without touching it. Anyone else stubborn about a technique then had to admit it works?

Serious question, why is everyone pulling pork shoulder at 195 degrees instead of 203?

I noticed at a backyard cookout last weekend a buddy pulled his shoulder at 195 and it was tough as shoe leather, then I remembered Franklin's book says 203-205 for the best pull and I swear I haven't had a dry shoulder since I made that switch, has anyone else run into this?

Had a conversation with my uncle about brisket stall temps and it messed with my head

I've been doing brisket for about 7 years now, always wrapped in butcher paper at 165 degrees like clockwork. My uncle came over last weekend while I was smoking a 14 pounder and said I was overthinking it. He told me to just let it ride without wrapping until the fat cap rendered down soft, usually around 195 internal. I thought he was crazy because that goes against everything I read online. But he's been cooking on an old offset smoker for 40 years and his bark is always perfect. So I tried it his way on a batch last Saturday and the fat rendered way better, kept more moisture. Has anyone else here ditched the wrap and seen better results?