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?

2 comments

2 Comments

ryanm608d ago

Hank was dead right though. I used to peek every 30 minutes until an old timer told me the same thing and I finally shut the lid and let it ride. Best brisket I ever made came from learning to trust the process and stop being so impatient.

evahenderson8d ago

My first brisket I stared at it so much I wish I had a time lapse. That thing took over 14 hours and I swear I opened the lid at least 8 times. But honestly, does it really mess it up that bad? I see people online acting like one peek ruins the whole thing forever but I've still gotten good results even when I peek a few times near the end. I don't know maybe it matters more on cheaper smokers but I feel like it's not a total disaster if you check once or twice.