Throwing out my ECB

Mornin',halterjohn and welcome to the good life.

First,and most important,don't even hint to those around you that great Q is now simple.

Just read and research the forum,as it has covered a multitude of questions.At worst,you will turn out a pretty good product.

Any questions after that ,we'll all try to help.

Keep them thinking that it is still terribly hard work,time consuming,constant monitoring and perserverance that is allowing you to produce this excellent product.

Here's a couple of differences:

1. Much much less wood required - around 2oz (about a 2x2 2" long size chunk) for something like a chicken or a few chops.

2. Very low draft which makes for humid cooking without as much of the steaming effect of a water smoker. But this also means that you can't be opening the door all the time to check your food. While you wait for delivery, you might as well buy 2 things: a roll of wide heavy-duty foil, and a wired-probe thermometer (the "Polder" oft-mentioned here). The thermometer should be easily found for at most $20 at your local K-Targ-Wal.

1) 2 oz. of wood per 10 lbs. of meat, don't think it looks to small and add more. It's enough. Buy a weight watchers scale to measure wood weight, that way you can also use wood chips or pellets wrapped in foil poaches. 2) Cuts like brisket or Boston butt do not need to have all that outside fat to keep it moist while cooking, cut it off and the meat will get better smoke coverage. 3) Check out the new Polder dual sensor thermo-timer (Item #894-90). It gives you read out on meat and oven temp. at the same time with one probe. I bought mine for $30 at a cooking store. Also, I've used a long mechanical thermometer that came with my turkey deep fryer cooker. Just line the meat up in the middle and stick the probe straight down through the vent hole and to the center of the meat. 4) Since meat meat cooks moist, you will not need to do things like soaking in fruit juice the night before unless you want to flavor. 5) Always cut the power to your oven at the end, off on the dial doesn't always mean disconnected. I built a switch box with a heavy duty timer so I could preload the oven at night (winter time) have it turn on while I slept, or shut off while I tended other things. 6) Don't mention your CS to other "Q" nuts they still think you have to pay the dues of long dedicated fire tending to get great food.They will mock you and call you all sorts of unflatering names. Also it's not as much fun sitting 8 hours drinking beer watching your CS smoke along without your help! (Diet Coke in my case.)

Good luck.

Temp. control is the best relief I have found just set the temp. and all I have to do is watch the temp. of the meat. I can put a butt in and go to bed and not worry about it.What every body has already said easy on the wood.

Those are some great answers.

But throw out a smoker? What? never
well, okay, if you have to, but keep it for a while, we have a few on the forum that have both and for some things, they prefer other smokers. It's a personal preference thing.

I would suggest you start with something you're familiar with, such as Ribs or Chicken and do that. Get it to where you like it, you'll see the differences and in the process learn.

take Toms suggest. For whatever your smoking, refer to the archives, such as the "ribs" archive for a lot of reading.

That and the other info you've been given will help for a "start."

Just remember,

It's Done when...It's Done

Smokin'