Appreciation post: the old pitmaster who taught me about building a fire the right way

I learned how to smoke meat from this guy named Hank back in 2012 when I was just starting out. He ran a little shack outside of Nashville and he would NEVER use a chimney starter or lighter fluid, just a pile of coals and a torch. Over the years I've seen so many people switch to pellet grills and electric smokers, and I get it, they're easy. But last weekend I built a fire the way Hank showed me, letting the coals ash over slowly with wood chunks on top, and my shoulder came out the best I've had in years. It took about 2 hours longer than my usual method on my Traeger, but the smoke ring was a full quarter inch deep. Anybody else still building fires the old school way or am I just being stubborn?

2 comments

2 Comments

angela_carter8d ago

Started messing around with a stick burner last year after using a pellet grill for 5 years. The first few times I tried building a fire I made a huge mess, piles of white smoke and bitter meat. Finally talked to an old neighbor who told me to let my wood sit out for a few months to dry more and to stack my coals on one side so they burn slow across the firebox. My last brisket had a perfect ring and the fat rendered like butter, took 16 hours but totally worth it.

jones.angela8d ago

That thing about drying your wood is good advice but you gotta be careful with "a few months." For most hardwoods, especially oak and hickory, you want it sitting split for at least 6 to 8 months, ideally a full year. White smoke and bitter meat means the wood still had too much moisture in it. @angela_carter, if you can get a moisture meter for like 15 bucks and check your splits before you throw them in, you'll see a huge difference. You want it down around 15 to 20 percent. Also, make sure you're not storing your wood directly on the ground or it'll soak up moisture from the dirt and mess up all that waiting time.