Had an old pitmaster in Lockhart casually tell me the trick to cleaner smoke

I was at Kreuz Market last March, just watching the pits through the window between bites of brisket. An older guy, probably 70s, was pulling a pork shoulder and I asked him how he kept the smoke so clean without that bitter edge. He didn't look up, just said 'your wood needs to be dry and your firebox needs to breathe.' Then he pointed at the smoke coming out and said if you see white billows, you're choking it. He told me to run a fire with the door cracked open an inch for the first 15 minutes before closing it. Been doing that on my offset ever since and it's night and day. Anyone else pick up a tiny trick from a random pit that changed how you cook?

2 comments

2 Comments

piper_flores692d ago

Started out thinking the whole cracked door thing was some old timer myth. Tried it once out of boredom and yeah, the first 15 minutes really do make a difference. Never going back to choking the fire right away.

simon_sanchez582d ago

That cracked door trick was the biggest humble pie I've ever eaten. First time I tried it I was literally standing there waiting for the fire to die or something dumb like that. Then I checked after 20 minutes and the whole firebox was glowing like a blast furnace. Definitely learned my lesson about listening to the old heads who've been burning wood since before I was born. Still mess it up sometimes when I'm rushing though, but at least now I know better. You ever accidentally choked it too early and had to restart the whole thing?