Mild? (left) or Spicy? (right)
- this is what 10-lbs(wet weight) of jerky looks like after it's dried (minus the pound that the family stole before I got the picture taken)
One of the basic rules when making modifications in barbecue is "Change one thing at a time". That way, you always have a direct correlation between cause and effect. This cook was my first try at jerky on the Klose, and my first time doing this quantity (10-lbs), and my first time laying it directly on the grids instead of hanging it.....so did I stick to the rule? Uh, nope (DOH!). I tried a "Minion Method" burn in the firebox, using a mix of mesquite lump and hardwood briquettes in the fire-ring of a WSM. I was shooting for a 5-hour burn at 150°, and had a bit of trouble keeping the temps down. But, I made some "adjustments" and it came out fine. (Normally, I make my jerky in 5-lb batches on the ECB and it comes out perfect, but I have to add charcoal every 30 min.)
High Noon, and my cooker is 110° in the shade (my first clue). I place the trusty WSM fire-ring in the firebox and start with a layer of briquettes, then a layer of lump (hmmm, lump runs hot huh...my second clue), then a layer of mixed.
I start about 8 briquettes up in a chimney starter, placed on top of the full ring, with a lit cube of paraffin starter. Then, we start loading the cooker:
I'm worried that I won't have enough grid space for all the meat, so I put a grid from my ECB on the hanging rods of the BYC. I try to avoid using the bottom left of the upright, because it runs really cool down there and I wanted all the jerky to finish at about the same time (ended up pulling it in two batches anyway).
High-Noon and a half (12:30pm), and we're all loaded up with the cooker at the optimum 150 degrees. The intake vent is open wide so I close it down so the temp doesn't get too high. Since we're burning charcoal, I'm not worried about choking it (wood logs would be a completely different story). I toss in a couple chunks of dry pecan and some handfuls of dry mesquite chips (hmmm, dry wood burns huh...clue #3)....and we let 'er rip.
Oh tell us Randy, what happened? (as if you didn't see it coming a mile away)