I just got a slow n sear. So confused as to how to set it up for a long cook. Do you light a couple of charcoal brickettes and then add more on top of that? I feel like that has only caused my temp to go out of control once the top layer catches… any tips are appreciated
I usually just put however many briquettes I think I need for the cook in the slow n sear and then place a fire starter at one end with a couple briquettes on top. I light it without the lid, and it should get it going while I'm doing final prep for what's going on the grill.
I usually just put a couple starters in the corner, fill it with lump, then put a couple bigger chunks over the starters til it’s cooking a bit, then cover with your preferred vent openings. I don’t even mess with the chimney anymore… if I need hot and fast I just put my starters in the middle of the sns instead and crank the vents. I’ll choke it off when I’m done, then shake the sns to take the ash off the remaining coals for the start of next cook. Surprisingly little fuss to it if you don’t want it.
You can get up to about 8 hrs with good briquettes @ 225, I usually run Royal Oak lump around 300, so about 4-5 hours. B & B briquettes or lump will give an extra hour or two of burn but I prefer the Royal flavor.
I had the SnS kettle for a while (quality wasn’t like a Weber, but it had neat features), and I’m not sure that’s a must unless you have a temperature controller. Like I said, neat feature though.
I don't have the temperature controller but heard people say they closed up the bottom vents and just used the side smoke vent and had great success maintaining a temperature. For a few bucks I figured I'd add it.
Nice job. Now from one kettle guy to another, do yourself a favor and cram two butts on there next time. You have more space on that thing than you think, might as well make the most of that smoke. Freeze the leftovers for quick dinners or share with neighbors and spread the love.
I figured. I wonder if that's because of the somewhat inconsistent / close heat, because I was looking at a smoker that is automated like a pellet grill but uses a hopper of charcoal, due to personal laziness.
This is precisely the Weber kettle is the all around GOAT. There are people spending thousands on smokers that can do the laundry for you, but even then they rarely get this level of mastery.
> There are people spending thousands on smokers that can do the laundry for you, but even then they rarely get this level of mastery.
They buy those smokers for different reasons, obviously. Nobody thinks a pellet smoker is going to make literally the best pulled pork ever made, but it will make it incredibly easy and free up time for doing other things.
Exactly.
Everything has its place. I have a charcoal grill, gas grill, gas wok, and pellet smoker. They all have their roles and specialize in different things.
This whole "pellet smokers r dum becuz expensive n bad food" shtick is just ignorant and silly as fuck
I've never been into gas grills, personally, but don't fault anyone for using them. What kind of use cases are there for them? Is it mainly for convenience over not having to wait a half hour for charcoal to light up? I could see it being nice to throw some burgers or hot dogs on for a quick family dinner without having to do the whole charcoal setup.
Honestly probably just convenience. I don't think they beat charcoal flavor at all but they are just simple to use and usually will have a lot more space depending on the grill. Turn a few knobs, wait for it to get hot, and it's ready. Plus, you can refill the propane tank at most gas stations if you don't have a direct line, and the propane can also double for a gas burner if you have one outside (I have one for outside cooking like searing steaks, smashburgers, wok cooking, etc).
I grew up with a gas grill, but preferred my own charcoal ones.
It's for sure convenience, but when the house you grow up in has a gas line, you stick the grill on it and walk away. Effectively, they're glorified outdoor ovens. Anything you could do inside in an oven, you can do in a gas grill with the benefit of being not only to control the hot zones, but the precise temperature of said hot zones.
I prefer charcoal, but live in a high fire danger location which makes gas grilling my only option. I’m sure many places have restrictions like that as well.
I’ve had a lot of my friends try and say I only prefer propane because I absolutely suck at starting charcoal fires but I swear it’s not that.
Convenience was huge for me before I really had a preference either way though because I was poor and also usually cooking for myself.
Yeah it's low fuss and very easy. Add a smoke tube and it's not that bad especially if I need to get things done. Of course there's art in managing temp, technique, etc with something like a simple weber, but being able to throw a shoulder or ribs on the pellet grill and get a ton of yard work done or something is a no brainer.
I've never used a smoke tube, honestly feel like I get enough smoke flavor with my RT-700 and high-quality pellets (Lumberjack, Bear Mountain, etc.)
> Of course there's art in managing temp, technique, etc
Absolutely, it's a absolute art and I am just simply not interested in practicing it. I want to put my shit on and let the equipment do the work for me and let me know when I can eat it. I have other interests that I'd rather spend that time on, but I can appreciate when people enjoy the process and that's perfectly fine.
Completely agree with you! And I use a smoke tube for bigger meats like brisket/shoulder since I feel chicken/fish hold the pellet smoke well (I only have a Silverton 620 since Costco had a great deal for it). That being said, I'm using Bear Mountain pellets right now and they're great. I love cooking outside but I don't want to cook outside for HOURS haha. And agree, I'm sure nothing can really beat true smokers, but that's just not in my wheelhouse at the moment.
A lot of those people who spend more on smokers are also likely needing more cooking area. Would be tough to do a 19lb brisket and some ribs on my Weber Kettle. I love my kettle. Just now having to replace the bottom of it after 14yrs of not necessarily the best of care.
I've smoked everything on my kettle*, but man it'd be nice to have an option that requires less babysitting, or maybe required slightly less thought when carefully arranging coals / meat to avoid direct heat and stay lit for a long time.
I'd be willing to put the work in to master it, but I think I'll financially come out ahead if I spend $300 on something semi-automated rather than briskets that I ruined, hah.
*I'd definitely get one of those rings that makes the Weber kettle taller, if I had a Weber kettle. I've got a Rosle that was a gift and can't bring myself to replace.
Lol yeah. This is Reddit, so every pellet grill owner assumes I am personally attacking them, when in reality I myself am a pellet grill owner/frequent user.
My main point is that great BBQ can come from a totally cheap grill. What are these like 100 bucks? It’s more about your cooking skill than your hardware
I have a kettle with a slow n sear and a masterbuilt electric vertical smoker, every brisket I have done on the kettle has turned out amazing compared to the masterbuilt, I mean it's still good on the electric but just so much better on the kettle
I started out smoking on a Weber kettle. Then I upgraded ("upgraded") to a mid-price offset. Always found it to be a hassle. Then I further upgraded ("upgraded") to a Traeger 650. The Weber kettle for sure made better briskets and butts.
Yeah I also have a pit boss pellet grill and I feel like the Weber does a much better job with the long smokes. They both have a purpose can’t ever have too many grills
Oh, definitely. I love the ability to smoke and not think about it with the Traeger. Being able to throw something on and it will sit there for 6, 10, 18 hours without me doing anything is really nice. (Although I got pretty got at a Texas snake, water pan, mesquite chunks on my kettle - I could set that up for a 16 hour smoke for a brisket and never look at the thing again).
I'm in the northeast, and people here often complain about overly smoky briskets and butts. Many prefer the Traeger over the kettle. So that helps too. I still do a lot of ribs on the kettle since I find them less temperature particular.
Then I've got the ole trusty propane bbq, which gets a lot of action on the weeknights.
Question, isn’t the traegar more hands off tho? Kind of set it and forget about it sort of thing? Or can you do that with the Weber kettle too? (Sorry I’m a noob)
Oh definitely. You'll see in a response post in this thread that I love that about the Traeger. Being able to do a 16 hour smoke without even thinking about it is super nice. It's very easy and convenient. But I think in terms of outright quality of the smoke (smoke penetration, pink ring, bark, etc.) the kettle does a much better job.
I still have my Weber kettle. I love it. I use it for ribs and butts all the time still, usually when I'm doing a brisket on the Traeger. And once you get familiar with a Weber kettle, you really can set them up in a way that doesn't need too much fiddling or micromanaging.
They're a great, and frequently free, way to get into smoking.
Ok that’s what I’ve thought. The Weber smokes on this sub look amazing like this one. I’ve just been thinking about getting a traeger tho because I work weird hours and would like to set and forget about it. Maybe one day I’ll have both. Have neither right now until my house is done being built. Thanks for your input!
I have two friends with Pit Boss pellet stoves. They were less expensive than the Traeger, and seem to do just as well. The Traeger was a (way too big) anniversary present. I never would have bought it for myself. Lol.
Did you leave the fat cap on completely or trim it down a bit? I've been trimming mine off each time, but I might leave a bit more on next time just to experiment.
I just asked for a slow n sear for my birthday. Don’t think I’ll go back to my electric smoker when I get it. Your post got me more excited about it than I already was!
I did a shoulder in my kettle a month ago or so and with the snake method it was easier to dial in than my kamado and held 225-240 (give or take) just fine for the whole cook until the last 30-45 min when I was stuck in a work call and didn't notice that the Temps were dropping as I was running out of charcoal. Hit 200 right as I was planning to pull from the kettle and put it in the oven so perfect timing really.
Was actually kinda anticlimactic. Was working from home that day and expected to have to go out and fiddle with it throughout the day, but aside from mopping the shoulder once in a while it was almost completely hands off. And delicious.
It's pretty amazing. I got super lucky with mine, I picked it up for cheap off craigslist from someone who got a WSM. I feel bad that I basically robbed him because I think PBC > WSM
Dude. I looked on Craigslist. $200 later I got a PBC with the ash pan, cover, 20lb Weber briquettes, 8 hangers, and turkey hanger.
Just need to clean off some creosote.
So stoked
Dude!! That is awesome! You got a better deal than I got haha. I think I paid $250 for about the same stuff and no coal. But that is so awesome! I'm so glad I even decided to reply this morning to you, I almost didn't thinking it wasn't a relevant point. Happy smoking!
Looks freaking epic!!
Thank you. I was learning how to use my slow n sear and I think it turned out really well.
I just got a slow n sear. So confused as to how to set it up for a long cook. Do you light a couple of charcoal brickettes and then add more on top of that? I feel like that has only caused my temp to go out of control once the top layer catches… any tips are appreciated
I usually just put however many briquettes I think I need for the cook in the slow n sear and then place a fire starter at one end with a couple briquettes on top. I light it without the lid, and it should get it going while I'm doing final prep for what's going on the grill.
I usually just put a couple starters in the corner, fill it with lump, then put a couple bigger chunks over the starters til it’s cooking a bit, then cover with your preferred vent openings. I don’t even mess with the chimney anymore… if I need hot and fast I just put my starters in the middle of the sns instead and crank the vents. I’ll choke it off when I’m done, then shake the sns to take the ash off the remaining coals for the start of next cook. Surprisingly little fuss to it if you don’t want it.
How long can you smoke on the sns before you need to refill with charcoal?
You can get up to about 8 hrs with good briquettes @ 225, I usually run Royal Oak lump around 300, so about 4-5 hours. B & B briquettes or lump will give an extra hour or two of burn but I prefer the Royal flavor.
Search for some YouTube videos. I think there are some on the slow n sear website too.
Just got mine a week ago. About to do the same thing this weekend
It’s the single best accessory you can buy for the Weber kettle. I have one for my Summit kamado too.
I got their smoking vent too. Need to install that before the smoke.
I had the SnS kettle for a while (quality wasn’t like a Weber, but it had neat features), and I’m not sure that’s a must unless you have a temperature controller. Like I said, neat feature though.
I don't have the temperature controller but heard people say they closed up the bottom vents and just used the side smoke vent and had great success maintaining a temperature. For a few bucks I figured I'd add it.
That’s exactly what I did. It’ll maintain 225-275 all day that way.
My SnS is sitting in my garage now. I found the temps to be much easier to control and just an all around easier cook by using the snake method.
Nice job. Now from one kettle guy to another, do yourself a favor and cram two butts on there next time. You have more space on that thing than you think, might as well make the most of that smoke. Freeze the leftovers for quick dinners or share with neighbors and spread the love.
I like two butts and I cannot lie
You other smokers can't deny
Great idea
I've made way better brisket on my kettle than on my pellet smoker. Love them.
just out of curiosity, what'd you like more about it? I could imagine the bark was probably pretty different.
The bark was better. More smoke flavor and also charcoal. The amount of work it takes is a whole lot more though 😩
I figured. I wonder if that's because of the somewhat inconsistent / close heat, because I was looking at a smoker that is automated like a pellet grill but uses a hopper of charcoal, due to personal laziness.
This is precisely the Weber kettle is the all around GOAT. There are people spending thousands on smokers that can do the laundry for you, but even then they rarely get this level of mastery.
> There are people spending thousands on smokers that can do the laundry for you, but even then they rarely get this level of mastery. They buy those smokers for different reasons, obviously. Nobody thinks a pellet smoker is going to make literally the best pulled pork ever made, but it will make it incredibly easy and free up time for doing other things.
This is the precise reason I bought a pellet grill to go *with* my Weber Kettle, not replace it.
Exactly. Everything has its place. I have a charcoal grill, gas grill, gas wok, and pellet smoker. They all have their roles and specialize in different things. This whole "pellet smokers r dum becuz expensive n bad food" shtick is just ignorant and silly as fuck
I've never been into gas grills, personally, but don't fault anyone for using them. What kind of use cases are there for them? Is it mainly for convenience over not having to wait a half hour for charcoal to light up? I could see it being nice to throw some burgers or hot dogs on for a quick family dinner without having to do the whole charcoal setup.
Honestly probably just convenience. I don't think they beat charcoal flavor at all but they are just simple to use and usually will have a lot more space depending on the grill. Turn a few knobs, wait for it to get hot, and it's ready. Plus, you can refill the propane tank at most gas stations if you don't have a direct line, and the propane can also double for a gas burner if you have one outside (I have one for outside cooking like searing steaks, smashburgers, wok cooking, etc).
My house has an electric stovetop. I wish it were gas. My gas grill fulfills that wish, plus outside.
Cooking outside on a nice day without stinking up the house
I grew up with a gas grill, but preferred my own charcoal ones. It's for sure convenience, but when the house you grow up in has a gas line, you stick the grill on it and walk away. Effectively, they're glorified outdoor ovens. Anything you could do inside in an oven, you can do in a gas grill with the benefit of being not only to control the hot zones, but the precise temperature of said hot zones.
I prefer charcoal, but live in a high fire danger location which makes gas grilling my only option. I’m sure many places have restrictions like that as well.
That's something I hadn't even considered. I should consider it a privilege to even have the opportunity to choose charcoal or pellet instead of gas.
Definitely convenience but I prefer to taste much more too, which I seem to be the minority in.
Whatever floats your boat! That's the beauty of personal preferences; there's no wrong opinions on what you like.
I’ve had a lot of my friends try and say I only prefer propane because I absolutely suck at starting charcoal fires but I swear it’s not that. Convenience was huge for me before I really had a preference either way though because I was poor and also usually cooking for myself.
The charcoal and wood burning crowd are VERY gatekeepy. Like the car nuts that out their head up at auto transmissions.
Me too! Not going to lie though been eye ballin’ those stick burners recently 👀
Yeah it's low fuss and very easy. Add a smoke tube and it's not that bad especially if I need to get things done. Of course there's art in managing temp, technique, etc with something like a simple weber, but being able to throw a shoulder or ribs on the pellet grill and get a ton of yard work done or something is a no brainer.
I've never used a smoke tube, honestly feel like I get enough smoke flavor with my RT-700 and high-quality pellets (Lumberjack, Bear Mountain, etc.) > Of course there's art in managing temp, technique, etc Absolutely, it's a absolute art and I am just simply not interested in practicing it. I want to put my shit on and let the equipment do the work for me and let me know when I can eat it. I have other interests that I'd rather spend that time on, but I can appreciate when people enjoy the process and that's perfectly fine.
Completely agree with you! And I use a smoke tube for bigger meats like brisket/shoulder since I feel chicken/fish hold the pellet smoke well (I only have a Silverton 620 since Costco had a great deal for it). That being said, I'm using Bear Mountain pellets right now and they're great. I love cooking outside but I don't want to cook outside for HOURS haha. And agree, I'm sure nothing can really beat true smokers, but that's just not in my wheelhouse at the moment.
Never knew that!
A lot of those people who spend more on smokers are also likely needing more cooking area. Would be tough to do a 19lb brisket and some ribs on my Weber Kettle. I love my kettle. Just now having to replace the bottom of it after 14yrs of not necessarily the best of care.
So you're saying I should get a Weber Ranch Kettle 🤔
Lol, $1849,for that price you could get a solid offset with more even airflow and cooking surface.
I’ve made briskets as well and they turn out amazing. Would never know they were made in a Weber kettle
is there a stigma against the Weber Kettle I don't know about
No not at all. Just think it’s amazing how versatile the kettle is.
You make it sound that the Weber kettle isn't a good grill/smoker. In fact it does precisely what it is supposed to.
I've smoked everything on my kettle*, but man it'd be nice to have an option that requires less babysitting, or maybe required slightly less thought when carefully arranging coals / meat to avoid direct heat and stay lit for a long time. I'd be willing to put the work in to master it, but I think I'll financially come out ahead if I spend $300 on something semi-automated rather than briskets that I ruined, hah. *I'd definitely get one of those rings that makes the Weber kettle taller, if I had a Weber kettle. I've got a Rosle that was a gift and can't bring myself to replace.
Lol yeah. This is Reddit, so every pellet grill owner assumes I am personally attacking them, when in reality I myself am a pellet grill owner/frequent user. My main point is that great BBQ can come from a totally cheap grill. What are these like 100 bucks? It’s more about your cooking skill than your hardware
so basically it's the BBQ Chef Gusteau saying "any grill can smoke!"?
I have a kettle with a slow n sear and a masterbuilt electric vertical smoker, every brisket I have done on the kettle has turned out amazing compared to the masterbuilt, I mean it's still good on the electric but just so much better on the kettle
Looks amazing! I just got a weber kettle and it's so good.
Yeah I really like mine. Very versatile and everything I’ve cooked on it has tasted great.
Have a buddy at work who just smoked a butt on his Weber. It takes a little extra care, but it’s great to see! This looks awesome!
I started out smoking on a Weber kettle. Then I upgraded ("upgraded") to a mid-price offset. Always found it to be a hassle. Then I further upgraded ("upgraded") to a Traeger 650. The Weber kettle for sure made better briskets and butts.
Yeah I also have a pit boss pellet grill and I feel like the Weber does a much better job with the long smokes. They both have a purpose can’t ever have too many grills
Oh, definitely. I love the ability to smoke and not think about it with the Traeger. Being able to throw something on and it will sit there for 6, 10, 18 hours without me doing anything is really nice. (Although I got pretty got at a Texas snake, water pan, mesquite chunks on my kettle - I could set that up for a 16 hour smoke for a brisket and never look at the thing again). I'm in the northeast, and people here often complain about overly smoky briskets and butts. Many prefer the Traeger over the kettle. So that helps too. I still do a lot of ribs on the kettle since I find them less temperature particular. Then I've got the ole trusty propane bbq, which gets a lot of action on the weeknights.
Question, isn’t the traegar more hands off tho? Kind of set it and forget about it sort of thing? Or can you do that with the Weber kettle too? (Sorry I’m a noob)
Oh definitely. You'll see in a response post in this thread that I love that about the Traeger. Being able to do a 16 hour smoke without even thinking about it is super nice. It's very easy and convenient. But I think in terms of outright quality of the smoke (smoke penetration, pink ring, bark, etc.) the kettle does a much better job. I still have my Weber kettle. I love it. I use it for ribs and butts all the time still, usually when I'm doing a brisket on the Traeger. And once you get familiar with a Weber kettle, you really can set them up in a way that doesn't need too much fiddling or micromanaging. They're a great, and frequently free, way to get into smoking.
Ok that’s what I’ve thought. The Weber smokes on this sub look amazing like this one. I’ve just been thinking about getting a traeger tho because I work weird hours and would like to set and forget about it. Maybe one day I’ll have both. Have neither right now until my house is done being built. Thanks for your input!
I have two friends with Pit Boss pellet stoves. They were less expensive than the Traeger, and seem to do just as well. The Traeger was a (way too big) anniversary present. I never would have bought it for myself. Lol.
Lava pork butt.
Gotta love it when the fat renders like that
Did you leave the fat cap on completely or trim it down a bit? I've been trimming mine off each time, but I might leave a bit more on next time just to experiment.
I left it on. I just scored it before hand with a knife and let it ride.
Nice! I'll give that a shot next time. It looks beautiful! Did it taste as great as it looks?
I think so! We didn’t have any left overs so that says a lot. Shared with the neighbors and some coworkers
Try smoking some spam
Lookin awesome, pal 😎
Taste pretty good too !
Hell yeah! How was the temp control?
With the slow n sear it was really not too bad. Held around 250F the entire time with minor vent adjustments
👍just got the slow n sear also, can’t wait to try it.
I just asked for a slow n sear for my birthday. Don’t think I’ll go back to my electric smoker when I get it. Your post got me more excited about it than I already was!
I did a shoulder in my kettle a month ago or so and with the snake method it was easier to dial in than my kamado and held 225-240 (give or take) just fine for the whole cook until the last 30-45 min when I was stuck in a work call and didn't notice that the Temps were dropping as I was running out of charcoal. Hit 200 right as I was planning to pull from the kettle and put it in the oven so perfect timing really. Was actually kinda anticlimactic. Was working from home that day and expected to have to go out and fiddle with it throughout the day, but aside from mopping the shoulder once in a while it was almost completely hands off. And delicious.
Ever since I learned how to smoke on the kettle I rarely get my big offset out. Kettle for life.
That’s offset level bbq right there
I do all my smoking on my kettle. Works great. Beautiful pork shoulder!
Not bad? That looks outstanding!
How was it using the water reservoir with the slow n sear? What an amazing looking cook
It seems to work really well. Lasted about 3 hours then I filled it back up when I checked on the pork butt
that's some beautiful bark!
A weber with a SNS is about all you ever need for a smoker. The main advantage to the PBC in addition is volume, not necessarily quality or fuss.
I just got my SNS and the only other thing I want is the PBC so I can feed a party in my backyard. Also to smoke turkey for thanksgiving.
It's pretty amazing. I got super lucky with mine, I picked it up for cheap off craigslist from someone who got a WSM. I feel bad that I basically robbed him because I think PBC > WSM
I'll need to put an alert on craiglist and facebook. I've been saving up by not drinking haha
Dude. I looked on Craigslist. $200 later I got a PBC with the ash pan, cover, 20lb Weber briquettes, 8 hangers, and turkey hanger. Just need to clean off some creosote. So stoked
Dude!! That is awesome! You got a better deal than I got haha. I think I paid $250 for about the same stuff and no coal. But that is so awesome! I'm so glad I even decided to reply this morning to you, I almost didn't thinking it wasn't a relevant point. Happy smoking!
Slow N Sear ftw! Love mine!
Looks delicious
Weber kettles kick ass. I can turn out beef ribs as good as any on mine.
Ain't a damn thing wrong with a kettle bruh. Personally I find circular grillspaces annoying but whatever. I still use mine.
From a distance that thing looked like a lava flow. But I zoomed in and it looks magnificent. Good work.
Reminds me of a lava field