Finally I broke down

[Goose]

and after a year we visited Gunny and his BBQ creation, bought a smoker. Couldn't get the one he uses, our city does not allow us to wrap the entire neighborhood in a thick white cloud of smoke. Instead I bought something looking like a laboratory equipment. I'm not sure how to use it either. Used it a couple of times after reading the owner's manual but everything comes out of it smells and tastes like a leather couch after an appartment fire. It also had a sticker on it instructing me to "seaon" it before the first use but found absolutely nothing on how to season a smoker in the owner's manual. :confused: It's just a great big mistery. Well, I'm sure it'll get better. Maybe.

[Gun Man]

it looks like a restauaunt smoker from that picture.

to season the smoker fire it up and runn it at 200-300 degrees for 2 hours. then crank it up to 400-500 degrees for 2 hours. then lower it back to cooking temp (250 degrees) for 2-4 hours. or untill your wood is burned up. Never, NEVER, EVER CLEAN THE INSIDE OF THE SMOKER!!! You can clean the racks abd clean up any spills but don't clean the inside walls or the top. you want a slick black build up in there. When it turns day light I'll post a picture of what you want it to look like.

Cook everything at 250 degrees. For Brisket cook it for an hour a pound @ 250. First smoke it fat down up for 2 hours. then turn it over and smoke it 2 more hours. Then wrapp it in 2 layers of extra heavy duty alum foil. and finish it that way. So an 8lb brisket will smoke for 2 hours a side then wrapp it in foil and cook it 4 more hours.. When you wrap it in foil keep the fat side up.

For those of you that don't know it I cook some mean BBQ. I have a custom Stainless steel smoker. you can see pictures of it at http://www.geocities.com/gm1218 and click on the smoker link.

[HickBoy]

Can I glaze pottery in that thing the next time we come by?

[Goose]

Well, I'll let U guys in on a little secret of his. Look at his million dollar custom built stainless steel mother of all smokers smoker, then look at that little ugly ducling of a 100 bucks K-Mart smokers at the background. Guess which one he uses :devil:
Gunny, my smoker won't go above 250 degrees. That's the highest temperature U can set on it. UR seasoning method won't work with this one. I did though fire it up with some wood inside, no meet and ran it for a couple of hours then let it cool down overnight. Maybe it needs a little more time to "break in". User's manual calls for cleaning the inside of it. Now I'm confused. Even more hten I was before. :confused:

[Lud]

I dont think he puts wood in it Gunner. And Goose.... Leather couch tastes great just ask my pooch!

[Gun Man]

We're talking apples and oranges here. I'm not 100% sure how to season your smoker. But I'd think I'd turn it up all the way with wood chips in it for 2-3 hours. Let it cool down all the way. Then do it again for 2-3 hours. Do this 3-4 times. I don’t clean the inside of my smokers. I did once and had to re-season it because the food didn't taste right. But we're talking 2 different smokers here. The reason yours may taste funny is because you can't raise the temp high enough to burn off the oil and dirt inside the smoker while seasoning it. So a good cleaning might make things taste better.

Yes I use my small smoker more that my big one. It doesn’t make sense to fire it up for 1 brisket or ham. My big one is for when I do catering. Like I'll be using it on the 25th for the cub scouts Blue and Gold banquet. I'll be cooking 80lbs of brisket and 40 lbs of sausage.

Remember the wrapping it in foil is the trick. It makes the Brisket soak in it's own juices, this helps tenderize it. Also do this with Ham. But with Ham put some honey & brown sugar on it before you wrap it in foil.

[Gun Man]

I e-mail the mfg of your smoker and here's what they said about seasoning and cleaning.

Hi Craig,

To season the smoker, simply remove the grills, put several chunks of wood in the wood box, set the thermostat at 225 and run it for approximately 6 hours. This process coats the inside of the smoker with carbon and causes the unit to cook more evenly. Of course, this occurs naturally during the first cooking cycle, but it is better to do it before hand.

Regarding cleaning: actually both are correct. It's not necessary to clean frequently--in fact I don't clean mine but perhaps after each 10 or 15 uses. It's a matter of personal taste. I clean the grills after each use and put clean tin foil on the wood box top and bottom after each use. Beyond that, I use a plastic scraper to knock the high spots off the build up on the sides and top when it begins to bother me. You should never use any type of oven cleaner or scouring powder. Also, don't scrape it such that the oven is shiny again--that's not necessary!!

[Goose]

Thanks. Looks like I'm set now. It's raining here, can't use it in the rain.

[Gun Man]

I didn't like seeing you confused. I'll send you some seasoning and your AC2 CD's back soon.