How to Make BBQ in a Water Smoker

Learning to use your water smoker is fun, easily and simple. Here are the basic steps I follow every time I fire up any of my water smokers. I have also included a few hints that should answer many FAQ’s you may have. Don’t forget to read the instructions that came with you smoker, that is where I started. Most importantly remember that no one has all of the answers and the only way to learn about BBQ is to start cooking and making mistakes.

1. Fill your coal pan to capacity with charcoal, making sure to leave a small valley in the middle of your pile.
2. Fill and light your charcoal chimney. I call this the "starter" and it is what I use to ignite my coal pan. It is absolutely vital that you allow the chimney to do its job and all of the charcoal is completely lit.
3. Dump your starter into the valley of charcoal in your coal pan. You may have to spread the lit charcoal around evenly to ensure it ignites the unlit charcoal.
4. Place your water pan over the coal pan and fill. I most often use apple juice and always pour a beer in for luck.
5. Place your cooking grates (racks) in their proper place and add your meat. Charcoal gets expensive so I always fill my smoker with as much meat as it will handle. Too much time goes into real BBQ to waste space.
6. Toss a few chunks or a handful of chips of smoking wood onto your burning charcoal. Cover your water smoker and walk away. Don’t go too far for too long because you will need to monitor the temperature.

Helpful Hints:
I like to barbecue between 200 and 215 degrees. However, as long as you keep the temperature around 250 degrees all will be better than fine. If your smoker does not have a thermometer attached you can probably buy one at the same place your purchased your water smoker or grill.

Control the temperature of your smoker by adjusting its air vents and not by the amount of charcoal you add. Making sure to leave the top or lid vent completely open. An open top vent or smoke stack will ensure that smoke and heat travel through your smoker properly. If you trap the smoke in the cooking chamber by blocking its only escape your meat will taste like soot.

If your water smoker came without a thermometer you can insert one through one of the vent holes in the lid. This will not significantly stop smoke from exiting the smoking chamber. You should get a fairly accurate reading to within 10 or 15 degrees, which will be fine for most backyard cooking situations. I prefer to cook with all natural lump charcoal but recommend learning the basics of cooking with a water smoker using charcoal briquettes. They are cheaper and light much more easily than lump.

Boston butts (pork butts) and beef briskets take approximately 1 to 1 ½ hours per pound to cook. Spare ribs (and St. Louis cut ribs) and chicken take between 5 and 6 hours to cook. Baby back ribs cook in 2 to 4 hours as do smaller cuts of beef, pork, poultry and sausages. Real BBQ is done when it’s done and is more about the internal temperature and texture of meat than the time it takes to cook. Cook pork butts to an internal temperature of 165 degrees to slice and 190 degrees to pull, brisket to 190 degrees, chicken to 165 degrees and ribs until they pull a part easily, but don’t fall a part (meat falling off the bone is OVER COOKED).

I suggest learning to BBQ with chickens and ribs and then moving to Boston butts as these are the most forgiving BBQ meats. I still am always worried my brisket is going take too much smoke and dry out. Regardless, practice make perfect and you can always order a pizza. Just remember to keep things simple and have fun.

Jonathan Merenda is the owner and operator of UglyGourmet.com.