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Shoutout to the old timer at the Amarillo cookoff who called out my fire management in front of everyone
Two weekends back I entered my first brisket competition in Amarillo and got completely humbled. I had my offset loaded and running about 275, and I was proud of my coal bed, but this guy named Ray walked by and said my fire was breathing wrong and I had too much dirty smoke rolling. He was right, my first two briskets came out with that acrid taste and I could not figure out why for like 4 hours. I ended up tearing down the whole firebox, rebuilding the coal base smaller, and letting the intake do the work instead of choking it down. Finished 19th out of 34, which is not great, but that third brisket was the best thing I ever put on a plate. Any of you run a smaller coal bed on purpose for a cleaner burn, or am I overthinking it?
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kelly_craig8d ago
Man, that Ray guy did you a huge favor even if it stung in the moment. Smaller coal bed is the way, no doubt in my mind. I ran mine choked full of coals for a whole year wondering why my meat tasted like I licked an ashtray, and the day I cut it back to like a third of what I had been doing everything changed. The trick is the intake, let it pull air through a small hot fire instead of smothering a big pile. Clean smoke is thin and kinda blue, and once you see it you can't unsee it. 19th out of 34 on your first go is honestly solid, and that third brisket is what matters. You're not overthinking it at all.
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