Smaller one pulled, closeup.
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Overall I am very happy with my first try. Great smoke flavor, both were tender and juicy. The Au Jus was good but I had problems with my bottom foil ripping and letting a lot of it get away. Might need some aluminum bread pans for the next chuck roast attempt. The rub wasn't as good as I hoped. Given I was improvising with storebought stuff due to lack of basics needed to make my own, I guess it could have been much worse. I rubbed them with Worshteshire then used these two along with some pepper:
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Thanks for your help guys. I'll post more info/pics when I get another chance to put the UDS to work.
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Nicely done Mike. Would have been ecstatic had my first attempt come out that well.
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Killer looking chuckies Mike. They are a staple on my smoker and I use the meat for all kind of secondary dishes. Congrats on the UDS build as well. I don't use mine too much any more, but there is something unique and wonderful about that fat dripping down on those coals!!

One suggestions... and this is one of those that can start a war... Drop the Kingsford and find an "All Natural" charcoal. There are a lot of good ones out there, but they can be a pain to acquire. I have been using Stubbs for the last 4-5 years and like it. Lowes carries it down here. Not sure about other areas.

You will find you have way less ash (fact), the aroma while cooking is much more pleasing (opinion), and the finished product tastes better (opinion).
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If you go with Gator's advice on the charcoal and find yourself looking at lump charcoal, here's a reasonable reference:
http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lump.htm

While some of the stuff on the site is a bit dated, the bad charcoals haven't gotten any better.
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Great looking meat:-)

In regards to the hardwoods, I've recently been using Trader Joe's 100% Natural Hardwood Briquettes with no issues. I can say the briquettes provide a consistent and long burn time:-)

Thanks for the lump charcoal website Adam. Handy reference!
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I'm probably going to switch over to the TJ hardwood briquettes since I've been kind of disappointed with KF blue of late. I bought a pallet of the "new" stuff at the last sale and after going through about half of it (roughly 240 lbs so far), I've pretty much confirmed that my burn rates are way up, so something changed again. Not sure if they changed the formula or not, but the new smaller briquette size means you're getting more briquettes per volume and that means more burning surface area, and being smaller, they don't last as long. Royal PITA having to reload and clear ash more often now. One of the things that kept me with KF Blue was the lower burn temps, but now, since I'm ending up with more surface area burning, my temps are higher, back in the ranges I saw with Rancher years ago, since I'm going to be stuck with higher temps one way or the other I see no point in continuing to use something that has to be replenished more often.

Anyone want a good deal on 280# of KF Blue? Local pickup only... free apple wood ('cuz I hate it) with every purchase... lol
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I was *this* close to getting a new Traeger at Costco this weekend. They had a slamming deal on the full size Texas. $799 got you the smoker, a free cover, 2 free racks, 2 free cookbooks, and 2 free bags of pellets. I almost pulled the trigger. They are there until next Sunday so I have a few days to decide. I probably shouldn't look in this thread too often :-)
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That IS a smokin' (:-)) deal.
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I see what you did there Peter :-)
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Great looking smoker, Mike! Fun, ain't it!?!?
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Thanks. There's quite a bit leftover. The Au Jus came out great too. My only problem with it was a foil failure that cause 75% of it to spill before I could capture it.

Thanks for the compliments. I will be getting lump charcoal next time. I stocked up on the KB when they had the Memorial Day sale. I'm too cheap to ditch it, so I'll have to burn through the 120lbs or so I have left. Since you regularly do chuckies, do you have a different rub for them or do you use the same one you'd use for pork?

Funny you posted that link. I found the same one on SMF (SmokingMeatForum) and I have it bookmarked for when my KB runs out. Thanks, I appreciate it.

Heck yea it's fun. :-) I'm already trying to figure out what I can smoke next. The weather gets cold fast here and I want to get some smoking done before it's 20 degrees during daylight hours.
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I use a different rub for beef than pork. My pork rub has way to much paprika in it for beef IMO. My favorite commercially available beef rub is Plowboy's Bovine Bold. Sometimes I use that and sometimes I just use Spicy Montreal Steak Seasoning.

I know I wasn't very clear on the charcoal, but I was talking about briquettes. I can't remember if I have ever used lump in my UDS. Either way is an upgrade from the K in my book:-)
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FWIW, all I use (when using charcoal) is lump. I use it to start the Lang, as well as in my ECB and the New Braunfels for cooking.
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:-)
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I have gone the briquet route after being a staunch lumper for years. I like the benefits of lump, but I do not
really care much about any of the supposed bad points of briques. If I had a real smoker I might care more,
but none of my cooks are maintenance free. Most I can get to myself is 1 hour and 45 minutes....but oh
what minutes do I make out of them....
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Mike, nice looking smoker!
Here's a beef recipe I use

Pot Roast


• Combine pre-packaged brown gravy mix, Ranch dressing mix, and Italian seasoning mix.
• Place the roast in a disposable foil pan, sprinkle both sides with the seasoning mix ( 1/2 of each pkg.), then add 1 cup of beef broth or water.
• Cook uncovered at 240-260°F for two hours, then cover with foil and cook another 5-6 hours until fork tender.
• Add vegetables during the last two hours of cooking.( I add them at the beginning)
• Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
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Thanks Dave. My mother-in-law (along with my wife and the rest of her family) is from Texas and LOVES brisket. So, after trying the chuckie, she wants me to try smoking a brisket. The plan is to try and have it ready for lunch after church tomorrow. May end up being ready earlier since I have a wedding to go to tonight. If so, we'll just have to reheat it. We'll see.
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I've done a full packer brisket at 200. Took 12-14 hours. Wrapped in foil and put in a cooler for another 2-3 hours.

Lots of leeway.
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IMO brisket should be smoked between 250-300 degrees. And at the stall I always push thru it by opening my smoker up to 350 or thereabouts. Then I wrap and rest for 3-5 hours. My 12 pounder packers go on around midnight and come off around 8 or 9 and then are rested right on time for lunch after church.
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Smoking in the rain today. Baby backs and Turkey breast. Egg is doin awesome in the rain.
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