Smoking time guidelines?

[Richtee]

I get so tired of seeing this mantra bleated over and over.

Of course it's about the temperature ultimately, but don't you think that it would be good for newcomers to at least have a ball park to work with?

Well..tired or not- it's the truth.

OK... let's make some concerted effort for some ballparks. Then I can get rid of this thread and post a table

Tas' 16 hour butt ain't helping...

[Otis857]

OK... let's make some concerted effort for some ballparks. Then I can get rid of this thread and post a table

Post some general times, Rich. That's what I was looking for was to give the new guys a day planner, not an exact timetable. I learned the hard way as Im sure most of y'all did on allotting enough time, butt I think the new Qers like this site for reasons like this - providing a friendly informative place to learn. And we all need to new people into our Qing hobby and this site by giving them the info to make it that much easier for them to enjoy it.

Case in point, I smoked some Chicken thighs & Breasteses this weekend, started the breasteses 1 hr early, and the thighs were still done almost 1 hr b4 the breasteses. But they were Really Big Breasteses

[Richtee]

Chicken:

Parts:
Breasts:
Whole:

Pork:

Ribs, spare:
Ribs, back:
Shoulder, whole:
Shoulder, "butt":
Loin:
T-loin:

Beef:

Brisket:
Chuck:
Ribs:

Ground meat:

Stuffed fatties:
Burgers:
Sausage:

A start. See the wide variances here? Start filling in the blanks. folks...

[SMOKE FREAK]

Try to chart this...

Last weekend...two chuckies bout 3 pounds each...Figure on 4.5 to 6 hours...After 9 hours of fighting the 30 mph winds the temp on both was still below 160....Frustrated I foiled and stuck em in the oven and turned my attention to grilling some burgers...Temps on the chucks rocketed to 200 before the burgers were done...

I always figure its gonna take a long time and then figure it will take a lot longer...

[smokerdean]

Post some general times, Rich. That's what I was looking for was to give the new guys a day planner, not an exact timetable. I learned the hard way as Im sure most of y'all did on allotting enough time, butt I think the new Qers like this site for reasons like this - providing a friendly informative place to learn. And we all need to new people into our Qing hobby and this site by giving them the info to make it that much easier for them to enjoy it.

Case in point, I smoked some Chicken thighs & Breasteses this weekend, started the breasteses 1 hr early, and the thighs were still done almost 1 hr b4 the breasteses. But they were Really Big Breasteses

I happen to agree with you. I know its possible to put in some general times....not something pinned down to exact ones. A possible for-instance: For pork ribs, if you are running in the 250-350 range on your smoker, it will take between X & Y hours, but the temp should be XXX F (if you want to probe them). Also, doing a 3-2-1 method, your time might be reduced.

That's purely an example, so don't beat me up on the method remark, as it may increase the time.....I don't know. Just an example and qualifying remarks would be expected.

[smokerdean]

Try to chart this...

Last weekend...two chuckies bout 3 pounds each...Figure on 4.5 to 6 hours...After 9 hours of fighting the 30 mph winds the temp on both was still below 160....Frustrated I foiled and stuck em in the oven and turned my attention to grilling some burgers...Temps on the chucks rocketed to 200 before the burgers were done...

I always figure its gonna take a long time and then figure it will take a lot longer...

I don't think that's what Mike's envisioning. "Under normal conditions" is a reasonable qualification when putting some time ranges on smoking something. I could come up with an example of smoking a brisket that took 3 weeks to finish, since a hurricane rolled through in the middle of it.

Of course experience is a great factor in learning smoking times, but it is a tool that newbies are extremely short of, as I can attest to since I am an "experienced newbie". With a little effort from all forum members, I believe a set of "normal conditions" time ranges could be developed....personally my opinion.

[Bearcarver]

Ken, great idea for a forum.
I've got a suggestion for some of our more experienced smokers to post that can help guys like me in a pinch - Basic smoking timetables. There has been so many times that Im trying to plan how long I need to allow for smoking. and the food wasnt done in time or WAY too early. It would be a GREAT sticky.

I know that it isnt an exact science and cooking + stall times vary, butt knowing you need to allow X number of hours/lb for a brisket, or a Pork butt, and Y number of hours for tri tips, Chuckies, CSR,s, Chicken whole & parts, even unusual cuts would be Incredibly helpful, especially to the new members here. It would be a great "go to" reference for a lot of us. Other than the 3-2-1 method for ribs, Im usually struggling with how soon to start smoking w/o having it done 2-3 hours before or after the crew arrives.

Mike,
You can always go to any of my posts.
Then scroll down to my Signature.
If any of the meats you're going to smoke are in my Signature, click on it.
They all have the size of the meat, the temp I used, and the time it took to get it to a particular IT.

That would give you a good "Ballpark" figure.


Bear

[crusty ol salt]

i am sticking to my 1.25 hours per pound for planning. and my thermometer to tell me when it is done

[PitRow]

Not sure why everyone has to make this so hard... what I was thinking is a very very general guideline for the total newb that's spent all his life grilling hamburgers and then picks up a rack of ribs and thinks it's going to be done in like 2 hours on the grill. I'm pretty sure that's what Mike was going for too... but whatever

Guess they can always post a question and wait for an answer or dig through 100s of posts to find what they need. No biggie, that's how we all got started.

[DDave]

Not sure why everyone has to make this so hard... what I was thinking is a very very general guideline for the total newb that's spent all his life grilling hamburgers and then picks up a rack of ribs and thinks it's going to be done in like 2 hours on the grill.

Well . . . if it's really that easy and we're all just over complicating it, then fill in Rich's table and call it good. The fact that you haven't seems to indicate that you sense the complexity of it all.

I guess you could get really general and say, well at about 250ish ribs will take 5 or 6 hours, fatties an hour or two, butts will take 8 to 10 hours and briskets will take 10 to 16.

Except for the fact that butts come in different sizes and people will post that they are smoking "a brisket" but it could be a 14 pound packer or a 5 pound flat.

Dave

[DDave]

Here . . .

I "lifted" this from another web site. Formatting went to hell. If someone wants to tidy it up be my guest. This is where I got my starting info.

And I do see the point . . . it does help the total newb who has no idea whatsoever. Like I was back in 2008.

Type of Meat Smoking Temp Time to Complete Finished Temp
Brisket (Sliced) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 190°
Brisket (Pulled) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 200°
Beef Ribs 225°F 3-4 hrs 175°
Pork Butt (Sliced) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 180°
Pork Butt (Pulled) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 205°
Whole Chicken 250°F 4 hrs 165°
Chicken Thighs 250°F 1.5 hrs 165°
Chicken Quarters 250°F 3 hrs 165°
Whole Turkey 12# 240°F 6.5 hrs 165°
Turkey Leg 250°F 4 hrs 165°
Turkey Wings 225°F 2.5 hrs 165°
Turkey Breast – bone in 240°F 4-6 hrs 165°
Boudin 230°F 2.5 hrs 160°
Breakfast Sausage 230°F 3 hrs 160°
Fatties 225°F 3 hrs 165°
Meat Loaf 250 -300°F 3 hrs 160°
Meatballs (2 inch) 225°F 1 hr 160°
Spare Ribs 225-240°F 6-7 hrs Tender*
Baby Back Ribs 225-240°F 5-6 hrs Tender*
Salmon 140-160°F 5-7 hrs 145°
Smoked Corn 225°F 1.5 – 2 hrs N/A
Smoked Potatoes 225°F 2 – 2.5 hrs N/A
Note: Be sure to use temperature to tell you when the meat is done.. time is just an estimate and is NOT an indicator of doneness.

[Bearcarver]

Great list DDave---Thanks for bringing it!!

I find it pretty close, and should help Newbies a lot !!!


Bear

[smokerdean]

Hmmmm! Another website was willing to do it, huh? Interesting!!!

[DDave]

Great list DDave---Thanks for bringing it!!

You are most welcome.

Hmmmm! Another website was willing to do it, huh? Interesting!!!

No use reinventing the wheel.

Dave

[Otis857]

Here . . .

I "lifted" this from another web site. Formatting went to hell. If someone wants to tidy it up be my guest. This is where I got my starting info.

And I do see the point . . . it does help the total newb who has no idea whatsoever. Like I was back in 2008.

Type of Meat Smoking Temp Time to Complete Finished Temp
Brisket (Sliced) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 190°
Brisket (Pulled) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 200°
Beef Ribs 225°F 3-4 hrs 175°
Pork Butt (Sliced) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 180°
Pork Butt (Pulled) 225°F 1.5 hrs/pound 205°
Whole Chicken 250°F 4 hrs 165°
Chicken Thighs 250°F 1.5 hrs 165°
Chicken Quarters 250°F 3 hrs 165°
Whole Turkey 12# 240°F 6.5 hrs 165°
Turkey Leg 250°F 4 hrs 165°
Turkey Wings 225°F 2.5 hrs 165°
Turkey Breast – bone in 240°F 4-6 hrs 165°
Boudin 230°F 2.5 hrs 160°
Breakfast Sausage 230°F 3 hrs 160°
Fatties 225°F 3 hrs 165°
Meat Loaf 250 -300°F 3 hrs 160°
Meatballs (2 inch) 225°F 1 hr 160°
Spare Ribs 225-240°F 6-7 hrs Tender*
Baby Back Ribs 225-240°F 5-6 hrs Tender*
Salmon 140-160°F 5-7 hrs 145°
Smoked Corn 225°F 1.5 – 2 hrs N/A
Smoked Potatoes 225°F 2 – 2.5 hrs N/A
Note: Be sure to use temperature to tell you when the meat is done.. time is just an estimate and is NOT an indicator of doneness.

Thanks Dave,
Thats exactly what I had in mind. Even more detail than I expected too. Smoked potatoes, corn & meatballs? great time planning reference.

Mike,
You can always go to any of my posts.
Then scroll down to my Signature.
If any of the meats you're going to smoke are in my Signature, click on it.
They all have the size of the meat, the temp I used, and the time it took to get it to a particular IT.

That would give you a good "Ballpark" figure.


Bear

John,
I've referred to your threads many times and enjoyed reading them. Thanks for posting the links too - very helpful. I've still GOT to do the prime rib roast.