Newbie here, first post

[bleathery]

I’ve been making some different fresh sausages, but now I’m dying to try my hand at kielbasa. I’d like to make some fresh & smoked, but I only have a Weber Smokey Mountain smoker. I’m concerned about the cook schedules and how low & consistant I can keep the temp. Any pointers would be appreciated. Thanks

[bocephus]

bleathery Welcome to the community and be sure to join team Orange.

[processhead]

There are some challenges to maintaining a temperature schedule on a charcoal or wood smoker without controls or an insulated cabinet. Getting consistent results is all about temperature control.

There are guys who do low temperature smoking with them, though. Before trying it with sausage, I would encourage you to do some test runs using something to simulate the mass of the sausage like some small containers of water.

You will need a remote reading thermometer to measure the internal temperature of the water container and the smoker chamber temperature.
Pick a few temps, like 120, 160, and 180 and see how well you can do to bring the internal temperature of the water to these temps. Keep track of the approximate size of your fire. You may have to play around with the lid being partially open to at the lower temperatures as well.

Learning how to regulate the smoker will be key to success with smoked/fully cooked sausages like kielbasa.
This all gets much easier when you decide to upgrade to an electric or gas smoker with real temperature controls.

[bleathery]

Thanks for the info. The upgrade will be in the future, I’m currently space challenged.

[mrobisr]

bleathery welcome, processhead is spot on with his recommendations. Placing the fire on one side and the meat on the other helps, but really reduces the amount of meat you can do. I also have found that using a cheaper chain retail store brand works better for lower/slower heat since the briquettes are not as good as compared to the quality brands. A pan of water with a grate on top for the meat resting on the actual grill can also slow down the cook.

[bleathery]

Thanks for the info. Need to do some testing now.

[bmartin1000]

The water pan bleathery mentioned works great. If you start with it full of ice, it will help hold the lower temp longer. Just have to keep an eye on it as it might need topped off after it melts.

[calldoctoday]

bleathery Welcome to the neighborhood, you will enjoy this community for certain as there is a lot to learn. I want to help you get off to the right start as well, make sure you pick “Team Blue” for your profile, it will help you immensely. There is just so much out there right now & so much detail, all of it helpful. However, just starting out I would say keep it simple while you develop your techniques. Then you can venture out into some of the other areas & there is much fun & deliciousness to be had.

[samspade]

bleathery welcome. I’m sure along with the advise already given, you will find meatgistics people are ready to help you make the best product. I have been a meatgistic’er for over a year and have not seen an unkind remark here. There are some fairly small electric smokers out there. Check offer up and facebook if price is a concern. You may find one under 75 bucks. Good luck with all your meat projects.

[bleathery]

So again as I mentioned I’m a newbie to the site, what’s the difference between team blue & team orange?
Thanks

[bocephus]

bleathery Team Orange is the true Walton’s team and blue are the pretenders.

[calldoctoday]

bleathery The BLUE TEAM will take you far into the Blue Horizon to cooking, smoking, processing places currently unknown & delicious tidbits yet to be discovered. The Blue Team is your team!

[craigrice]

orange and blue are just jabs , a digital electric smoker is easy to control the temp. on and by adding the cold smoking attachment helps a lot

[kyle]

bleathery welcome to the community.

[Dr_Pain]

Welcome, welcome, welcome!!!

[YooperDog]

bleathery Welcome to the community. You will find folks here willing to share their knowledge and answer questions. Feel free to participate. Go Team Orange

[cdavis]

bleathery welcome aboard

[samspade]

Welcome hope you get all the help you need. Oh team blue is working on getting free shipping for life.

Not really but what a promo!

[PapaSop]

samspade said in Newbie here, first post:

Welcome hope you get all the help you need. Oh team blue is working on getting free shipping for life.

Not really but what a promo!

WTH…
Just noticed your sporting both team blue and orange.
OMG. Take a side man…

[samspade]

PapaSop I cant. My leave team orange button is greyed out! I’m sure Austin had something to do with it???