Just the hard numbers · Times, temperatures and charts · No foreplay
Seventeen ways to do it right
Just the Hard Numbers
Pick what you are putting on tonight. Every one ends with the number you came for.
- RibsHow long to smoke ribsHow long a good rack takes at every temperature, and the bend test that tells you it is ready.Show me
- Pork ButtHow long to smoke a pork buttHours per pound, the stall that makes you wait, and a whole night planned out.Show me
- BrisketWhen to wrap a brisketWhen to wrap it up: bark set, 150 to 170, paper against foil.Show me
- Pork ButtWhat temp to pull a pork butt203, and why the way it gives under the probe beats the number.Show me
- BrisketWhat temp to smoke a brisket225, 250 and 275, and what each one costs you.Show me
- BrisketBrisket internal tempHow you know it is done, and why 203 is not a rule.Show me
- WingsHow long to smoke chicken wingsNinety minutes low and slow, then hot and fast, and why 165 is the wrong number.Show me
- ChickenHow long to smoke a whole chickenSpread her flat, two hours at 300, and why the breast comes off at 160.Show me
- TurkeyHow long to smoke a turkeyFour hours at 250 spread flat, and why taking it whole takes seven.Show me
- BrisketHow long to smoke a brisketAbout twelve hours for a packer, and why the stall makes the clock lie.Show me
- The CrowdHow much meat per personHow much meat to bring home for a crowd, worked from the USDA yields.Show me
- BrisketHow long to rest a brisketThe wait afterward, and how to keep it above 140 from the pit to the table.Show me
- HamHow long to smoke a hamMinutes per pound, when the foil comes off, and how to glaze it slow.Show me
- MeatloafHow long to smoke a meatloafThree hours at 250, nothing holding it in, glazed at the very end.Show me
- SausageHow long to smoke sausageThe drying hour, that snap when you bite, and why not 275.Show me
- Cream CheeseHow long to smoke cream cheeseTwo hours, scored deep, and why it never loses its shape.Show me
- Tri-TipHow long to smoke a tri-tipSlow first, hot at the end, and which way to cut it.Show me
- The CalculatorsDo the math before things get hotHow much meat to buy, how long it can wait, and how long it would take to smoke Godzilla.Show me
Confessions
Letters to Dutch
Real confessions from long, hard nights, and what Dutch told them back.
- A letter to DutchWhat temp are ribs done?He kept poking it. Dutch says there is a better way to tell when it is ready, and it takes both hands.Read the confession
- A letter to DutchHow long do you rest a brisket?It came off nine hours early, at three in the morning. Dutch tells him exactly how to hold it until after everyone has come.Read the confession
- A letter to DutchButcher paper or foil?One lets it breathe. One makes it sweat. Dutch knows which one he wants wrapped around his meat.Read the confession
- A letter to DutchHow do you get crispy skin on smoked chicken?He kept being gentle with it. Dutch says some birds like it rough.Read the confession
- A letter to DutchWhy is smoked turkey pink inside?It came out pink inside, and he thought he had ruined her. Read what Dutch told him.Read the confession
- Your turnGot something to confess?Tell Dutch about the cook that kept you up. He reads every one after midnight.Write to Dutch
The hard numbers
How long to smoke St. Louis ribs at 225?
Five to six hours at 225 to 228 degrees. A good rack is never quick. Leave them bare for the first two to three hours, until the color deepens and the surface stops looking wet. Once the bark is dry to the touch, give them a spritz every 45 to 60 minutes. Start feeling for tenderness at 195 degrees internal. They are ready between 195 and 203, when the probe slides between the bones with no resistance at all. Wrapping is optional; at this temperature they finish fine without it. Let them rest 20 to 30 minutes before you cut.
The night it belongs to: Chapter One — Midnight Ribs.
What do you do when a brisket stalls at 160 degrees?
Be patient, or wrap it. A brisket stalls between 160 and 175 degrees because the moisture coming off its surface cools it as fast as the fire heats it, and it can stay stuck there for hours. It gets going again on its own once the bark dries out. Wrapping pushes it through faster, at the cost of some bark. Start probing for tenderness around 195 degrees.
The night it belongs to: Chapter Two — Overnight Smoked Brisket.
How long does a pork butt take to smoke?
About 1.5 to 2 hours per pound at 225 to 250 degrees — 12 to 16 hours for an 8-pound butt. Clear your whole night. Keep the lid shut for the first three hours while the bark sets, then give it a spritz once an hour if the surface looks dry. Expect it to stall between 150 and 165 degrees for two to four hours; it gets going again on its own once the bark dries, and a butt has enough fat to wait it out bare. Start probing at 195. It is done between 200 and 205, when the probe slides in like butter and the blade bone twists out clean in your hand. Let it rest one to four hours wrapped up in a cooler before you pull it.
The night it belongs to: Chapter Three — Overnight Pork Butt.
How long does it take to smoke beef ribs?
About eight to ten hours at 250 degrees for a three-bone beef plate rib — roughly 1.5 to 2 hours per pound. Bare, the whole way. Trim the fat cap to a quarter inch, rub it all over with coarse salt and pepper, and lay it bone side down with the lid shut for the first three hours. Spritz once an hour after that if the surface looks dry. Expect it to hold out between 165 and 175 for one to three hours; leave it bare, because the bark is the point. Start probing at 200. It is done between 203 and 210 degrees, when the probe slides in like butter and the meat has pulled back about an inch from the ends of the bones. Let it rest 30 to 60 minutes tented in butcher paper, not in a cooler, then slice between the bones.
The night it belongs to: Chapter Four — Smoked Beef Ribs.
How long does it take to smoke a turkey?
About four hours at 250 degrees for a 12- to 14-pound turkey that has been spatchcocked — 15 to 20 minutes per pound. Left whole, closer to 30 minutes per pound. Spread her flat. Brine her 12 to 24 hours, then leave her uncovered in the fridge overnight so the skin crisps. Cut out the backbone and press her flat, oil and season the skin, and lay her skin side up at 250 with the lid down. A turkey does not stall. She is done when the breast reads 160 and the thigh 175; if the skin is still soft at 150, run the pit up to 325 for the last 15 minutes. Rest 20 to 30 minutes tented, and never smoke a stuffed bird.
The night it belongs to: Chapter Five — Smoked Whole Turkey.
How long does it take to smoke St. Louis ribs at 250 degrees?
Five to six hours at 250 degrees, and no shortcuts. Do not touch them for the first 90 minutes, then spritz every 45 to 60 minutes to keep the surface supple. Expect a stall around 154 degrees that can last four hours; it ends when the bark dries and stops giving under your thumb. Wrap them then, if you want to. They are done at 195 to 203, when the probe slides in. Rest 20 minutes tented.
The night it belongs to: Letters to Dutch — How Long to Smoke St. Louis Ribs at 250.
Why is my brisket stuck at 168 degrees?
It is stalled. It happens to everybody. Between roughly 160 and 175 degrees, the moisture coming off the surface cools the meat as fast as the fire can heat it, so it stops rising. It can stay that way for hours. It gets going again on its own once the bark dries; wrap it in paper to push through faster. Start probing for tenderness around 195 and pull it when the probe meets no resistance, usually between 195 and 203.
The night it belongs to: Letters to Dutch — The Night the Brisket Would Not Let Me Sleep.
Stay a While Longer
The chapters: Chapter One — Midnight Ribs · Chapter Two — Overnight Smoked Brisket · Chapter Three — Overnight Pork Butt · Chapter Four — Smoked Beef Ribs · Chapter Five — Smoked Whole Turkey
Letters to Dutch: How Long to Smoke St. Louis Ribs at 250 · The Night the Brisket Would Not Let Me Sleep
Everything at the After Dark BBQ hub · Who Dutch Cobb is · Write to Dutch