I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs. I
used Grove lump charcoal on my new braunsfel with all the mods, outside
temp 55-60F. I used about 6lbs of charcoal. Im kinda new to this, so
maybe this is normal?

Thanks

Tim

On Sat, 03 Apr 2004 15:25:55 -0600, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs.

That sounds like a good recipe for transforming a tender, lean cut of
meat into shoe leather. Why so low and for so long?

--
Kevin S. Wilson
Tech Writer at a university somewhere in Idaho
"Who put these fingerprints on my imagination?"

"Kevin S. Wilson" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 03 Apr 2004 15:25:55 -0600, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs.

That sounds like a good recipe for transforming a tender, lean cut of
meat into shoe leather. Why so low and for so long?



After studying this for a spell, I've determined that Kevin has been
trolled.

How ironic.

TFM®

"Tim Eitniear" wrote in message
...
I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs. I
used Grove lump charcoal on my new braunsfel with all the mods, outside
temp 55-60F. I used about 6lbs of charcoal. Im kinda new to this, so
maybe this is normal?

Thanks

Tim

You'd have had a better meal with less charcoal if you grilled it at higher
temperature. Tenderloin is a lean tender cut that can actually be harmed
with low and slow cooking.

OTOH, for 7 hours of cooking, 6 pounds is not bad.
Ed

http://pages.cthome.net/edhome

On 3-Apr-2004, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs. I
used Grove lump charcoal on my new braunsfel with all the mods, outside
temp 55-60F. I used about 6lbs of charcoal. Im kinda new to this, so
maybe this is normal?

Thanks

Tim

You didn't say what NB you have. My NB Silver uses at least that much
lump. I use 2/3 of a chimney or more per hour. If I didn't have good access
to decent lump at a decent price, I'd go for a WSM.

--
M&M ("When You're Over The Hill You Pick Up Speed")

On 3-Apr-2004, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs.
snip

I'm wondering what kind of meat you actually cooked Tim. Pork
tenderloins don't come that big and a 4 Lb beef tenderloin would
require a second mortgage to purchase. In any case, a 4 lb
chunk of lean meat should have been done to medium rare
in 3 hrs or less. Nobody tries to pull meat that lean. 190° internal
kills it.


--
M&M ("When You're Over The Hill You Pick Up Speed")

I dunno thats how long it took for it to get to the proper internal temp. It
was very tender i coated it with seasoned olive oil every few hours, so it would
not dry up.


Tim






In article , Kevin S. Wilson says...

On Sat, 03 Apr 2004 15:25:55 -0600, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs.

That sounds like a good recipe for transforming a tender, lean cut of
meat into shoe leather. Why so low and for so long?

--
Kevin S. Wilson
Tech Writer at a university somewhere in Idaho
"Who put these fingerprints on my imagination?"

Ok now I am confused, how will a higher temp allow me to use less charcoal? I
had to feed the ol' girl every hour to maintain the temp that I used. To mew it
would seem that I would use more

???

Tim





In article , Edwin Pawlowski
says...


"Tim Eitniear" wrote in message
...
I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs. I
used Grove lump charcoal on my new braunsfel with all the mods, outside
temp 55-60F. I used about 6lbs of charcoal. Im kinda new to this, so
maybe this is normal?

Thanks

Tim

You'd have had a better meal with less charcoal if you grilled it at higher
temperature. Tenderloin is a lean tender cut that can actually be harmed
with low and slow cooking.

OTOH, for 7 hours of cooking, 6 pounds is not bad.
Ed

http://pages.cthome.net/edhome

Sorry,
I have a silver too. What do you consider decent lump. At this stage in the
game, lump is lump to me, which im sure isn't true either.

Tim






In article , M&M says...


On 3-Apr-2004, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs. I
used Grove lump charcoal on my new braunsfel with all the mods, outside
temp 55-60F. I used about 6lbs of charcoal. Im kinda new to this, so
maybe this is normal?

Thanks

Tim

You didn't say what NB you have. My NB Silver uses at least that much
lump. I use 2/3 of a chimney or more per hour. If I didn't have good access
to decent lump at a decent price, I'd go for a WSM.

--
M&M ("When You're Over The Hill You Pick Up Speed")

It was a prepackaged, preseasoned (i would not normally buy pre-seasoned, my
wife was being nice) pork loin. I didn't acutally read the weight, but is was
a little better than a foot long and about 4 inches thick. I took it off at
about 175/180 and wrpped it in foil and put in in the cooler fro a couple hours
untill dinner time. I thought it was close to perfect. I think it would have
been excep for the preseason, it was pretty salty for my tasts.







In article , M&M says...


On 3-Apr-2004, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I just got finished smoking a 4 lb tenderloin, and it seems like I used
a whole lot of charcoal. I smoked this thing ~225-250 for 7 hrs.
snip

I'm wondering what kind of meat you actually cooked Tim. Pork
tenderloins don't come that big and a 4 Lb beef tenderloin would
require a second mortgage to purchase. In any case, a 4 lb
chunk of lean meat should have been done to medium rare
in 3 hrs or less. Nobody tries to pull meat that lean. 190° internal
kills it.


--
M&M ("When You're Over The Hill You Pick Up Speed")

Tim Eitniear wrote:
Ok now I am confused, how will a higher temp allow me to use less
charcoal? I had to feed the ol' girl every hour to maintain the temp
that I used. To mew it would seem that I would use more


Higher heat = less time. When you grill using your lump do you use less than
15 lbs, or more?

D
--

Tim Eitniear wrote:

It was a prepackaged, preseasoned (i would not normally buy pre-seasoned, my
wife was being nice) pork loin. I didn't acutally read the weight, but is was
a little better than a foot long and about 4 inches thick. I took it off at
about 175/180 and wrpped it in foil and put in in the cooler fro a couple hours
untill dinner time. I thought it was close to perfect. I think it would have
been excep for the preseason, it was pretty salty for my tasts.


That's a boneless pork loin roast, not a tenderloin.



Brian Rodenborn

On 5-Apr-2004, Tim Eitniear wrote:

Sorry,
I have a silver too. What do you consider decent lump. At this stage in
the game, lump is lump to me, which im sure isn't true either.

Tim

I have access to Royal Oak lump which I like pretty well. I get it direct
from the factory which minimizes handling and broken up pieces. I've
tried Cowboy lump from Wal-Mart. It consisted of bits and scraps from
a lumber mill and probably contained several different kinds of wood. It
burned pretty fast and sparked a lot. That's the limit of my experience.
And yes to agree with another poster. Higher temps in the cook chamber
will decrease cook time and thus save you a little lump. With the NBS
you're not going to save enough to matter, so I don't bother. I have the
large NB thermometer in the factory hole in the lid. I try to smoke at an
indicated 250°. That's about the easiest for me to maintain. (Stack
damper wide open and firebox vent cracked about one inch.) Only mod
I have is the chimney extension inside the cook chamber. Turn firebox
grate sideways to gain space underneath and put second grate in there
to make use of the whole firebox. (They overlap some). If I can be of
any additional help, just jerk my chain.
--
M&M ("When You're Over The Hill You Pick Up Speed")

On 5-Apr-2004, Tim Eitniear wrote:

I took it off at about 175/180 and wrpped it in foil and put in in the
cooler fro a couple
hours untill dinner time. I thought it was close to perfect. I think it
would
have been excep for the preseason, it was pretty salty for my tasts.

For openers, since you liked it, it was done right. What anybody else says
is
not applicable at 'your' table. I've cooked them to ~180° and they were too
dry
for my taste. Now I take them of at ~145° and let them rest in a cooler for
a
half hour while they continue to cook a little. The result is much juicier
and
more tasty IMO. I have no experience with the pre-seasoned stuff.
--
M&M ("When You're Over The Hill You Pick Up Speed")

I have access to Royal Oak lump which I like pretty well. I get it direct
from the factory which minimizes handling and broken up pieces. I've
tried Cowboy lump from Wal-Mart. It consisted of bits and scraps from
a lumber mill and probably contained several different kinds of wood. It
burned pretty fast and sparked a lot. That's the limit of my experience.

My Royal Oak contains a lot of 'lumber' pieces. Is that normal, and/or OK?
The stuff I got from Walmart wasn't Cowboy, can't recall the name, but it
was very similar to the Royal Oak.

-John O