Read Low & Slow: Master the Art of Barbecue in 5 Easy Lessons for Free Online

fire, and smoke in a low and slow cook.
ISSUE N°1:
     
    THE CHARCOAL IN THE CHIMNEY WON’T CATCH ON FIRE.
    Did you get nervous and shove four or five balls of paper in the bottom of the chimney? Lack of airflow around the paper is the most common reason a chimney won’t light. If the paper only smolders and singes around the edges, but doesn’t go up in full flames, you’ve used too much paper or packed the paper in too tightly. If the paper flares up but dies out quickly, perhaps you’re not using enough paper. You need three full sheets of newspaper to fuel the kind of flames it takes to completely light that bottom layer of charcoal. Also, check the charcoal. Is it wet or does it smell musty? You will have trouble lighting wet charcoal.
ISSUE N°2:
     
    THICK, DIRTY SMOKE IS BLOWING OUT OF THE TOP VENT.
    Surely you’re not using the verboten briquettes. If you are, shame on you. If not, maybe you closed the lid of the firebox or cooker too soon. When you mix lit and unlit natural lump charcoal, the batch needs five or ten minutes to fully catch before that heavy, darker smoke stops billowing. If you close the lid while it’s still catching, two things happen: 1) you choke off the airflow that feeds the initial high heat and gets the charcoal to the clean burning phase and 2) you trap the smoky smolder inside the cooker. If that’s not the case, check your vents to make sure that they are all fully opened. Something is causing the fire to smolder, and it’s probably a blocked vent.
ISSUE N°3:
     
    I CHECKED MY CHEAP OVEN THERMOMETER, AND THE GRATE TEMPERATURE IS TOO HOT.
    Check your water pan. Usually when the temperature spikes above 275°F, the water level has dipped too low. Refill the water pan, and check it every hour or so—particularly in the kettle and offset cookers, as the aluminum loaf pans are smaller. The pan should be at least half full at all times. The temperature in a cooker will also spike immediately after fresh wood is added to the fire, but this is temporary and should stabilize. Next, check your vents. If it’s a windy day and air is blowing directly into the vents over the charcoal, you may need to create a wind block. Turn the cooker so the vent is not facing into the wind, or partially close the vent.
ISSUE N°4:
     
    THE COOKER ISN’T AS HOT AS IT SHOULD BE.
    If the cooker is dropping in temperature, your fire is choked or you don’t have enough charcoal burning. Check your vents. Sometimes small fragments of lump charcoal and the dust from the bottom of a bag clog the vents and block airflow. Remove any charcoal pieces from the vent area with a pair of tongs. If there is an excess of charcoal dust, gently stir the charcoal with the tongs to redistribute it. If any vents are partially closed, slide them completely open. Check your charcoal supply, as well. If it’s running low, restock with a full chimney (or half, if you’re on a kettle) of lit charcoal.
ISSUE N°5:
     
    WHILE REFILLING THE WATER PAN, I DUMPED WATER ON THE HOT COALS AND NOW THEY’RE SMOLDERING.
    If you dumped a considerable amount of water on the charcoal and the coals are barely lit, you’ll need to reignite the fire. Fire up another chimney starter of charcoal. When the charcoal is fully engaged and burning hot and red, pour the lit charcoal over the smoldering batch. While a small amount of water is not good for the fire, if it’s just a splash and most of the charcoal is still burning bright, leave it alone. Or if the damp charcoal is all in one area, use your tongs to pick up a few chunks of burning charcoal and lay them over the smoldering pieces.

THE NO-PEEKING POLICY
     
    THERE’S NO DENYING IT: a cooker at work is irresistible. You will want to touch it. You will want to open the lid to check the temperature or to gaze at that glorious slow-cooking barbecue. You will tell yourself you need to check the water pan—for the fifth time in the last half hour. Low and slow student, you must resist these