Read Smoking Meat for Free Online Page B

are inexpensive (they can cost as little as $15), and can be purchased almost anywhere cooking tools are sold. You can also pay a little more if you want something nifty—a remote version that allows you to keep the monitor with you while the probe stays in the meat, for example. This is actually a pretty sweet device, and I highly recommend obtaining one if you can afford it.
    Insert the thermometer into the meat in the early stages of the cooking session, and leave it there while the meat cooks. The braided metal cord can be placed in the doorjamb of the smoker or inserted through a hole or vent. The actual probe itself should not touch metal of any kind, or it can short out and cease to work (you can purchase replacement probes). With a little care, thermometers can last for many years. I have about six of them, and all still work as well as they did the day I bought them.
    Controller on a Bradley digital smoker, with digital probe meat thermometer.
    The probes can also be used to test the ambient temperature of the smoker. Simply insert the probe through a potato, allowing about 2 or 3 inches of the probe to stick out the other side. Place the potato on the grate along with the meat, and you’ll have an accurate reading of the heat at grate/meat level. Feel free to eat the smoked potato later.
    I see many novice pitmasters using mechanical or digital instant-read thermometers that are designed to pierce the meat and check its internal temperature during the cooking session, but that cannot be left in. These are not good, and I will explain why: every time you pierce, poke, or otherwise insert an object into very hot meat, the tasty juices bubble out of the hole you just made, and that is never a good thing. You need those tasty juices to remain inside the meat. I recommend you place the digital probe meat thermometer into the meat halfway through your cooking session, and do not remove it until the meat is out of the cooker and has rested for 15 to 30 minutes. The meat will seal around the probe early on and the delectable juices will stay inside, while you still get a constant read on the internal temperature of the meat.
    Food safety and thermometers
    Here’s a little food safety tidbit for you while we are on the subject of thermometers: I used to recommend that the thermometer be inserted into the meat when it is first placed in the smoker. However, recent studies on ways to prevent bacteria and foodborne illnesses seem to suggest that if bacteria is present on the surface of the raw meat and a thermometer or any other object is inserted, it could carry that bacteria deep into the meat and create a real safety issue.
    My understanding is that the temperature must reach 140° F a half-inch below the surface of the meat within the first four hours of a cooking session in order for it to be safe to eat. I can say with certainty, based on years of experience, that a meat temperature of 140° F is easily accomplished within four hours of cooking at 225° F for all types of meats. That’s why I suggest inserting the thermometer into the meat halfway through a cooking session.
    You might already be wondering whether this rule also applies to injecting marinades or other liquids into the meat or making incisions of any kind before the interior reaches 140° F . I try not to get too carried away with this. I often inject raw meat with marinades and I sometimes insert the thermometer at the beginning of the smoking session. I mention this information only because it’s one way to add an extra safety net into your cooking techniques.
    Stoker Power Draft System
    A while back I heard of an electronic device that operates a blower attached to your charcoal or wood-fired smoker in order to maintain a certain temperature level. I contacted the company and they promptly sent me a test model to try out on my 22½-inch Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker.
    This thing is serious geek candy; it comes with all the bells and whistles you