adventuredon

Looks great. 5 hours at what temp?

trim the garden, paint he fence..make it look more like a kitchen/smoke spot/private corner..., less a braai area../ keep it up. Like the ukbraaiwood video

I sprinkle my chimney starter on the unlit coals at the end I want them to start burning from, as well as some just in the basket to keep everything going. I also try to keep a channel between my vent an where I place my basket of coals to sustain that airflow initially

I add it to my compost as well as using the little bits for drainage in my pot plants (summer mainly) but the ash also gets put into my large potting bucket and mixed in with soil. Reduces the acidity of soil (think limestone/chalk etc). Burnt bits also deter snails in the borders as they hate the edges.

I have found that weber briquettes in a snake method burn properly at 220 - 225F. But struggle to get any higher than that. Might be different with minion method though. I have strated using this https://www.braaiwooduk.com/product-category/charcoal/ and find it burns a lot hotter and lasts very long. It also cools quickly when you close the vents so you can use it as a starter next time around. Great price too

I do all my own prep cooking and cleaning...

I'd love to but will be on a motorbike somewhere in Germany.

Always defrost anything I am cooking, be that braai, smoker or in the oven. Never wash chicken as you risk contamination, it's better to just cook it as it comes.

Ok in the same vein, if I cook with all 3 rings and only use the top shelf on my Napoleon 200, is there a heat difference if the internal chamber is smaller? i.e remove middle ring and just use firebowl, waterpan and grill shelf (2 rings) as opposed to 2 x grill shelves (3 rings)? Logic says that the smaller the chamber, the less time it will take to reach temp, but not sure on actual burn time being affected. If that makes sense

Evening all, new smoker her. Living in London for the past 20 odd years, originally from S Africa. Very used to braaing and a dutch pot (poitjie). Very new to smoking. Currently on my 4th cook in the rain as I type! Bought a Napoleon 200 to get into the swing of things. Mods so far: Gasket tape around sections, doors and temp guage area Cork handles for door openings Extended the vent handles to prevent burning myself Calibrated the analog thermometer Finally settled on a Weber I grill2 digital guage after 2 cheaper version issues/failures. Anyhow, looking forward to picking brains and learning. Other interests are growing chilli and tomato plants, braaing, drinking and riding motorbikes. Live in SW18.