Just jokin Mr. Peabody on the dial up question.

Yeah, I was asking you how much you used it though. I remember the deer roast, this guy never really tended to it much throughout the day, and by the end of the evening, it sure was good eatin.

here's some general smoking tips (any kinds of meats that i found.....look pretty informative).....this is going to be a food of love thing where you have to go slow, plan it out, and and be very patient.....and you should have unbelievable results (buy a meat thermometer if you don't already have one and cook the meat slow for best results......may want to inject the turkey with some spices and liquid to keep moist as well as putting some butter slices under the the skin....you get good enough at this smoking technique and you're going to have more hungry friends than you know what to do with):

Charcoal Smokers

Hardwood charcoal briquettes make the hottest, longest lasting fire. Look for quality. The cheapest charcoal is not a good buy if it does not burn well. Always close unused bags of charcoal by rolling the tops down rightly. Store charcoal in a dry place. Charcoal that's left out in the rain or dew will not burn well

Most Charcoal briquettes average about 14 briquettes per pound. Always use at least five pounds of charcoal. Bigger cooking jobs need more charcoal, so follow the recipes or the Quick Glance Cooking Chart on back page that tells how much charcoal to use.


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Electric Smokers

Electric Cooking is simple and similar to cooking with charcoal. Cooking time varies slightly, but no lighter fluid or charcoal is needed. You will need to cook on High unless you are only warming. Use a meat thermometer on whole meats when you can.

For extra smoke flavor, use hickory or mesquite chips sprinkled around Element coils. Small wood chunks may be placed on or touching the element coils. Soak wood chips or chunks in water at least 30-60 minutes before cooking. Amount of chips or chunks vary to degree of smoke flavor you want and amount of food. (See Smoke Cooking Section Page 7.)


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Wood

The smokehouse flavor comes from the green or wet wood that you put on the glowing coals. If the wood isn't green or wet, it will burn instead of smoking. Use wood from deciduous trees (they shed their leaves in the winter) only, NOT from evergreen trees. evergreens, such as pin, are resinous and will ruin the flavor and appearance of food. Do use hickory, apple, peach, pecan or other fruit or nut tree woods. Mesquite is a popular smoking wood in the Southwest, palmetto is used in the South and some Midwesterners use dried corncobs. Experiment with all of them.

You can buy or cut wood for smoking from several forms. Chips are often available in 1-1/2 or 2 pound bags. You'll usually find them right next to charcoal in the supermarket. Chunks of cross cut trees should be about 3-4 inches long and 1/2 inch diameter. The cooking chart and recipes call for one stick, chunk, or handful of chips but you can use whatever from you prefer. Chunks give the longest lasting smoke. Your own experimentation will help you determine how much to use to get the amount of smoke flavor that you want.

To assure proper Electric Smoking performance, use Hickory Chunks instead of chips. Place the chunks between the element sections so the chunks actually touch the element. If using wood chips, sprinkle them under and near the element coils.

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Barbecuing

You can change your Meco Charcoal Water Smoker into a barbecue grill in less than a minute. Set the Charcoal Pan on top of the lower Cooking Grid. Light the charcoal as you normally would for smoke cooking. When ready to cook, put the other cooking Grid on the upper Grid Brackets. Now you are ready to cook steaks, burgers or other food which require high, fast heat. Add wood chips or chunks if you want smoke flavor. Cover with the Hood to hold in the heat and moisture.

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Roasting/ Baking

You can cover cook foods at temperatures similar to a medium hot oven by cooking without water. Set up the grill ( Charcoal or electric) the same as you would for water smoking but omit the Water Pan, and don't add wood chips. Roasting is good for very thick steaks, chickens and small tender roasts such as tenderloins. Remember that roasting times are much shorter than water smoking times.


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Steaming

You can cook foods with low, moist heat in your water smoker. Just don't add wood chips or chunks. You'll get great cooking in the same times as shown in the Cooking Chart but there won't be any smoke flavor.


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Test For Doneness

Some recipes and the "Smoking Times" Cooking Chart, give meat thermometer readings and tests for doneness. Lift the hood to check the meat thermometer only at the end of the minimum cooking time given in the chart.

Smoked foods do look a little different from oven or grill cooked foods, so your eye cannot always judge doneness. A meat thermometer is the only sure way to tell if a piece of meat is cooked the way you want it.

Smoked poultry, for instance, usually will look slightly pink, especially around the joints and just under the skin even though it is done. Pork, also will show pink color, even though it's well done.

Always be sure to insert the meat thermometer into the meat so the tip is in the center of the largest muscle, away from bone or fat. The Smoking Times Guide gives you standard doneness temperatures for most meats. The chart also gives descriptions of doneness for foods that are too small for a thermometer such as chicken pieces, fish, etc.

Use a Meat Thermometer for judging the doneness of the meat. Whenever the outside air temperature is 70 degree Fahrenheit or below, allow the meat to cook for at least the minimum time shown on the Smoking Times Chart before opening the hood. The purpose of the heat indicator on the hood is to give only a relative indication of how the smoker is performing. The actual cooking temperature is influenced by many variables. You will have the most success in cooking by checking the actual temperature of the meat being cooked.


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Timing

You'll notice that there are ranges of one to two hours in cooking times in the Chart and in the recipes. This is because there are so many factors that can speed up or, more often, slow down the rate of smoke cooking. Wind, type of charcoal, temperature of the food, outside temperature, relative humidity, number of times you lift the hood, temperature of water in the water pan, thickness and weight of food can all have an effect, so cooking times have to be approximate. There's very little chance that you will overcook food in your water smoker, except when barbecuing or roasting without the water pan. When the water pan is in place and full of water, it keeps the heat so low and even that, especially at the end of long cooking periods, food will stay hot and moist for several hours.

If the outside temperature is below 55-60 degrees F, if you live above 4000 feet, or if it is very windy (move smoker out of direct wind), allow extra time for cooking.

If you forget to take the meat out of the refrigerator for half an hour or so before putting it on to cook, allow extra cooking time. Meat must be completely thawed before putting it on to cook. Don't forget to check the water pan after four-five hours of cooking time.

If your Charcoal Smoker is beginning to cool down or you need to cook for longer periods of time:

Start about 5-7 pounds additional charcoal in a separate container. When ready, slide the access door open using barbecue mitts or protective cloth. Add the charcoal briquettes with long handled gongs to the charcoal ring. Don't just throw them in...this will stir up ashes. Add hot water to the water pan if you need to.


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Scheduling

Long, slow smoke cooking is such a change from our usual hurry-up way of life that it takes some adjusting to. It's a good idea to set yourself a countdown so your food will be cooked before your scheduled meal time. Cooks that don't plan ahead may find themselves with a yard full of hungry and less than happy guests if the food comes out of the smoker two hours later than planned.

Base your countdown on the longest cooking time shown on the chart or recipe. Count backwards from the time you want to eat, then add another hour to start your fire, take the meat out of the refrigerator to get the chill off, soak the wood chunks an generally get everything ready to cook. The first hour of preparation is the most work you'll have to do while smoke cooking.

What If..? Even the best planned schedule can go wrong, so here some tips for those rare occasions:

Try to always have some appetizers, or perhaps a salad to serve first to give you some flexibility on the serving time in case your food is not done on schedule.

If the food is cooking too slow and guests have consumed all your appetizers...try one of the follow: Remove the water pan to allow all the heat from the charcoal to get to the meat. If you're waiting for a large piece of meat or a large turkey, cut it into smaller sections; it won't be as juicy as if cooked whole but it will finish faster. If you have run out of charcoal, move the meat inside to a 400 F oven.

If the food has cooked faster than planned and is beginning to dry out... Baste the meat with juices from the water pan and wrap it in foil. Leave it on the cooking grid to stay warm until serving time. If serving time is more than an hour or so, put some ice into the water pan and fill it with cold water.

What if roasts don't look like oven cooked meats? Remember that water smoking isn't the same as oven roasting. Beef may look less crusty than if oven-cooked and it may be paler. Just brush it with gravy coloring, barbecue sauce, soy sauce or teriyaki sauce, then dig in and enjoy.


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Food Safety

A lot of what's called the 24 hour virus" is really food borne illness. A word to the wise can prevent discomfort to family and friends. Cleanliness is indeed a virtue. All utensils, all work surfaces and the cook must be clean. If you have a cold or the flu, wait until another day to cook. Guest are less likely to share your malady and you're better off resting.

Do not let foods stand around at room or outside temperature. Other than the half hour period we recommend for meats to come out of the refrigerator to warm up before cooking, rush all food from refrigerator to table and back again. Keep meats hot in your water smoker for second helpings. then cover and refrigerate immediately ...don't wait until after dessert! The rule is: keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold and get them to those temperatures as soon as possible.

We recommend you cook turkeys unstuffed. Prepare the stuffing and wrap it in foil to cook along side the bird, if you wish. It takes so long for stuffing in the center of a large turkey to heat through that it's better to cook it separate.


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Tips for Success:

Always thaw meat thoroughly
Let charcoal burn until it gets very hot...make sure the coals are glowing and covered with gray ash before cooking
Let meat stand at room temperature at least one half-hour before cooking
Do not lift hood to check for doneness until end of minimum cooking time given in charts
Add more cooking time if: It's windy or colder than 50 degrees F, you lift the hood often, or you cook at high altitude.
Don't peek just to be sure the food is cooking. Look at the heat indicator, or feel the heat near the hood.


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Clean-up

Clean-up is made easy by spraying Grid and Reflector Pan with cooking spray before cooking. For added protection, line Water Pan and Charcoal Pan with aluminum foil. Make sure you do not cover any holes for venting. When Smoker has cooled down, wash Grid Water Pan and outside of Smoker with warm soapy water. Wipe excess grease from inside the Smoker. The rest will be dark and smoky-just let it stay that way. NEVER USE OVEN CLEANER ON PAINTED SURFACES. For the Electric unit, just wipe off the Reflector Pan, the Element and Control. DO NOT IMMERSE IN WATER. Replace all the clean parts. Store the Smoker in an out-of-the-way spot. Cover with a Smoker Cover or a plastic garbage bag if you wish.

Pretty in-depth info guys, I appreciate it. I will be experimenting soon and let you know how I make out.

i brine turkeys too and put citrus (halves of oranges and lemons) in mine. let it sit in a bucket in the fridge for at least 24 hours. cook it breast side down the first hour so juices concentrate in the breast part of the bird. then flip it and cook it the rest of the time. also smear whole bird with lots of butter and seasonings (also rub it with butter and seasonings under the skin) so it turns golden brown and skin is nice and crisp.

I found that out a couple of months ago. I had forgotten to buy charcoal so I used some that had been in my carport for a couple of years and it took almost 2 hours to barbecue some burgers and chicken wings.

just a tip for the NOLA folks there is a great (ACE?) hardware store on Transcontinental just off of West Esplanade near the lake which has a killer selection of BBQ, Smoking, and outdoor cooking implements.... priced right as well....