BBQing In Winter? Here's What You Have To Keep In Mind

Barbecueing, like golf, surfing, and frozen cocktails, just takes a little more dedication in the colder months. As much as one might wish to deny it, the weather will affect your barbecue grill's performance. Only the bravest among us stretch these spring and summertime activities clear through the whole year. Leave it to the pros to know just how to approximate fun in the sun even on relentlessly gray days. Chowhound warmed up with Patrick Klaiber, business partner and lead pitmaster at Denver's Riot BBQ, for a few sparks of knowledge to keep your grill aglow until the next thaw.

One key to cold weather grilling success is — you guessed it — temperature regulation. "It's always important to preheat your smoker, but it's even more important in the winter," Klaiber says. "I suggest giving your smoker an extra hour or so to come up to temperature." Klaiber also shared his preheating formula with Chowhound. He advised backyard cooks light their fire a whole two hours before they're ready to introduce the protein. You might also want to tick the Fahrenheit up by 5 or 10 degrees. "You can always adjust the temperature mid-cook if it seems to be cooking too quickly," Klaiber says.

Even within the four walls of your climate-controlled kitchen, opening the oven door for as little as a few seconds to glimpse whatever's roasting lets precious hot air escape. This sneak peek is even more perilous when grilling outside in the cold. Just don't do it. Be patient and trust your gear for optimal results. "If you're lookin' you ain't cookin," Klaiber says.

With Klaiber's advice — preheat the grill, consider cooking at a slightly higher temperature, and leave the meat be — your open air dinner endeavors should otherwise be able to follow the same principles regardless of what the calendar says. The 3-2-1 method (timed smoking, foil wrapping, then smoking some more) will yield terrific ribs all year long but a brisket must be prepared low and slow to garner a great bark and tender interior. You'll find it's more a matter of mentally working up the courage to brace the bitter cold.