matching wood to meat........

[QTEX]

Originally Posted by Bludawg

Post oak for heat and season with a little mesquite on beef, Pecan with poultry, Hickory on pork.

Me too. we mus be from TEXAS!

[jmoney7269]

Strictly post oak at home. Strictly native texas pecan and fresh Fruitawoods cherry for comps. Cherry adds like stated earlier a whole new dimension of smoke flavor to foods. It does darken your lighter colored meats. Also as stated earlier you can only dectect your strongest smoking wood is untrue. If you use 3/1 fruit/hardwood you get a different flavor profile. Don't take my advise, try it for yourself, you will like it.

[Trumpstylz]

Originally Posted by Yendor

bourbon barrel-beef

Bourbon barrels are oak. White oak specifically.

[code3rrt]

Originally Posted by Yendor

I have very specific tastes...
apple-pork
pecan-chicken
bourbon barrel-beef

Those are my favorite combos.

Bourbon barrel, now that sounds interesting, where would one get that?

[Muscrat]

I live in the abilene area here in texas, can somebody explain to me how to identify Post Oak vs the other oaks we have here, I can find anything on how to tell the difference. All the locals I talk to that have oak trees don't know. I have lots of mesquite.

Also is there a point where pecan wood is too old to use? I can get some pecan but its been cut down for several years.

Thanks.

[Swamp Donkeyz BBQ]

Post oak is very common in central texas. They like rocky soil. My BIL's Dad has a ranch in the hill country so we haul a truck load of it home about three times a year. Here's a link that shows how to identify different oak trees by leaf characteristics and a few other ways.

http://www.cas.vanderbilt.edu/bioima...mpare-oaks.htm

[Yendor]

Originally Posted by code3rrt

Bourbon barrel, now that sounds interesting, where would one get that?

I get mine through The charcoal store. They are local to me so it is easy to get. If you haven't had a seared or reverse seared steak and a light smoke of bourbon barrel wood you haven't lived.
http://www.charcoalstore.com/

[jmoney7269]

Post oak, pin oak, live oak are all easily distinguishable by leaves.
Another way is by the bark. That's how I learned if it didn't have any leaves

[Terry The Toad]

I use whatever is on hand. What I keep on hand is whatever I can get from my firewood guy. Right now I have a bunch of oak (probably live oak) and hickory.

My son's co-worker also does tree work on the side... he brought me a big pile of Florida maple. (It still needs to dry a bit though.)

[Swamp Donkeyz BBQ]

Originally Posted by Muscrat

Also is there a point where pecan wood is too old to use? I can get some pecan but its been cut down for several years.

Thanks.

If the pecan wasn't kept relatively dry it might have become rotten. If it is verry light, in weight, and the wood has become soft, I wouldn't use it.

[Babyboomerboy]

I have used hedge for my heating wood several times and it works good. Cherry and pecan for flavor on chicken and hickory for beef. The hedge doesn't leave any flavor or taste and really gets the box up to temp fast. Also it takes a lot less hedge to keep a hot fire rather than oak.

[Dirt Daddy]

Post oak and Mesquite on everything...

[flyingbassman5]

Originally Posted by code3rrt

Bourbon barrel, now that sounds interesting, where would one get that?

Jack Daniels markets chiped up oak whiskey barrels and its awesome. You get drunk as soon as you open the bag.

I think smokilicious markets tubs of wood soaked in Bourbon too. You can get it soaked in some other things too, one being Jamaican rum.

[tnjimbob]

Originally Posted by jmoney7269

Also as stated earlier you can only dectect your strongest smoking wood is untrue. If you use 3/1 fruit/hardwood you get a different flavor profile. Don't take my advise, try it for yourself, you will like it.

+1 to this.

I use 3:1 cherry to hickory or pecan except on chicken, and that gets cherry only.