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View Full Version : Smoke flavor UDS vs Stick


Twelvegaugepump
04-29-2012, 11:32 AM
I had a very successful party and will be posting the pron and details later today. While cleaning up I was wondering something. Is it normal for the stick burner to have less of a smokey flavor than the UDS? Does it all have to do with the grease dripping on the coals during the cook in the drum? I cooked 51lbs of butt, brisket and leg quarters over oak and the flavor was great but more like cooking over a wood fire than smoking like I was used to. I plan to switch to maple and apple, but is this pretty normal?

SirPorkaLot
04-29-2012, 11:37 AM
I'm scratching my head a bit, because in my experience, it is the exact opposite.

If I want something with a lot of smoke, then it is in an all wood fire on my offset stickburner. If I want to cook something over wood, I use my UDS, which tends to be a bit less smoky than my stickburner.
This is due to the fact i use much less wood in my UDS (I use chunks mixed with charcoal instead of logs)

HogFan
04-29-2012, 11:47 AM
If you talk with folks that have a Cookshack electric smoker, it is easy to get too much smoke flavor. My theory is this is caused by the low volume of air moving through an electric smoker so the smoke lingers and has more time to flavor the meat.

On an offset smoker, a lot of wood is burned so a large volume of gases and smoke pass quickly through the smoke box.

A UDS is in-between......a small quantity of fuel is consumed so much less gases/smoke pass through the drum. Maybe the smoke lingers longer so has more time to flavor the meat?

Also, both an electric and a drum are "tight" so very few leaks.

Twelvegaugepump
04-29-2012, 06:24 PM
I have light blue to almost no smoke, except when I add another stick. Even then I preheat it on top of the firebox. Am I doing this right? Have I gotten too used to UDS smoked food?

Wampus
04-29-2012, 06:57 PM
I think it really depends on the quality of your fire in either smoker and what you consider "good smoke flavor".

Little to no blue smoke means a good hot, clean fire and is the ultimate goal. Many folks that are just starting out (and I'm not saying that's you) make the mistake of pounding their BBQ with a lot of thick smoke, using too much or having a 'dirty' fire. I made this mistake myself starting out. I thought that more smoke was better. I was wrong. If you ask most seasoned Q'ers, they'll tell you that BBQ should have just a hint of smoke, but really shouldn't taste like smoke.

Sounds like you have the clean hot fire down if you're getting thin to no smoke just before adding a log on your stick burner. THAT is an art that many have trouble with. I also have both and I think it's a little more challenging to get a good clean smoke with a UDS since there's so much less air flow. Could just be your UDS is putting out more smoke taste because of this?

Twelvegaugepump
04-29-2012, 07:06 PM
Wampus, I think that is the case, the UDS is not burning as clean, plus dripping grease into the fire. I personally like the stick burning flavor I am getting. I was not sure how the pros were seasoning things with smoke. What you are saying is that the leading pit masters will cook sticks all day with little to no smoke and that is the smoke component of their BBQ? If so, I will keep it up! Thanks.

superdan
04-29-2012, 08:04 PM
I agree with above. I find on my stick burner I can keep a really clean, hot fire with all vents wide open and it likes to cruise along between 225-250. On other cookers that I have to fight to keep the temp down I get a much less clean fire. Maybe your UDS wants to cook hot and fast. In my humble opinion, I don't fight the cooker. I prefer a clean fire...

Twelvegaugepump
04-29-2012, 08:10 PM
Not sure how much I will use my UDS now that I have my stick burner, but the next time I do I will see if a pan or diffuser will cut down on the grease hitting the fire and causing more smoke.

---k---
04-29-2012, 08:17 PM
Try putting diffuser in it. I think you'll like it better. Use your stick burner for those dinner cooks where you're around all day. Use the UDS for lunch when you want to throw the meat on at night and go to bed. You can't beat that.