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shawnmcchesney12
05-02-2014, 03:26 AM
Just a quick question today, do you all prefer to debark your wood you are using to smoke with or leave the bark on. I have been told the bark can impart bitter smoke flavors. I use alot of apple and cherry and debarking can be a pain in the backside. Just trying to get the brethrens point of view. Thanks

sliding_billy
05-02-2014, 03:34 AM
Leave it on. No difference in smell/flavor that I can tell.

YetiDave
05-02-2014, 04:05 AM
I never noticed any bad smells or flavours from bark either

mawdgret1
05-02-2014, 04:55 AM
I leave my bark on. I too use apple, cherry, and hickory debarking is a pain.

Garrett
05-02-2014, 05:18 AM
Only time I remove the bark is if it's already loose and easily comes off. That's because moisture can get behind it and cause it to mold.

IamMadMan
05-02-2014, 05:43 AM
I also leave the bark on unless it's wet, moldy, or has fungus on it.

Properly stored wood will have none of the above, but occasionally someone will drop some wood off that needs to be looked at before putting into storage...

saseekutz
05-02-2014, 07:15 AM
No difference in taste, leave it.

7over
05-02-2014, 07:37 AM
I eat the bark. Best tasting part!



/wait.... you meant tree bark! Sorry, read that wrong.

Papa Q
05-02-2014, 07:58 AM
I had the same question when I first started smoking meat because I spent a lot of time a work getting the bark off of my hickory and apple. I asked the brethren here and they said leave it on (I had read in some smoking book it would cause bitterness). I did and cannot tell a difference in taste. The bark is fuel from the same tree. Maybe the author of that comment had an ole tomcat 'marking' his woodpile.

oldbill
05-02-2014, 08:03 AM
Just a quick question today, do you all prefer to debark your wood you are using to smoke with or leave the bark on. I have been told the bark can impart bitter smoke flavors. I use alot of apple and cherry and debarking can be a pain in the backside. Just trying to get the brethrens point of view. Thanks Bitterness on the meat is caused by poor fire management, not wood bark. It's also the culprit behind what some people term as "over smoked" meat. It's basically wood that is smoldering rather than fully igniting due to green / unseasoned wood or in most cases poor airflow or draft.
I've read posts about people who are afraid to use mesquite or even hickory because they're afraid of "over smoking" their food but the fact is that it can happen with ANY wood that you cook with if the fire is not burning cleanly.:-D

juno
05-02-2014, 08:36 AM
I have wondered about using the minion method in regard to clean burn. Would this method not be a clean burn as the charcoal and wood would not be fully lit?

Displaced Texan
05-02-2014, 08:37 AM
I leave it on and I have never had a problem with taste or smell.

nucornhusker
05-02-2014, 08:51 AM
Leave it on. There are some brands of BBQ pellets that leave the bark in. When I stickburn or use chunks, I never worry about the bark. I only take it off if it is falling off as others said.

7over
05-02-2014, 09:02 AM
I have wondered about using the minion method in regard to clean burn. Would this method not be a clean burn as the charcoal and wood would not be fully lit?

That's a good question. I used the Minion Method on Wednesday night in the PBC, used Cherry wood and did not notice any bitterness or over smoking... I'm going to may use Pecan tonight with the ribs I'm cooking... I'll watch the wood to see if there is a problem.

oldbill
05-02-2014, 09:46 AM
I have wondered about using the minion method in regard to clean burn. Would this method not be a clean burn as the charcoal and wood would not be fully lit? The minion works great in the proper cooker. A charcoal cooker such as a WSM, Egg or an insulated vertical will give you really long burn times and pretty good Q. It's really just being careful about the amount of wood that is added for the quality of the smoke.
Using the minion in a stick burner however is something that I wouldn't recommend because it would mean choking down on the intake and stopping valuable airflow through the cooker. This will lead to temp issues and dirty smoke from smoldering wood. A small hot all wood fire with open dampers is the way to go with stick burners.:-D

juno
05-02-2014, 10:07 AM
Thanks for answering my question guys. Yes, I was referring to a WSM...not a stick burner. Now I understand!

pjtexas1
05-02-2014, 12:15 PM
I leave it on unless it is loose enough to pull off by hand.

Also never had an issue with the minion method. I bury my wood in the charcoal.

shawnmcchesney12
05-03-2014, 11:19 AM
Thanks for all the replies brethren looks like I no longer need to waste time debarking. I really appreciate all the information on this site and all the people who work hard to keep it going.