Quote:
Originally Posted by bcm1947
Thank you for taking the time to share this information.
I smoked a pork butt on my 18.5 WSM Using B&B oak lump charcoal only. I wrapped it when the internal was @ 170 degrees. Took it to 200 degres, removed it from the smoker, and let it sit wrapped for a couple of hours before pulling. It had that great white oak taste, but overall wasn't much bark on it. I actually liked the flavor it had but one of my family members stated that it needed more smoke so I am now adding very small chunks of white oak & hickory to the lump embers. My family members seem to like it much better. Anyway, as I stated I'm only a backyard guy. Thanks
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so somethng happened today that kinda opened my eyes to a different way. at work bring bbq on mondays to taste. I brought some chicken smoked with lump only and 1 guy could taste and smell the smoke and the other two could not. chicken was only on the cooker 1.5 hours so it really didnt have a lot of time to absorb that much smoke.
the guy who could taste and smell the smoke does not bbq.
one guy who could not taste any smoke brought wings cooked with lump and mesquite wood (ack!!!) I only had one wing and it tasted great but I could taste that chemical mesquite flavor on my tongue for 2 hours. Obviously this guy likes his food drenched in smoke.
its definitely interesting how different people perceive smoke.
the eye opener for me was this - the guy I sold the smoker to works with me and he brought some ribs he cooked on the pecos and let me have a taste. well, damn were they delicous. very present smoke flavor but not overpowering so I asked him how he used the cooker. he used RO lump for heat and added about two sticks of pecan over a 5 hour period for flavor. It probably had the best balance of smoke that Ive had.
so now thats got me thinking lump for heat, wood for flavor (I think thats the first time thats been mentioned here ?
)
I plan to experiment with different amounts of wood until I can dial in that perfect flavor.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OklaDustDevil
Talkin about the differences between sticks and charcoal, I often see a similar tension just amongst stick burners on this site (like me).
What I mean is that many of us stickburners focus on minimizing El Luchador's issues with sticks -- getting a bigger pit, making it out of thicker steel, including a bigger firebox, insulating the firebox, etc. All with the goal of getting more stable temps, having to add wood less frequently, being able to sleep longer, or at least fuss with the pit less frequently, at night. Sometimes also with the goal of using less wood.
But all these pit attributes work to create a more stable temp by creating a bigger thermal mass. In other words, the bigger, thicker steel maintains a more stable temp as against the sticks that are tossed in from time to time. So I keep wonderin, doesn't that mean the hot steel is serving as an oven and cookin the meat apart from the smoke of the sticks? In other words, as we increase the size, thickness, and efficiency of our smokers, aren't we cookin more with an oven and less with a smoker?
I don't know the answer, but I'd sure like to understand it. I'm guessing it's probably a matter of balance, as with most things in life. Using a cheap, thin steel smoker that consumes lots of wood probably isn't the answer; but using a super-insulated, super-efficient pit likely isn't the answer either. As Aaron Franklin says, you need good air and smoke flow thru the pit.
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thats really interesting. but my thought is the meat has to be exposed to all the smoke at some point so even though there is residual cooking from absorbed heat, its still getting all the wood smoke
