Looking for more smoke flavor from my stick burner
- Thread starter Mcc1972
- Start date
speed2486
is one Smokin' Farker
Mix some green(er) wood in with your more seasoned wood.
rebelleader
Got Wood.
Your food should still taste plenty smokey. Clean fire is the way to go.
KClandcruiser
is one Smokin' Farker
What kind of wood do you typically run with? Maybe try mixing in some mesquite or hickory for a more pronounced flavor
patrickd26
Full Fledged Farker
I know what you mean. I've learned to try to run a tad cooler (250ish). That seems to give the right amount of clean smoke. If I run 300+, then it very clean exhaust. Just a thought.
blackdogbbq21
Take a breath!
I know what you mean, I thought the same thing when I first switched to a stick burner from a wsm. I was worried my wood was too dry. I thought my food wasn't smoky enough after watching the fire for hours and breathing smoke. Taking a shower after the meat comes off before you eat helps re set your palate. Also try your food leftover the next day, sometimes the leftovers taste smokier.
BBQ Freak
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that is what I love about stick burner is the lighter smoke and just throw pieces of greener wood in with the mix if you like a more pronounce smoke flavor .
Cook
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I find alot of other people's barbecue is too smokey. Maybe this is why...
m-fine
is One Chatty Farker
Clear smoke still has flavor. Try different wood, not necessarily green. Oak can often be weak, hickory is my local favorite. Further south people use a lot of pecan which is a relative of hickory. In the SW you might mix some mesquite in with oak. It depends on what you can get locally.
Clean fire Low temps so it is in there longer and a stronger wood
KClandcruiser
is one Smokin' Farker
George, stronger wood is always helpful :heh:
W.I.T.W.A.G?
Full Fledged Farker
clean fire is always better IMHO. I also agree that after running the rig all day you are numb to the smell and flavor of smoke and I've heard several people say the same thing. if it's not that I would mix in some different hard woods. Not sure what you are burning but hickory and oak are good hardwoods that have nice flavor but not too strong providing you have a clean fire.
Porcine Aviator
Full Fledged Farker
That next day thing — more smoke flavor— is such a strange phenomenon isn't it? I notice this all the time.
On the offset clean smoke quandary:
If the smoke is too clean on the offset, I usually add a little more wood and cut the air back a tad. The fire is still hot enough to avoid dirty creosote smoke, but cool enough to avoid burning off the good stuff we're looking for in smoke flavor.
sudsandswine
Quintessential Chatty Farker
Of course this is a matter of personal preference, but a clean burning fire with only heat exiting the stack is my ideal scenario. I like to think of food that comes off my stick burner as "cooked with a wood burning fire" not "smoked". If I burp up smoke later in the day, the meat was oversmoked for my liking. I also find that having my face in and out of the firebox and cook chamber for 8...10...12 hours really mutes my taste buds and by then I usually dont even want to eat whatever it is I spent all that time cooking. That reason, among othera, is why I often cook in advance now. As others mentioned, a shower can help. I mainly use oak and hickory, with an occasional stick of cherry for color. Im honestly not sure I can tell the difference in food I cooked with only oak and food only with hickory, but perhaps if I did a side by side. Could be that I just dont have complex enough taste buds. I just know that food cooked on a clean burning wood fire tastes best to me.
Did you try marinating in Liquid Smoke or maybe throw an old shoe in the firebox? Just kidding.
orangeblood
Full Fledged Farker
If you have mastered fire tending such that you maintain temps during a long cook with a clean fire you are doing something VERY WELL. Many folks would like to be in your shoes.
My $0.02: avoid adding green wood or choking the fire. Since you are in Keller you should be able to find live oak and pecan easily. This blend always works for me and produces rich but not acrid smoke flavor.
Good luck, please post an update when you find what works for you.
My $0.02: avoid adding green wood or choking the fire. Since you are in Keller you should be able to find live oak and pecan easily. This blend always works for me and produces rich but not acrid smoke flavor.
Good luck, please post an update when you find what works for you.
TheBBQJew
Knows what a fatty is.
Keep the meat wet by basting or spraying with water or whatever liquid you may prefer. The moisture on the meat attracts and holds smoke. Dry meat not so much.
