Humphrey's battle box - no smoke ring

[dinop]

Hey guys - I have seen this topic time and time again - but have not seen it with a Humphreys smoker. Ive had this smoker for 3 years now and used to get amazing smoke rings. The last 8 months or so I have not been able to get a smoke ring!!

Ive used kingsford, lump, various types of wood, nothing seems to do the trick.. water pan, no water. using a cyber Q.

Throw the meat on cold, I have tried everything I can think of..

Should the chimney be wide open? or should I close it? Have any of you guys had similar issues?

Dino

 

[Decoy205]

I'm guessing if you used to get great smoke rings but you no longer do maybe there's not a good draft and the smoker needs a deep clean?

I'm curious about this too. I haven't had enough cooks on my half pint to see if I'm getting a smoke ring or not but I like seeing the smoke ring. I know it is harder to get with insulated cookers because of the air control though.

 

[PatAttack]

Does it need a smoke ring?

How does it taste? That's the real test.

 

[dadsr4]

Different meat source?

 

[LYU370]

Does it need a smoke ring?

How does it taste? That's the real test.

I find that smoke rings produce too much of a ring-ey taste... :laugh: :bow:

 

[Adubree86]

I don't understand why ppl give a crap about smoker rings. In competitions they don't matter and have no impact on taste. If you're backyard cooking it shouldn't even cross your mind. If it tastes good who cares.

 

[Fwismoker]

The funny thing about smoke rings is the smokers/cookers where people don't use wood chunks often get really good smoke rings... and that's only because briquettes like KBB put off a ton of nitric oxide which aids in production of the SR and btw is meaningless w/ regards to smoke flavor.

 

[LYU370]

I don't understand why ppl give a crap about smoker rings.

"It's the sign of good BBQ" "It shows the pitmaster knows what they're doing" At least that's what they say on TV, so it must be true... ound: ound: ound:

 

[pjtexas1]

Most people love a smoke ring and some see it as a symbol of a successful cook. When I used to take briskets to UT tailgates they all went crazy over the smoke ring. You can't taste the ring but it is what it is.

Have you tried using a maze in your charcoal basket? I find that with less charcoal burning I can open up the intake and exhaust a little more to increase airflow. If I just do a minion I have to use water to keep the temps under control and choke the intake too much. You might also try more wood chunks. Has anything changed? Can you recall how you got the rings in the past?

 

[Westx]

Busting the myth of the smoke ring. Good read.

http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_technique/mythbusting_the_smoke_ring.html

 

[dinop]

I honestly don't know what changed except heavy use of the smoker. I do use a maze, same meat. Salt pepper and garlic. I thought about the deep clean, cleaning the stack, I don't know how to go about doing that properly.

The smoke ring not coming suddenly is more personal than anything. It's really bugging me. When I first got my smoker I had massive smoke rings. I really don't get it.

I've gone as low as 225 almost freezing cold briskets. I'm lost at what it could possibly be.

 

[dinop]

I used to get better rings on my old propane smoker lol

 

[Elancer]

If you prefer a good smoke ring, I would leave the exhaust damper wide open for faster airflow, which should make for a hotter fire. A hotter fire produces a better smoke ring than a smoldering one. Using plain charcoal briquets produce a smoke ring similar to using all wood and better than lump charcoal. Lump charcoal is mostly pure carbon and deficient in nitrogen, which is needed for a prominent smoke ring.
Nitric Oxide and Carbon Monoxide interact with the myoglobin in meat to produce a smoke ring. Use water in the water pan because a moist environment produces a better smoke ring by allowing water to condense on the surface, cooling it, enhancing the nitric oxide on the surface.
A smoke ring is not really a smoke ring, just a chemical reaction of gases to the myoglobin in the meat.

 

[blazinfire]

"It's the sign of good BBQ" "It shows the pitmaster knows what they're doing" At least that's what they say on TV, so it must be true... ound: ound: ound:

well in that case, I'm the greatest BBQ chef. My smoke rings are pretty darn good LOL

 

[IamMadMan]

I have a Humphrey's Down east Beast and I get an amazing smoke ring each and every time. Most of the time, my ribs are almost pink all the way through from the smoke ring. But the majority of my meat comes from a local slaughterhouse.

I use a water pan, a guru, and as per Chad's recommendation for the exhaust; I keep it at 50%.

I don't know if this has any bearing on your issue, but I recently read where some pork processors are treating the meat with carbon-monoxide gas to help preserve the color during shipping and display. Maybe it also has an effect on the cooking process as well? If the meat is saturated with with carbon-monoxide maybe it is unable to absorb the nitric oxide released in the burning process? Just grasping at straws here maybe someone else can chime in.

 

[Leftwngr]

Just cheat and use some celery salt if you must have a ring.

I'll admit it, I do that with brisket when having folks over who I know will be looking for a smoke ring.

Also, misting a brisket or butt helps too. I mist with water every 30 min or so after the bark sets.

 

[m-fine]

Add a little cure to your rub and fake it. I wouldn't say the ring is meaningless. Food is about more than flavor, appearance matters as well.

 

[m-fine]

Or get a diesel VW and pipe the exhaust into your smoker.

 

[2xal]

For the first time last week I got some beautiful rings with just a kettle. What I did differently this time was instead of doing chunks I did a line of dry chips all the around the top of the minion ring. I guess a constant wisp added to a ring more than bursts of heavy smoke.

 

[spedly]

My experience lately have been a little different in my upright Pitmaker Safe. I used to always get a good smoke ring when I wasn't getting good smoke from the fire. Looked great, tasted like an ashtray. Now that I know how to control it I don't get as much of a smoke ring - it is very slight - but the food tastes much better.

I think that wood plays into a bit. I've only cooked brisket in that pit lately and have been using some red oak chunks that are dry and probably at least two years old.

There's so many variables between cooks, ingredients, outside factors, and cookers that it would be pretty tough to nail down an exact reason.