Smoking Meat -- Tips, Opinions, Recipes

Try smoking a big chuck roast and making chili with it…back in the day I would throw one in the annual Thanksgiving imu and vacuum pack parcels to freeze…makes great chili
Were having chili tonight. That sounds really tasty I'll have to give if a go next time.
 
Try smoking a big chuck roast and making chili with it…back in the day I would throw one in the annual Thanksgiving imu and vacuum pack parcels to freeze…makes great chili
👍
that’s what I do with tri tips (I’m not a fan of Tri tip cooked med rare like a steak)
 
You don’t want any heat. You want smoke. Best option is to go with a smoke tube.

Took your advice & got myself a smoke tube. The results are divine... Thank you sir!!!

Gouda & cheddar in pic with hickory in the tube. 4 hr smoke @ about 35 degrees F. I thought about using apple but I like a stronger smoke (mesquite is my go-to since I grew up with it). But I'm not sure anything stronger than hickory will pair well with cheese. LOVING the hickory combo though. Any other recommendations for cheese? Thanks again!!!
 

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Took your advice & got myself a smoke tube. The results are divine... Thank you sir!!!

Gouda & cheddar in pic with hickory in the tube. 4 hr smoke @ about 35 degrees F. I thought about using apple but I like a stronger smoke (mesquite is my go-to since I grew up with it). But I'm not sure anything stronger than hickory will pair well with cheese. LOVING the hickory combo though. Any other recommendations for cheese? Thanks again!!!
How does the smoke tube work?...
 
I ordered mine off amazon... it was around $10 I think. Basically just a tube with a bunch of holes in it, and an open end. Works best with pellets but I think small chips would probably work too. I used pellets this time.

I put a blow torch on the open end for about 30 seconds, then let it burn for another minute or so before blowing out the flames. Then just set it in the smoker (or covered grill). I let mine go until it was done... around 4.5 hours I think. And it added virtually no heat to the space. I was surprised at how much smoke it produced for so long. Easily enough to fill my Oklahoma Joe's Highland smoker. I've modified the smoker to extend the "chimney" down to the grill level with some flex tube but that's about it, so I imagine it would work well with an unmodified smoker too.
 
Quick follow-up to the smoked cheese experiment...

Every recipe I read said to age the cheese for at least a week after smoking. That has definitely been the case here. Even after a week, the smoke didn't quite taste the way I wanted it. I thought I had not selected the right wood (hickory), or maybe smoked too long. But now it's been exactly 2 weeks, and this stuff is *divine*. Definitely the best we have ever tasted, and the smoke flavoring is evenly distributed all the way through. In my opinion, both the sharp cheddar and the gouda worked equally well.

For aging, I just tossed all the chunks into a couple of ziplock freezer bags and left in the fridge. Some recipes recommend a sealer but I don't think it's necessary. Either way, the flavoring is unreal... so much better than smoked cheese from the grocery store! But it did take the full 2 weeks to get there.
 
Quick follow-up to the smoked cheese experiment...

Every recipe I read said to age the cheese for at least a week after smoking. That has definitely been the case here. Even after a week, the smoke didn't quite taste the way I wanted it. I thought I had not selected the right wood (hickory), or maybe smoked too long. But now it's been exactly 2 weeks, and this stuff is *divine*. Definitely the best we have ever tasted, and the smoke flavoring is evenly distributed all the way through. In my opinion, both the sharp cheddar and the gouda worked equally well.

For aging, I just tossed all the chunks into a couple of ziplock freezer bags and left in the fridge. Some recipes recommend a sealer but I don't think it's necessary. Either way, the flavoring is unreal... so much better than smoked cheese from the grocery store! But it did take the full 2 weeks to get there.
May have to give that a go. Unfortunately I'm running out of time here. It's going to be in the 90's in the next couple weeks. I think thays too much heat for cheese...haha
 
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