mesquite wood

marvda1

how many of you smoke with mesquite wood and why? I can't stand it.
my go to woods are hickory, oak, and pecan.
have yet to try fruit woods such as peach and apple.

F1nut

It and cherry smell good when burning.

Clipdat

Ever tried Alder wood for smoking/grilling?

Viking64

I've used both mesquite and hickory wood chips when grilling with charcoal. I find that they both make a minor improvement on the taste of the meat and a major improvement on the smell of the smoke.

I also like using Stubb's Liquid Smoke (Both mesquite and hickory) when cooking inside.

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afterburnt

Cherry, will be experimenting with persimmon. I wont eat that crap fruit but I have read that it's good wood for smoke

afterburnt

Clipdat wrote: »

Ever tried Alder wood for smoking/grilling?

I am guessing Alder aint a hard wood

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marvda1

I don't soak my wood, use log splits for my stick burner.

txcoastal1

I use oak as my primary and flavor with Mequite, or Hickory.

Oak with Pecan chicken only

I use alder and cherry grilling fish

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Hermitism

My Dad has a barrel smoker, I don't know what wood he uses but I love it. When I have to go tinky-poopoo a few hours afterwards, it always smells like smoke. Don't get me started talking about asparagus.

pitdogg2

I like and use cherry wood to smoke. I also like mesquite, i find it burns hot and keeps a even temp longer. Peach is also on my list , when i can get it.

marvda1

Yep2 wrote: »

I like soaking cause it adds some moisture/steam.
To each his own.

try a water pan

marvda1

pitdogg2 wrote: »

I like and use cherry wood to smoke. I also like mesquite, i find it burns hot and keeps a even temp longer. Peach is also on my list , when i can get it.

mesquite is great for steaks and grilling because of the higher temps, but the longer you use it to smoke the stronger it gets.

txcoastal1

To much pecan, hickory, or mesquite will also be overwhelming IMHO

pending where you live including cost, oak or alders make a better base..again IMHO

pitdogg2

marvda1 wrote: »

pitdogg2 wrote: »

I like and use cherry wood to smoke. I also like mesquite, i find it burns hot and keeps a even temp longer. Peach is also on my list , when i can get it.

mesquite is great for steaks and grilling because of the higher temps, but the longer you use it to smoke the stronger it gets.

Yes a little goes a long way.

marvda1

you have to run that clean smoke(thin blue).

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marvda1

here's something I ran across.

ACACIA - these trees are in the same family as mesquite. When burned in a smoker, acacia has a flavor similar to mesquite but not quite as heavy. A very hot burning wood.

ALDER - Very delicate with a hint of sweetness. Good with fish, pork, poultry, and light-meat game birds.

ALMOND - A sweet smoke flavor, light ash. Good with all meats.

APPLE - Very mild with a subtle fruity flavor, slightly sweet. Good with poultry (turns skin dark brown) and pork.

ASH - Fast burner, light but distinctive flavor. Good with fish and red meats.

BIRCH - Medium-hard wood with a flavor similar to maple. Good with pork and poultry.

CHERRY - Mild and fruity. Good with poultry, pork and beef. Some people say the cherry wood is the best wood for smoking. Wood from chokecherry trees may produce a bitter flavor.

COTTONWOOD - It is a softer wood than alder and very subtle in flavor. Use it for fuel but use some chunks of other woods (hickory, oak, pecan) for more flavor. Don't use green cottonwood for smoking.

CRABAPPLE - Similar to apple wood.

GRAPEVINES - Tart. Provides a lot of smoke. Rich and fruity. Good with poultry, red meats, game and lamb.

HICKORY - Most commonly used wood for smoking--the King of smoking woods. Sweet to strong, heavy bacon flavor. I don't know if I get the flavor of bacon from this wood, but it does taste like BBQ to me. Good with pork, ham and beef.

LILAC - Very light, subtle with a hint of floral. Good with seafood and lamb.

MAPLE - Smoky, mellow and slightly sweet. Good with pork, poultry, cheese, and small game birds.

MESQUITE - Strong earthy flavor. Good with beef, fish, chicken, and game. One of the hottest burning. Can be bitter. My family doesn't like it if I use only mesquite in the fire. They feel it makes the food "hot" and "spicy."

MULBERRY - The smell is sweet and reminds one of apple.

OAK - Heavy smoke flavor--the Queen of smoking wood. RED OAK is good on ribs, WHITE OAK makes the best coals for longer burning. All oak varieties reported as suitable for smoking. Good with red meat, pork, fish and heavy game.

ORANGE, LEMON and GRAPEFRUIT - Produces a nice mild smoky flavor. Excellent with beef, pork, fish and poultry.

PEAR - A nice subtle smoke flavor. Much like apple. Excellent with chicken and pork.

PECAN - Sweet and mild with a flavor similar to hickory. Tasty with a subtle character. Good with poultry, beef, pork and cheese. Pecan is an all-around superior smoking wood.

SWEET FRUIT WOODS - APRICOT, PLUM, PEACH, NECTARINE - Great on most white or pink meats, including chicken, turkey, pork and fish. The flavor is milder and sweeter than hickory.

WALNUT - ENGLISH and BLACK - Very heavy smoke flavor, usually mixed with lighter woods like almond, pear or apple. Can be bitter if used alone. Good with red meats and game.

Other internet sources report that wood from the following trees is suitable for smoking: AVOCADO, BAY, CARROTWOOD, KIAWE, MADRONE, MANZANITA, GUAVA, OLIVE, BEECH, BUTTERNUT, FIG, GUM, CHESTNUT, HACKBERRY, PIMIENTO, PERSIMMON, and WILLOW. The ornamental varieties of fruit trees (i.e. pear, cherry, apple, etc.) are also suitable for smoking.

Don't use any wood from conifer trees, such as PINE, FIR, SPRUCE, REDWOOD, CYPRESS, etc.

delkal

marvda1 wrote: »

you have to run that clean smoke(thin blue).

This......you should have to look closely to see if its still smoking. If you see brown smoke shooting out everywhere your not doing it right. You are coating your food with creosote.

Alder is (barely) classified as a hardwood and it has a very mild smoke. It is the goto wood for smoking fish but I like something stronger for pork and beef.

I use mostly Oak because I can get that wood the easiest around here. Cherry is also a great choice. Unfortunately I used it all up!

I do use liquid smoke on occasion for sausage and jerkey but I do not like the Stubbs brand. It is not pure liquid smoke. Its liquid smoke in his sweetened flavoring mix. Look at the labels. The good stuff just has liquid smoke as its only ingredient. Use it sparingly 1-2 tsp for 5 lbs of meat.

gudnoyez

Yep2 wrote: »

A little white oak & pecan for me.
Soak in water & some bourbon.
I mainly smoke Venison.
The Jack Daniels barrel chips are excellent also IMHO (reasonably priced).

I use these they are from barrels that held Jack Daniels, found out the hard way not to leave them in a bowl of water soaking where the dogs can get at it as the water does turn light brown smells like whiskey and probably has a high alcohol content. One of are dogs drank from the bowl and before we realized he drank quite a bit of it he was not doing to good almost took him to the vet, he slept it off. I always keep the bowl on the work bench in the garage when I'm soaking these chips.

erniejade

I use the chunks in my mes 30".

aprazer402

When I smoke meats, it's usually pork which I prefer to use apple and cherry wood. When I do poultry, I add a few chips of apple or cherry. I've used hickory wood when smoking a beef brisket or rib roast with very good results. I usually soak the wood chips before using. I have tried mesquite but can't remember the results. I prefer the other woods, so I'm biased. I have a bag of pecan chips I've been wanting to try for a long time.

mark090852

pitdogg2 wrote: »

I like and use cherry wood to smoke. I also like mesquite, i find it burns hot and keeps a even temp longer. Peach is also on my list , when i can get it.

This place is near our vacation home in Western Colorado, so we just stop by and pick up our wood for smoking on our Kamado Joe. We can always get peach wood there. They ship all over the country. Great stuff. https://fruitawood.com/features/

billbillw

I use hickory and apple wood. Mesquite is good for steaks, but I would never use it on a low and slow smoke.

afterburnt

Has anyone used persimmon? I have a bunch of it.

voltz

I normally use Cherry & Hickory for my Ribs.

but last time I tried mesquite for the 1st time all by itself and like it with my Ribs and some center cut fillets that were about 1 1/2 inchs and i cooked them indirectly so the smoke was more noticeable.

Use Apple for Chicken and Alder with fish and I never soak the wood as the smoke was not desirable to me.

When I smoke some Pork but's that run 11 hours I use charcoal as fuel and use 4 oz of wood every 30 minutes for the first 2 hours then no more wood. Don't like them over smoked.

aprazer402

afterburnt wrote: »

Has anyone used persimmon? I have a bunch of it.

I have some persimmon wood(s) that I wouldn't want to light on fire.

pitdogg2

voltz wrote: »

When I smoke some Pork but's that run 11 hours I use charcoal as fuel and use 4 oz of wood every 30 minutes for the first 2 hours then no more wood. Don't like them over smoked.

I also use charcoal as the main fuel. I too find that too much smoke makes food taste like a firemans boot the second day after rewarming. I also find kingsford cherry wood charcoal i buy all i can afford. It doesn't last long at the local shops.

GospelTruth

Just got the Cabela's Cooking (summer) catalog. They had a nice little item on wood pellet types for different types of meat. I would assume that it applies to chips, chunks and logs of the same type of wood.

For what it's worth, here's their recap of what is good for different types of meat.
I think it's a good cheat sheet for smoking meat with different types of wood.
Of course it's all what you like in the end.

Enjoy.