Smoking Basics
Everything to know before starting your cooks
When Cooking with Me:
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When I make food, I don't use measuring cups, teaspoons or anything extra I have to wash. In all of my dishes, You'll find the steps explaining what I'm doing with an in-depth look into various facets of the recipe. Further down, will be a simple bulleted list of the steps. I recommend reading the in-depth instructions beforehand, and using the bulleted list as a checklist while you cook.
Smokers:
Before even starting to cook, you will need a smoker. There are different types of smokers; I use a ceramic charcoal smoker. Common brands of this type include the Big Green Egg, Kamado Joe, and Louisiana Grill. Other types of smokers include pellet smokers, offset smokers, and vertical smokers. All of these types have the same principle: use a fuel source such as coal or wood to heat and flavor air and then move it around the meat. This can be done by controlling air flow via the smoker's vents. In all smokers, the bottom vent will control the air intake. A more open vent equals more airflow, which equals more heat. The top vent is used to let air escape.
Fuel:
The fuel source also plays a role in the cook. The most common fuel types are pellets, wood, and charcoal. My ceramic charcoal smoker uses, you guessed it, charcoal. Charcoal also comes in different forms: lump and briquettes. The former is more common, but lump is the best choice when smoking. Briquettes made of compressed materials can give the meat an off taste over a long cook time and burn faster and hotter. This results in a less than apt situation when smoking is all about having a clean, slow, and consistent burn. This means that lump charcoal is the best for slow cooking. The charcoal I use is Kamado Joe Big Block XL Natural Lump Charcoal. The brand is great, the bags will last a long time, and the price is very affordable.
Wood:
Lastly, let's talk about the wood used to smoke. The wood is what actually gives the meat hints of flavor and comes in three forms: chips, blocks, and logs. Wood chips are, well chips of wood. These are used in smoker elements like vertical smokers. Blocks of wood are used in the ceramic smoker I use. Lastly, logs are used both as a flavor and as a stand-alone fuel source, these are used in offset smokers and used commercially. The type of wood also plays a factor in the taste of meat. There are many wood types that all have different characteristics and qualities, experimenting with these types is important to find your favorite, as everyone has a preference. I love applewood, as it is mellow and still flavorful.
Starting the smoker:
The important thing to remember when starting the smoker is that charcoal is like an 18-wheeler. It is very slow to start, but once it gets going it won't stop. The best way to maintain a low temperature while cooking is to be patient and let the charcoal slowly come to temp. Being impatient and lighting more charcoal is a sure way to overshoot, which is hard to come back from. Even if it takes 30 minutes, be patient and wait for the charcoal to light itself and create heat.
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1) To start the charcoal use an oil-soaked paper towel, fire starter, or electric charcoal lighter to heat up a small 2-inch circle in the middle of the charcoal box.
2) Insert the indirect heat stone into the smoker.
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3) Slightly open the bottom and top vents and allow the smoker to heat up to your desired temperature, closing the vents slightly as it climbs to the desired temperature.
4) Before putting your meat on the smoker, throw 3-4 chunks of your desired wood into the fire.