Enough Smoke?

[Steven]

Today is the first smoke in my new #2. I seasoned it a few days ago, but had a question about the smoke. I have two 6 lb butts in the smoker with 2.5 oz of cherry wood in the box. It smoked nicely for about an hour and now there is no more smoke. Did I use enough wood? Was that long enough? I chopped it into two chunks so it would fit. Maybe I should have left it as one large chunk? I know you don't want too much smoke or the meat can get bitter. Any advice to a new guy would be appreciated. Thanks!

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[old sarge]

Quite often the smoke, which is heavy initially will peter out to near invisibility, depending upon lighting and wind.  Sometimes placing a black object (painted cardboard) near the vent will allow you to see the finest of wisps. I cut my wood into 1, 2, and 3 ounce pieces.  Yes, one large chunk will or should last longer than a couple of small pieces. But if your meat has reached an IT of 140 degrees, the exterior is sufficiently glazed overs that the cells can no longer absorb smoke.  From that point on, the smoke particulates just sort of layer up on the surface and it does get somewhat bitter.

The result you are looking for is are you and your family happy with the final product. And if you want to extend the smoke you could try wrapping the wood in foil and poke a hole or two in the foil. Just remember some of this is trial and error.

Happy Independence day.

[DivotMaker]

With 12 lbs of meat, I'd have used 5-6 oz.  But, Dave's right - you can't really see the smoke toward the end, but it's there in the box.  Judge the smokiness of the meat, and make an adjustment if necessary.  You may think it's fine.  A little wood, in these smokers, goes a long way!

[mnsmoker]

When I first got my #2 I thought you had to have clouds of smoke billowing from the hole or you weren't getting enough smoke so I used in my first few smokes probably 3 times the amount needed, the result was way over smoked food, I still have to remind myself to tone it down 2-3 ounces in most cases will do, after an hour or so I typically don't see any smoke but the flavor is there, it's really just a matter of getting used to that tiny bit of wood these things use which is a good thing...practice practice which is a great thing!!

[bigbassnutt]

Hi Steven, I usually use around 4.5 ounces on butts and 2.5 on ribs. I don't like too heavy of a smoke flavor, but it boils down to personal preference.

[swthorpe]

I did a 7# BB yesterday and used 5.5oz of a mix of hickory and cherry.   The smoke looks (and smells) great for the first hour, then tapers off the nothing visible.  However, when I put a small bowl of apple juice in the bottom of the smoker (which I do pretty much for everything), I will continue to see a small amount of smoker/steam.