preburn wood ???

eggor · January 2005

Mark From Utah posted a good question down below and i thought it should prolly get it's own little bit. it's been preached alot, by me and others to get a clean fire. I bought a bag of mesquite chunks right after buying the egg and tossed it away after the first cook. I just don't care for the flavor, especially that white smoke that pours off right after ignition. but now i'm wondering am i missing out on something. alot of you add chunks to get different flavors and i doubt that you like that nasty smoke.[p]the question is, [p]if i preburned the chunks, say the whole bag, right after i buy it and then rebag it. is it worth a shot? have no plan on wasting any more money buying chunks(no matter the wood). [p]then, will i really achieve any enhanced flavor with the preburned chunks? just thinkin....

Sundown · January 2005

eggor,
Not sure what you're asking. I always thought the idea of putting on chips or chunks was to get smoke on your meat. I love watching the smoke curl up from Mr. Egg knowing that my ribs/butt/roast will have the distinct and unique flavor of the smoking wood. It is an acquired taste no doubt. While mesquite has a very strong flavor I love it on steaks and chicken. No one else here likes it on chicken because it's so strong. Maybe you should try maple or cherry for your smoke. It's milder. I'm sure others will have some suggestions too. Hang in there,

thirdeye · January 2005

eggor,
I was raised around stick burners and with those pits, you have to let the fire burn down then add small chunks through the cook. The bitter taste somes from not letting the wood simmer down before starting the cook (or just plain over smoking). Here is a link to a chart from a wood dealer. Generally, light wood matches with light meat to give delicate flavors, like apple with chicken or alder with fish; darker woods yield stronger flavor, like using hickory with pork. Of course everyone developes their own taste and many (like myself) combine woods like starting baby backs with apple and finishing with cherry. BTW I like mesquite and mesquite lump also, but if it is not burned down a little, it will be bitter.[p]thirdeye ~ "still taking notes...and adjusting those essential variables"
[ul][li]Wood Flavor[/ul]

eggor · January 2005

thirdeye,[p]so do you think that adding a chunk or two of unburned wood chunks gave the off flavor or was it simply not accustomed to the mesquite?

eggor · January 2005

never mind, stupid question, doubt that if everyone was tossing on unburned chunks and not caring for the flavor they prolly wouldn't do it. duh

thirdeye · January 2005

eggor,
Well, when you add chunks of wood to a lump fire, the wood is unburned, and as it burns it gives off smoke. I was only suggesting that you let it settle down for the best results. Maybe you are adding too much wood. I split mine down to pieces about two fingers wide X 4" long and arrange it in a wagon wheel spoke pattern around the center of the initial fire, sometimes in two levels, burried in the lump. As the fire spreads it catches a few of these at a time giving a gentle smoke for an extended period. When I use two kinds of wood, I put one kind in a small circle around the fire, and the other kind in a larger circle. My buddy uses the fist size method in his K, with one chunk dead center of his fire and has great results.[p]thirdeye ~

Mark from Utah · January 2005

eggor,
Thanks for getting clarification on this for me. I like the smoke flavor, but did not want to ruin a 16 hour cook by adding chunks towards the end. I think I will try it and see what happens. Mark

preburn wood ???

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