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Somking Wood Question

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golfguy
golfguy Posts: 105
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
I need to ask you guys a dumb question...

I have always heard that before smoking any meat, you should soak the chips/chunks for more than 30 minutes. Since joining the forum, I have seen multiple posts from distinguished members, stating the opposite. Whats the "science" behind putting dry smoking wood on the fire? I am doing a few cooks this weekend and I'd like to try it out.
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  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,767
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    on a gas grill you soak the wood chunks/chips because they burst into flames. the egg is more air tight, once the egg is stabilized there isnt enough oxygen for the chunks to burst into flames
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
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  • GeorgiaBorn
    GeorgiaBorn Posts: 178
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    Not a dumb question at all. I never soak wood. I used to but stopped when I realized it doesn't do a darn thing for it. I saw a video somewhere on YouTube where a guy soaked wood chunks overnight and the next morning he sawed the chunks in half. The water had only penetrated the wood about 1/8th of an inch, if that.

    So, I decided to stop soaking even though it doesn't hurt anything to soak. It's just another step that you don't need to take.
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  • Ripnem
    Ripnem Posts: 5,511
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    Adam,

    The reason they used to soak the chips was to keep them from burning up in a flash in a weber kettle. Or they would soak and then put in foil for a gasser. In an egg, when you are cooking under 400º you aren't allowing enough oxygen in to worry about the wood burning up too fast. It will smolder at a slow rate such like the lump does. The rate they burn should be directly related to the amount of surface area of the wood chunks. Big chunks should last longer than chips.

    Here's a list of most of them.
    http://www.deejayssmokepit.net/Woods.htm
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  • golfguy
    golfguy Posts: 105
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    Thanks for the info everyone.
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  • NC-CDN
    NC-CDN Posts: 703
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    I'm still confused on the whole clean smoke idea. As Adam said the egg allows the chunk to basically smolder. Well if you are smoking meat and that piece of wood is smoldering. How can you control the smoke emitted once the outer layers of the wood are burned up? Is the inner wood somehow different? If water can't penetrate then why would any VOCs or what have you be able to release easily either from the center of the wood chunk. I can see maybe with chips, but I'm talking chunks. I still can't figure that one out. If it more that initial smoke as the wood starts to com-bust?
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