Wood - chips or chunks, wet or dry?

NWegger

Just getting use to my new BGE and thought that I would ask for a little advice. For smoking, either a 20 hour low and slow or a quick steak, any general rules of thumb on the wood to use (chips or chunks) and how to prepare it (wet or dry)? Also what is the deal about waiting till the smoke is 'clear'?

Lastly any thoughts on how much wood to add? I did my first cook last weekend and used way too much. My only experience in the past has been on a gas Weber.

stike

couple theories re: chips vs. chunks. personally, i think wood is wood is wood. a single big chunk on top of the fire, and you'll get good smoke. i use chips, though, because that's what i have access to. i mix them in (more toward the middle) as i build the fire, and i get good smoke too.

"wet" is a requirement of cookers where you are worried about the chips bursting into flame. tight foil packets (like in a gasser) do the same thing. basically trying to keep the chips at a smolder. eventually they dry out and burst into flame anyway.

but the egg is airtight (virtually). your chips won't burst into flame even sitting right on the coals, dry as a bone. i often throw a stick of oak or two (i get oak twigs falling all the time) into a fire when i'm searing a steak. even then, when the lid is shut, the flames will go out and the stick will just smoke/smolder, even with the dome thermo reading 750

so... chips or chunks (whatever you have on hand). don't bother soaking.

fishlessman

i mostly use chunks dry, occasionally some pecan pellets for turkey. yellow to black smoke tastes sooty, light blue almost transparant smoke has a much cleaner taste. soaking is unneeded in an egg.

WileECoyote

Speaking from limited experience here but it does seem to help to soak the chips. This may not be necessary when you toss them on quickly and close the lid, but if you need to cook with the lid open or you spend too much time fussing with the grate, food, plate setter, etc. then all of the thin little chips go up in flames quite rapidly.

I tried the foil method and it worked fine except I don't like burning foil in the egg, which can give off toxic gasses and plug the air holes, so now I just soak the chips while I prep the food. No soak at all if I am just tossing a handful in for quick flavor and running with the lid closed. A bonus for the chips is that they are small and can be dropped down into the coals with the grate or plate setter and all of your food still on.

The chunks do seem nice for longer lasting smoke but many of them are huge and would require complete grate removal to insert, plus they may not burn completely and it would be a hassle to remove and keep track of the remnants for future smoking. If you didn't remove them then it could introduce unwanted smoke to future cooks.

Celtic Wolf

I have yet to find a reason to cook with the lid open. Besides as smoking chips does is produce steam when you are trying to get the egg stable. Is that white smoke coming from the egg steam or the volatile organic compounds in the fuel??

Just a personal opinion the chunks last longer; however, if all you have is chips throw them on.