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Soak wood?

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  • ST1SSDV
    ST1SSDV Posts: 33
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    My experience was similar to  BaysideBob's..

    I tried it once with hickory chunks that were about as big as a chicken egg.  I weighted them down in a bucket of water for a day and half, completely submerged.  I split a couple of the chunks to make them a little smaller and found that the water had only penetrated about 1/16".

    I think some folks feel that soaking might slow down the burning a little and generate a little more smoke.   Might work with chips in a gasser with a smoker box, but it's a waste of time with chunks.

    1 or 2 chunks are enough for a turkey or a couple slabs of ribs.
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  • Botch
    Botch Posts: 15,471
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    Its interesting that, among Eggers, almost no one soaks their wood, and yet all the celebrity chefs (including those who are supposed to know what they're doing, like Bobby Flay and Steve Raichlin) all do...  :|
    _____________

    Remember when teachers used to say 'You won't have a calculator everywhere you go'?  Well, we showed them.


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  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,347
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    No one in the celebrity chef fraternity or sorority is gonna make that leap-Learned from the chips/chunks of the ol master; gotta be right...besides it's not like that level of detail concerns them.
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
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  • Mickey
    Mickey Posts: 19,674
    edited January 2013
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    Having watched Flay and Raichlin around BGE's I would place lots of Eggers I have observed at Fests well above them in BGE mechanics of cooking. Understand I am in no way talking the act of being a cook ( these guys are top notch). But they are not in the top 25% of Eggers found cooking at Fests in cooking on the Egg. They have just not bothered to learn. To them the Egg is a ceramic Webber.
    Salado TX & 30A  FL: Egg Family: 3 Large and a very well used Mini, added a Mini Max when they came out (I'm good for now). Plus a couple Pit Boss Pellet Smokers.   

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  • caliking
    caliking Posts: 18,731
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    I was under the impression that folks with gassers soak their chips and make foil packets and such, but charcoal people just throw chunks onto the coals.

    Soaking seems like it is more beneficial with chips, which burn up quickly when thrown dry on lit charcoal.

    #1 LBGE December 2012 • #2 SBGE February  2013 • #3 Mini May 2013
    A happy BGE family in Houston, TX.
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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
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    Naw.  Even soaking chips lessens the quality of the smoke.  Take a piece of wood that's burning, throw some water on it.  Smell the smoke.  Smells like crap.  All those wet chips degrade the quality of the smoke by creating steam that chokes the burning lump that it contacts.  Smells like a wet dog that rooted through an old camp fire.
    ______________________________________________
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  • danv23
    danv23 Posts: 953
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    Waste of time to soak, and so is throwing your food on while the smoke is white. Wrecks your food real fast that way.

    The Dude: This is a very complicated case, Maude. You know, a lotta ins, lotta outs, lotta what-have-you's. And, uh, lotta strands to keep in my head, man. Lotta strands in old Duder's head. Luckily I'm adhering to a pretty strict, uh, drug regimen to keep my mind, you know, limber.

    Walter Sobchak: Nihilists! *uck me. I mean, say what you want about the tenets of National Socialism, Dude, at least it's an ethos. 

    Cumming, GA

    Eggs - XL, L, Small

    Gasser - Weber Summit 6 Burner

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  • Kosko
    Kosko Posts: 535
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    nolaegghead said:
    Naw.  Even soaking chips lessens the quality of the smoke.  Take a piece of wood that's burning, throw some water on it.  Smell the smoke.  Smells like crap.  All those wet chips degrade the quality of the smoke by creating steam that chokes the burning lump that it contacts.  Smells like a wet dog that rooted through an old camp fire.

    Makes sense to me !
    Peachtree City, Ga Large BGE
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  • Rzeancak
    Rzeancak Posts: 193
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    H E L L    N O  !!!!!!!

    Gasser = YES 
    BGE = NO
    A child can ask questions a wise man can't answer!!!
    Canada
    Large @ Small BGE 

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  • pgprescott
    pgprescott Posts: 14,544
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    To soak or not to soak? Truth is it doesn't really matter. Doesn't hurt either though. As stated the penetration is minimal and evaporate fairly quickly. The placement of the chips or chunks should be noted though. Depending on the desired amount of smoke. Remember, the smoke ring is a chemical reaction with the meat, smoke, and moisture. The smoke flavor is another matter. It can be overdone on more delicate cooks and while the ring is limited to developing at lower temps, the smoke flavor will continue as long as you add smoke. This is another reason some people wrap meats in their process. If younger doing a long cook with large cut of meat, then place chunks away from hottest coals to get max smoke. If less is desired, use less and place it where it will combust more quickly. What you are really trying to accomplish with the soaking of the wood is prolong the smoke, I think. You can do this better with your placement.
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