Dutch Oven without lid - amount of smoke?

Kyle · November 2005

I am kind of fired up about a dutch oven and am trying to learn a few things about them.[p]If one is using a dutch oven on the BGE with no lid, does it allow smoke to give taste to the meat?[p]I am (at the moment) thinking about pulled beef.[p]I think there is some advantage to being able to save the juice from a cook and am thinking that perhaps, both smoking and saving juice is possible.[p]Any thoughts will be appreciated.

mad max beyond eggdome · November 2005

Kyle,
i cook stuff in pots (my le creuset) all the time on the egg, and without lids. . .. the short answer is, yes, you can get as much smoke flavor as you want into a pot of food sitting on your egg. ...you control simply by how much wood you stick in with your lump. .. .careful though, some foods absorb a lot more smoke than others (to the point of being bitter). ... i've found that things like cheese, potatoes, apples and 'wet' bread (think stuffing) will absorb a tremendous amount of smoke flavor, while things like tomato saucese, chili, meats, peaches don't absorb as much....so, like when i make a lasagna, i make sure that the top layer is sauce, rather than cheese so that the flavor is where i want it. . .. [p]finally you have to remember that the egg does a great job at retaining moisture, so even during a fairly long cook, you won't lose much liquid from your pot through evaporation. . .i rarely have to add liquid to things to keep them moist. . ..[p]HTH

Clay Q · November 2005

Kyle,
Smoke swirls everywhere in the egg including down into the uncovered pot, pan or whatever you are cooking with. Sure, smoking will take longer using the dutch oven as opposed to smoking on an open rack, but the smoke will get to the meat as long as you have the smoke going good. Keeping your dome temps low helps when smoking with the dutch oven as the rising steam from the food in the oven is kept to a minimum and more smoke is able to swirl in. 250 dome is a good smoking temp. How much smoke- that is a matter of experience and taste. You don't want to over smoke so start out light, taste and if you feel you need more smoke flavor then throw some more wood on.
Good luck,
Clay

Clay Q · November 2005

Kyle,
If you haven't see this recipe check it out. It's got pictures to boot and uses the dutch oven. Go to www.dizzypigbbq.com, click on customer recipes, click on Clay's Pulled Beef BBQ.

Dutch Oven without lid - amount of smoke?

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