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Too cold to smoke cheese?

vb4677
vb4677 Posts: 687
in EggHead Forum
I 'had' planned on doing several blocks of cheese using my new A-MAZE-N smoker and FoodSaver vacuum sealer, however our high temperature tomorrow is 18F/-8C.

Is that too cold to get an effective smoke on the cheese?
Kansas City: Too Much City for One State - Missouri side
2 Large BGE's, Instant Pot, Anova Sous Vide, and a gas smoker...
Barbeque, Homebrew and Blues...
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Comments

  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,109
    This is not a problem I have in New Orleans. 

    You obviously don't want frost on your cheese.  Warm up your egg with a small fire.  Throw the a-maze-n thingy in there.  If drops below freezing, either light the other side of the pellet maze or put a 100 watt lightbulb in there.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
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  • DMW
    DMW Posts: 13,836
    That's a little chilly, the cheese will freeze. The A-MAZE-N smoker will add some heat, but not much. I used a heat lamp to warm the egg a bit in the past when temps were cold.
    http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1160620/salmon-in-progress

    They/Them
    Morgantown, PA

    XL BGE - S BGE - KJ Jr - HB Legacy - BS Pizza Oven - 30" Firepit - King Kooker Fryer -  PR72T - WSJ - BS 17" Griddle - XXL BGE  - BS SS36" Griddle - 2 Burner Gasser - Pellet Smoker
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  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    nolaegghead said:
    This is not a problem I have in New Orleans. 

    You obviously don't want frost on your cheese.  Warm up your egg with a small fire.  Throw the a-maze-n thingy in there.  If drops below freezing, either light the other side of the pellet maze or put a 100 watt lightbulb in there.
    It's cold smoking. Your smoke generator will smoke your cheese.  Smart as Nola says to pre warm your egg with a small fire.
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
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  • Durangler
    Durangler Posts: 1,122
    edited January 2017
    I agree with the previous advise. Warm things, and shoot for 50 to 60 degrees at the grid. Smoke away.
    XL BGE, 22" Weber Red Head, Fiesta Gasser .... Peoria,AZ
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  • SGH
    SGH Posts: 28,989
    vb4677 said:
    Is that too cold to get an effective smoke on the cheese?
    For the record, I'm not one of the Cheese Gods so take what I say with either a grain of salt or with a warm salty enema. The choice here is yours. 
    However I would like to address the above quoted. You can smoke cheese that is frozen rock solid. The cheese will still take on a smoky flavor just as it would thawed. However the end product will be crumbly. This is the only difference. The smoke profile will be there in spades, but slicing will be difficult as the cheese will want to fall apart. 
    Before I go, I would like to point out that Nola is a hippy. Keep a close eye on him. Two whenever you can ;)

    Location- Just "this side" of Biloxi, Ms.

    Status- Standing by.

    The greatest barrier against all wisdom, the stronghold against knowledge itself, is the single thought, in ones mind, that they already have it all figured out. 

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  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    SGH said:
    vb4677 said:
    Is that too cold to get an effective smoke on the cheese?
    For the record, I'm not one of the Cheese Gods so take what I say with either a grain of salt or with a warm salty enema. The choice here is yours. 
    However I would like to address the above quoted. You can smoke cheese that is frozen rock solid. The cheese will still take on a smoky flavor just as it would thawed. However the end product will be crumbly. This is the only difference. The smoke profile will be there in spades, but slicing will be difficult as the cheese will want to fall apart. 
    Before I go, I would like to point out that Nola is a hippy. Keep a close eye on him. Two whenever you can ;)
    You are always so vague ;)
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
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  • SGH
    SGH Posts: 28,989
    bgebrent said:
    You are always so vague ;)
    It's because I'm very timid and shy ;)

    Location- Just "this side" of Biloxi, Ms.

    Status- Standing by.

    The greatest barrier against all wisdom, the stronghold against knowledge itself, is the single thought, in ones mind, that they already have it all figured out. 

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  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    SGH said:
    bgebrent said:
    You are always so vague ;)
    It's because I'm very timid and shy ;)
    Please, my apologies.  I didn't want to force you to post B)
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,109
    edited January 2017
    As SGH (aka "Crazy Mississippi Redneck" with a penchant for anything pig anus) has so eloquently stated, you can smoke it rock solid.  I agree with that, also as cheese is already a solid, it will, depending on the type of cheese, stay frozen below it's melting point, which is usually well north of 90F. 

    Ahem.  Like I said earlier, you just don't want frost to form over the cheese.  This is because it will be smoked, then melt off, unless you like to eat it crunchy with frosting. Since frost doesn't form above the freezing point of water, my recommendation is to keep the environment anywhere above the freezing point of water.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
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  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    nolaegghead said:
    As SGH (aka "Crazy Mississippi Redneck" with a penchant for anything pig anus) has so eloquently stated, you can smoke it rock solid.  I agree with that, also as cheese is already a solid, it will, depending on the type of cheese, stay frozen above it's melting point, which is usually well north of 90F. 

    Ahem.  Like I said earlier, you just don't want frost to form over the cheese.  This is because it will be smoked, then melt off, unless you like to eat it crunchy with frosting. Since frost doesn't form above the freezing point of water, my recommendation is to keep the environment anywhere above the freezing point of water.
    For SGH and you homies, that's above 32F or 0C.  Otherwise your more likely to get crumbly crust rather than a nicely smoked cheese. :o
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
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  • SGH
    SGH Posts: 28,989
    nolaegghead said:
     Since frost doesn't form above the freezing point of water, my recommendation is to keep the environment anywhere above the freezing point of water.
    I concur. And I agree it is certainly better to stay above freezing. My only point was that a frozen block of cheese will take on smoke just as a thawed one would. Especially if the frozen block is smoked in an environment that is above freezing. 
    But again, I do agree with your assessment. Above freezing produces a smoked product that can be easily sliced. 

    Location- Just "this side" of Biloxi, Ms.

    Status- Standing by.

    The greatest barrier against all wisdom, the stronghold against knowledge itself, is the single thought, in ones mind, that they already have it all figured out. 

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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,109
    Soft cheeses especially with high water content do suffer from freezing.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
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  • bhedges1987
    bhedges1987 Posts: 3,201
    I've only tried once and it tasted like shi*. 

    Kansas City, Missouri
    Large Egg
    Mini Egg

    "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us" - Gandalf


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  • vb4677
    vb4677 Posts: 687
    Wow!  Lots to consider here...
    (Do any of y'all sleep, by the way?)



    Kansas City: Too Much City for One State - Missouri side
    2 Large BGE's, Instant Pot, Anova Sous Vide, and a gas smoker...
    Barbeque, Homebrew and Blues...
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  • Focker
    Focker Posts: 8,364
    edited January 2017
    I've found best results above freezing.

    And I will run a single burner electric hotplate with the ProQ cold smoke generator to dial temp into that sweetspot of 40-70s, preferably on the higher end.

    My bacon sub freezing tasted like it didn't pick up much smoke, or change color, after two 10 plus hr smokes, with an overnight rest inbetween.  When adding the above mentioned, end product improved significantly.  My cheese only stays on for an hr, sometimes 1.5hr.  Plenty of smoke for my tastes.
    Brandon
    Quad Cities
    "If yer gonna denigrate, familiarity with the subject is helpful."

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  • SirSquatch
    SirSquatch Posts: 109
    I have also found that cold smoking in the 40-50 degree range gives the best results. 
    Northern VA - LBGE
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  • vb4677
    vb4677 Posts: 687
    Yeah, I think I'm gonna wait till this cold snap passes to play with my new toys...
    Kansas City: Too Much City for One State - Missouri side
    2 Large BGE's, Instant Pot, Anova Sous Vide, and a gas smoker...
    Barbeque, Homebrew and Blues...
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

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