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Amount of Smoke Question

So had the egg for about 3 months now and done an array of cooks from bristet, beef and pork ribs, chicken legs and so forth.  One thing coming from a traeger I don't feel I am getting as much smoke.  Obviously with the pellets as my only heat source it gave me smoke the whole time.  With the Egg sometimes i feel i am baking my meat and there is no smoke even coming out of my stack.  I have tried with just a few pieces of wood chunks, soaked and not soaked in water.  And also tried with 8-10 pieces just to see what happens.  Really didn't change the results.  Not seeing much of a smoke ring on my food as i am used to.  Any thoughts or suggestions?

Comments

  • bgebrent
    bgebrent Posts: 19,636
    You won't get the same smoke, ever.  What the egg lacks in smoke, returns in moisture.  Chicken, pork, turkey.  Still, a different animal.  If smoke is paramount you still need your Traeger.  And smoke rings are overrated.   The flavor and texture is the measure.
    Sandy Springs & Dawsonville Ga
  • Koehn
    Koehn Posts: 19
    Yeah I know i won't get the same level of smoke as a traeger but just was one thing i little more surprised about i guess.  Felt like doing something wrong.  Moisture has green great just trying to get a little more flavor from the wood and charcoal.
  • RRP
    RRP Posts: 26,466
    Koehn said:
    So had the egg for about 3 months now and done an array of cooks from bristet, beef and pork ribs, chicken legs and so forth.  One thing coming from a traeger I don't feel I am getting as much smoke.  Obviously with the pellets as my only heat source it gave me smoke the whole time.  With the Egg sometimes i feel i am baking my meat and there is no smoke even coming out of my stack.  I have tried with just a few pieces of wood chunks, soaked and not soaked in water.  And also tried with 8-10 pieces just to see what happens.  Really didn't change the results.  Not seeing much of a smoke ring on my food as i am used to.  Any thoughts or suggestions?
    Obsolutely no offense meant by my question - OK? But are you a cigarette smoker? Your wife?


    Re-gasketing the USA one yard at a time 
  • Koehn
    Koehn Posts: 19
    No do not smoke cigarettes.
  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,412
    I came from a WSM and experienced the same lack of smoke with the BGE originally. I found sausages to be really lacking in smoke flavor. But I've discovered that the more you use the egg the easier it is gets to attain strong smoke flavor out of the smoke woods. I don't know if there's pores in the ceramic that get filled or what but I find I'm using way less smoke woods than I was on the WSM and getting meats just as smokey. I actually find it easy to have to much smoke. Do a few 20+ hour brisket's and you'll have that sucker well-seasoned.
  • Koehn
    Koehn Posts: 19
    Powak said:
    I came from a WSM and experienced the same lack of smoke with the BGE originally. I found sausages to be really lacking in smoke flavor. But I've discovered that the more you use the egg the easier it is gets to attain strong smoke flavor out of the smoke woods. I don't know if there's pores in the ceramic that get filled or what but I find I'm using way less smoke woods than I was on the WSM and getting meats just as smokey. I actually find it easy to have to much smoke. Do a few 20+ hour brisket's and you'll have that sucker well-seasoned.
    Thanks powak.  Sounds like it will come just keep working.  Love the egg and the versatility
  • Theophan
    Theophan Posts: 2,656
    It took me a while to get the smoke I wanted for some cooks (some things I only want a little smoky, but some I want very smoky).  One thing I want to suggest: don't ever go below 250° dome temperature.  I just get better smoke when it's 250°-275°.

    Some people love wood chips, but I personally have better luck with larger chunks.  When I want a lot of smoke, I usually bury a few mostly centrally, in the lump, and then put 3 or 4 on top kind of radially around the fire (for a low-and-slow, I don't light multiple places, just one in the center).

    I've never used a Traeger, so I can't compare it, but I most definitely have had much less smoky and much more smoky results in the same BGE depending on temperature and technique with the wood.