Smoke Pot Pictures

[U2PLT]

Here are few pics of the smoke pot before and after use.

[Sanny]

That's one scary clean cooker!

[Majestik]

Doh!

I was duped into reading this post. I thought it was about something else.

hehe

[Curly]

I thought we were gonna be seeing pics of DJ smokin some rope or something

[gotwood]

that is nice

now for your next cook you have some lump

[Majestik]

Hey U2PLT

...coincidentally, my in-laws are in Pottsboro... small world.

Anyway... does the pot work better than just throwing chunks in the coals?

[U2PLT]

Smoke Pot

I use a 1 quart cast iron pot with 3 3/16" holes drilled in the bottom. You place 3 dry wood chunks or so in it. The lid is very tight and the smoke comes out the bottom, some use flour paste on lid for tight seal to force smoke out bottom, which is very clean and imparts excellant smoke taste on surface of meat. Smoke does not penetrate the surface of the meat. The so called smoke ring is result of chemical change to compounds in meat to nitrous oxide which is red and causes the red smoke ring. But it is not a smoke taste from the smoke. The Naked Whiz has a very comprehensive discussion of this on his WEB site in his Questions & Answers section.

Cozy

[Amphoran]

Cozy,

After some searching, I found a source of 1 quart cast iron pots - Cajun Cookware.

The lid does not make a good seal, but is reasonably tight.

Is there a reason to prefer the smoke to come out of the bottom, or should I give this pot a try as is before drilling holes in it?

If I DO drill holes in the bottom, and the lid does not seal well, might that not create a draft, which is what I wouldn't want?

Thanks in advance for any wisdom you care to share!

Mike

[Firemonkey]

The logic for having the holes on the bottom, is that it forces the smoke out into the fire, where any residual volatile compounds will be burned off. This is the whole reason for using a device like this. Some say it makes the smoke flavor more mellow, but I have never tried it personally.

[Amphoran]

Thanks, Firemonkey!

I was looking at it more from the point of view that the deal was not having to pre-soak the wood. I'll have to play around with it and see what happens.

[Sominus]

When I fire up my rig, usually I just put a couple chunks of wood on the coals and wait until 1) the coals are hot and 2) the smoke is 'clear' (not billowy and white).. Never used a smoke pot, but maybe someone can convince me that I should?

-M

[dub]

I might use a SP or such if I had the room. Once the lump's loaded for the cook and the lower bracket on my K5(once again ) I don't have the space under the grill for a 1-qt anything.

Ampho: Pre-soaking IMO is a bad idea. I quit presoaking smokewood after I noticed how the water changed colors when I did. I thought "What could be dissolving into the water that I can afford to lose from a flavor standpoint? " My guess is that the sugars in the wood from the sap, etc. contribute to the flavor of the smoke and since sugar is definitely water soluble... The water just steams straight out anyway and the wood burns as it would if it had never been wet.

That and: Hot Ceramic + Cold Water can = crackboom! from thermal downshock.

I wrap my smokewood in aluminum foil and put in in the middle of the coal pile. The foil keeps the wood from flaming up and I get a couple of new lump pieces for next time.

Ceramic cookers have such good airflow control that even the foil may be unnecessary but I have always been happy with the results.

dub(foil the smokewood not the smokedmeat)

[primeats]

You will find that if you don't soak the wood first, you will burn the chips/chunks and actually have an open flame. The reason you soak is to have the chips smolder, not flame. The other problem with not soaking is the very pungent flavor to whatever you are smoking. I have done this for nearly 20 years professionally, there is a real difference.All I've ever used is a steel pan on a hotplate for my smokehouse. You should be able to use just about any kind of rectangular pan to fit across the charcoal basket, being careful not to score the sides of the KK's interior. My method for smoking anything from salmon to bacon is this: In Lieu of a drying fan that would be inside a smokehouse, you will need to bring the internal temp of the meat to around 100 degrees F., with the lid open or at least open enough to let the outside of the product dry or to be a bit tacky, we call this the pellicle for smoked fish,shouldn't take that long for the KK to reach this temp. Next use a small amount of wood chips/chunks that have been soaked to saturation,you really don't need a lot, the chamber of the KK will hold smoke for quite a while. Slowly raise the temps up to let the chips start to smolder, if it's placed on or near the coals this will begin within a few minutes, minimal draft is needed but enough so that you don't choke the air supply .As the internal temps rise in the meat/fish/poultry, and after the smoke has begun to diminish from the chimney, you will have to start to crank up the heat to reach a fully cooked finished temp.

Please note: this is a process that I use when I have "cured" the product first for at least 24 hours under refrigeration. You will need to cook with higher temps (over 200) if you do not use sodium nitrite, also called pink salt. We use SN to prevent botulism poisoning while cooking and smoking .Botulism forms at temp levels between 40 and 141 degrees F. with the greatest growth at around 98 degrees,botulism isn't killed by cooking, but their spores will not grow if placed in an hostile environment

[ThreeDJ16]

The other problem with not soaking is the very pungent flavor to whatever you are smoking.

That is also reason for a smoke pot too. It reduces the chemicals in the smoke that cause the bitter smoke by burning it through the fire (hence the holes are on the bottom). The other advantage is you are making charcoal too. But hey, I toss on a chunk here or there whatever I feel and have always been pleased; so basically whatever floats your boat is what I recommend to people.

Though I am very curious, what is your smoke box volume and approximately how many hours at what temp are you getting with that? Reason I ask is I have a smoke box addition I made up to fit the Guru port. I figured the KK is a perfect cold smoker too, with the right equipment. I am trying to decided if I have enough volume and what type of element I should use to smolder the chips.

-=Jasen=-

[primeats]

The box has a 150# capacity(Pro-Smoker N Roaster) not huge, but for my small shop it does just fine,no added humidity or water bath features. I can usually dry about 25 lbs of jerky in around 8 hours, bacon for 12, as well as chicken or turkeys. And hams also around 18-24 hours.

Your smoke chamber is a very nice creation, I thought about the KK as a cold smoker as well. I use a 110v hot plate element, the main element is a 220v heavy duty oven element. I usually smoke between 160/180 and finish with turning it up to 200/225 top end.Couldn't you throw in some charcoal with the wood to get it to smolder? Or just use a propane torch to start the chips? Oh, by the way at the shop I use hickory sawdust, only about a cup and smoke for 1 hour. For the bacon I will throw in some hickory chips as well,for longer smoke and the bag just happened to be open!

That chamber is VERY marketable!

[ThreeDJ16]

Or just use a propane torch to start the chips? Oh, by the way at the shop I use hickory sawdust, only about a cup and smoke for 1 hour. For the bacon I will throw in some hickory chips as well,for longer smoke and the bag just happened to be open!

That chamber is VERY marketable!

That was the original plan (light and let smolder), but have been revisiting the small element purchased to attach to the bottom. I was worried that maybe it would go out over a long smoke. With the Guru providing combustion air only once in a while, I thought it might be an issue. I need to grab some sawdust and give it a try soon (keep forgetting as it was tucked away in the shed). It also need so modification to fit the KK as this was more of a prototype/experiment to begin with.

So approximately 1 cup for 1 hour of smoke? When cold smoking hams, do you use smoke through the entire process or just part? Ok, I am gonna give this it's own thread in a bit and quit trampling the smoke pot thread, but it will live for now.

-=Jasen==

[Amphoran]

That is a nice looking chamber, Deej! Except that it wants to be dry, it looks a LOT like my hopback.

[ThreeDJ16]

That is a nice looking chamber' date=' Deej! Except that it wants to be dry, it looks a LOT like my hopback.[/quote']

Hehe, that was the original though when I grabbed that can (been a while). But that project fell by the wayside and the smoke box was in at the time. It is a bit large for a hop back system on my brewery since it would hold several pounds of hops and really needs a screw on (or clamping) liquid tight lid too. I thought about using a small SS filter housing for a hop back system.

-=Jasen=-

[Amphoran]

Yeah, mine's smaller, too. Yours would make one HECK of a dry-hopped IPA, though...

[ThreeDJ16]

Yeah' date=' mine's smaller, too. Yours would make one HECK of a dry-hopped IPA, though...[/quote']

Mo bitter, mo better in my book!

-=Jasen=-