https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfmUUrEK7T4 this video about

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucUy1k86GdA

What I prefer to burn in my woodstove- wood identification- BTU's

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plvhb7N0nbU m

hickory nut 101 smoke the nuts for flavor

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-chopping down a hickory tree for wood chips

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yFVDt4OjiI

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ACACIA
These trees are in the same family as mesquite. When burned in a smoker, acacia has a flavor similar to mesquite but not quite as heavy. Is a very hot burning wood.
ALDER
Very delicate with a hint of sweetness. Good with fish, pork, poultry, and light-meat game birds.
ALMOND
A sweet smoke flavor, light ash. Good with all meats.
APPLE
Very mild with a subtle fruity flavor, slightly sweet. Good with poultry (turns skin dark brown) and pork.
ASH
Fast burner, light but distinctive flavor. Good with fish and red meats.
BIRCH
Medium-hard wood with a flavor similar to maple. Good with pork and poultry.
CHERRY
Mild and fruity. Good with poultry, pork and beef. Some List members say the cherry wood is the best wood for smoking. Wood from chokecherry trees may produce a bitter flavor.
COTTONWOOD
It is a softer wood than alder and very subtle in flavor. Use it for fuel but use some chunks of other woods (hickory, oak, pecan) for more flavor. Don't use green cottonwood for smoking.
CRABAPPLE
Similar to apple wood.
GRAPEVINES
Tart. Provides a lot of smoke. Rich and fruity. Good with poultry, red meats, game and lamb.
HICKORY
Most commonly used wood for smoking--the King of smoking woods. Sweet to strong, heavy bacon flavor. Good with pork, ham and beef.
LILAC
Very light, subtle with a hint of floral. Good with seafood and lamb.
MAPLE
Smoky, mellow and slightly sweet. Good with pork, poultry, cheese, and small game birds.
MESQUITE
Strong earthy flavor. Good with beef, fish, chicken, and game. One of the hottest burning woods.
MULBERRY
The smell is sweet and reminds one of apple.
OAK
Heavy smoke flavor--the Queen of smoking wood. RED OAK is good on ribs, WHITE OAK makes the best coals for longer burning. All oak varieties reported as suitable for smoking. Good with red meat, pork, fish and heavy game.
ORANGE, LEMON and GRAPEFRUIT
Produces a nice mild smoky flavor. Excellent with beef, pork, fish and poultry.
PEAR
A nice subtle smoke flavor. Much like apple. Excellent with chicken and pork.
PECAN
Sweet and mild with a flavor similar to hickory. Tasty with a subtle character. Good with poultry, beef, pork and cheese. Pecan is an all-around superior smoking wood.
SWEET FRUIT WOODS - APRICOT, PLUM, PEACH, NECTARINE
Great on most white or pink meats, including chicken, turkey, pork and fish. The flavor is milder and sweeter than hickory.
WALNUT
ENGLISH and BLACK - Very heavy smoke flavor, usually mixed with lighter woods like almond, pear or apple. Can be bitter if used alone. Good with red meats and game.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
Some types of wood are unsuitable or even poisonous when used for grilling. Don't use any wood from conifer trees, such as PINE, FIR, SPRUCE, REDWOOD, CEDAR, CYPRESS, etc. Also ELM, EUCALYPTUS, SASSAFRAS, SYCAMORE and LIQUID AMBER wood is unsuitable for smoking

Types of Smoker Woods

There are many different types of woods. The following are some of the more common varieties:
Almond and Pecan – these woods provide a sweet, nutty flavor that many people like with any type of meat.

Apple – this is a lighter, mild smoke. It takes several hours to really permeate the food with its nice, mellow flavor. It is a good choice for pork (especially ribs) and poultry. I also like to use it when smoking quail.
Cherry – this wood provides a sweet, mild flavor. Cherry is similar to Almond and Pecan in that many people like this wood with a wide variety of meats including pork, poultry and beef. Cherry is a very popular choice.
Hickory – this wood provides a strong smoke flavor. It is probably best used with beef or veal and larger cuts of these meats. Similar to Mesquite, if you are not experienced in using Hickory, you may want to use small amounts or mix it with lighter woods (such as apple) until you find the proper mix.
Maple – much like people glaze hams with maple, this wood provides a similar, sweet flavor for ham and poultry.

Mesquite – this woods burns hot, has a strong flavor and provides a lot of smoke. Mesquite is good choice for larger cuts of meat (such as brisket) as well as steak and burgers. Some people mix mesquite with other types of wood due to its strong smoke flavor.

Orange – Here in Florida, we love Orange Blossom Honey and Orange Tree wood is also good for smoking. It provides a very light and mild fruity flavor.
Oak – is not as strong as hickory, but not as light as Apple or Orange. This is a very all around good wood. May people like it with beef or lamb, just like a good Cabernet wine.

Tips About Some of the Woods Used to Smoke Meat

1. Cherry is especially good with beef and pork. It has a tendency to turn meat a rich mahogany color. It's best to balance Cherry wood with Hickory, Alder, Oak or Pecan.

2. Maple is similar to Alder wood, providing a sweet flavoring and dark appearance. Balance it with Alder, Apple or Oak. Sugar Maple wood is the sweetest.

3. Red Oak is considered the most versatile of the hard woods and is a top choice for smoking.

4. Hickory is the all-time favorite of many Midwest and southern state barbecue cooking teams. However, it adds strong flavoring to meats - too much hickory smoke can turn meat bitter.

5. Alder Ash's natural sweetness is especially suited with fish and poultry and is the first choice for smoking Salmon.

6. Apple's natural sweetness is good for poultry and ham and provides mild flavoring.

7. Mesquite is very popular with restaurant grills, especially the Honey Mesquite wood. The Wesatch variety of Mesquite "pops" embers. Mesquite is oily in nature and considered the strongest flavored wood, so it burns hot and fast. This is not the ideal choice for long barbecues.

8. Pear, Peach and Plum. These woods require a certain level of expertise in their use. Peach and Plum woods tend to lose their flavor shortly after being cut. For the best results, make sure you use the fruit bearing kind of Plum.

9. Pecan,a member of the hickory family, burns cool and provides a delicate flavor. It is gaining in popularity as a smoking wood, however, it can be pungent,so use it sparingly.

10. Dogwood is quite similar to Oak in its smoke flavor.

11. Grapevine cuttings add a nice flavor to fish, poultry and beef but produce a lot of tart smoke. You could achieve the same affect by soaking wood chips in an inexpensive wine before placing the wood on the coals or in a smoker box.

12. Herb woods, such as Basil, Thyme and Rosemary are usually used in combination with other woods. A good combination would be Alder with Basil, and Maple with Rosemary.

Best Wood For Smoking Meat – A Guide to Hardwoods for Smoking

Best Wood For Smoking Meat…A lot of Meat.

A little knowledge goes a long way when selecting hardwoods for meat smoking.

We’re often asked about the best wood for smoking meat. We often answer that it depends on what you prefer. Different woods impart different flavors, and there are no hard and fast rules. This guide explains the basic characteristics of woods commonly used for meat smoking. If you’re starting from scratch or you are thinking about how to expand your meat smoking repertoire it will be a handy reference. Of course, uniqueness and perfection can only be found through experimentation. You might even keep … ahem … a log of your results. You can do this very easily with the highly-recommended Pit Pal BBQ App.

The Basic Rules of Using Hardwoods for Smoking Meat

The rule of thumb is to use “heavier” hardwoods like oak and hickory for smoking “heavier” meats like beef and pork. Use “lighter” hardwoods like alder, maple, fruit and nut-bearing woods for smoking “lighter” meats like poultry and fish. The fun comes in when you start adding small amounts of the lighter woods to accent the flavors of your heavier meats and vice-versa.

NOT THE BEST WOOD FOR SMOKING MEAT: Never use softwoods like pine and cedar. They are too resinous and will ruin your meat and your smoker.

The Heavy Woods

Oak: The mighty oak tree has long stood for strength and endurance. There are few better woods with which to start your meat smoking adventures.

Smoke Characteristics: Medium to heavy flavor, but seldom overpowering
Burn Characteristics: Hot and slow
Best Used When Smoking: Lamb and beef, brisket and sausages.
Says the Pit Boss: There are two types of oak for meat smoking. White oak burns longer. Red oak is sweeter. Ironically white oak has a redder color than red oak!

Hickory: Hickory is a hardworking, everyday hardwood, and as such, hickory can be used to smoke meat in many, many ways.

Smoke Characteristics: Sweet to strong, hearty, almost bacony
Burn Characteristics: Hot and slow
Best Used When Smoking: Larger cuts like ribs and pork shoulders. Can also be used with nearly all red meats and poultry.
Says the Pit Boss: Start small and build. Too much hickory smoke can cause your smoked meat to have a bitter flavor.

Maple: Maple is a little subtler than cousins hickory and oak, but it’s still a good choice for smoking. When used for barbecue, Maple imparts a milder, flavor than hickory or oak woods.

Smoke Characteristics: Sweet and light, mildly smokey
Burn Characteristics: Hot and slow
Best Used When Smoking: Poultry, pork, game birds.
Says the Pit Boss: Sugar Maple, as you may have guessed, is the sweetest of the heavy woods.

Mesquite: Mesquite is the Walker Texas Ranger of hardwoods. Not only is mesquite native to Texas, but it’s wiry, hardy and tough as nails. Mesquite also has a potent flavor. It is best used for grilling or in small doses for adding flavor to your meat when smoking.

Smoke Characteristics: Strong, lots of smoke
Burn Characteristics: Hot and fast
Best Used When Smoking: Red meats (by anwar at dh online). Also great for adding flavor when grilling.
Says the Pit Boss: Mesquite doesn’t put its taproot through the desert hardpan…The hardpan gets out of the way.

The Light Woods

Pecan: Did you know that the Pecan was the state tree of Texas? Neither did we. Add Pecan wood to the fire when you want a sweet, rich, nutty character.

Smoke Characteristics: Medium, fruity/sweet, nutty

Burn Characteristics: Slow and cool
Best Used When Smoking: Briskets, roasts and ribs. Very good as a complement to mesquite
Says the Pit Boss: A friend of mine once roasted a brisket using Pecan-only and the result was a ten pound piece of meat that was too sweet to eat. It’s better to mix Pecan with some heartier woods like Oak, Hickory or Mesquite.

Apple: Apple wood is mild, fruity, sweet and mellow. Use apple wood when smoking chicken, quail, pork and poultry and rest assured that you’re using its powers for good and not for evil.

Smoke Characteristics: Light, mild, fruity, slightly sweet
Burn Characteristics: Hot and slow
Best Used When Smoking: Chicken, quail, pork and poultry
Says the Pit Boss: Use apple wood sooner rather than later, the light character of Apple smoke takes several hours to permeate the food.

Alder: Alder smoke is lighter and sweeter than you’d think. It’s good for smoking fish, and for playing some tasty licks on your Fender Stratocaster (also made from Alder) when you’re done.

Smoke Characteristics: Light, sweet and delicate
Burn Characteristics: Cool temp, medium length
Best Used When Smoking: Traditionally used with fish, especially in the Pacific Northwest. Alder can also be used for poultry and pork.
Says the Pit Boss: Hendrix made the ‘Strat famous. Use alder on your smoked salmon and you’ll become famous too.

Peach: Peach is a regional specialty wood that is near and dear to the Pit Boss’ Georgia roots. If you have access to a ready supply, fresh Peach wood can impart a uniquely light and sweet flavor to your barbecue.

Smoke Characteristics: Light, sweet and delicate
Burn Characteristics: Burns hot and relatively long
Best Used With: Fish, poultry and pork.
Says the Pit Boss: Fresh is better! Peach wood (and plum wood for that matter) tend to lose their flavor shortly after being cut.

Cherry: Did George Washington feel a primal chill when he took his hatchet to his father’s Cherry tree? Maybe. Did he do the right thing by owning up to it? Yes he did. Mild and fruity, Cherry is a very popular choice when smoking lighter meats.

Smoke Characteristics: Light, sweet and delicate
Burn Characteristics: Relatively hot temp, relatively long length
Best Used When Smoking: Chicken, turkey, fish, ham.
Says the Pit Boss: Mix your Cherry with with oak or alder or hickory. When it’s done just serve and get out of the way.

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This Guide to the to meat smoking hardwoods was brought to you by the Pit Boss BBQ Tool Belt. The Pit Boss will help you achieve perfection in all of your meat smoking adventure

diysmokerbbq

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

WHAT KND OF WOOD SHOULD I USE FOR SMOKING ?