- Dec 7, 2014
- 71
- 18
Finally got around to using my MES 30" and cold smoker attachment...
Yesterday I seasoned it and used mesquite. Man, mesquite is a STRONG smelling wood!
Today I smoked a 6lb chicken. Brined it last night using a simple brine recipe w/ kosher salt, soy sauce, olive oil and sugar.
I shut the vent on the MES and set it for 275. Setup my Mavrik ET-733 on a rack. Filled up the cold smoker w/ cherry wood this time, but decided to wait until I put the chicken in to turn it on. I am not sure if this was a mistake. The cold smoker put out a lot of smoke the first 30 minutes or so, but then it settled down nicely and I got TBS. I do wonder if I started the cold smoker first, unattached, would it flame up w/ too much air?
It took ~3 hours to cook the bird. I had a probe in the breast and took it off when it hit 165. When I seasoned the MES 30" yesterday, once it reached temp it was pretty consistent and fairly accurate. Today, it was quite off. The MES read 275 but my Mavrik was reading about twenty degrees cooler.
I have to say it came out pretty good! The breast was moist and the smoke was not overpowering!
So I decided to clean my smoker afterwards...and I'm guessing...most don't? I found it nearly impossible to get into the nooks and crannies! Too much work! For now on, I'll just be cleaning racks and the drip pan...
For Xmas dinner, I have a 14 lb turkey de-frosting in the 'fridge. The plan is to use some Instacure #1 as I like that "hammy" taste...
Yesterday I seasoned it and used mesquite. Man, mesquite is a STRONG smelling wood!
Today I smoked a 6lb chicken. Brined it last night using a simple brine recipe w/ kosher salt, soy sauce, olive oil and sugar.
I shut the vent on the MES and set it for 275. Setup my Mavrik ET-733 on a rack. Filled up the cold smoker w/ cherry wood this time, but decided to wait until I put the chicken in to turn it on. I am not sure if this was a mistake. The cold smoker put out a lot of smoke the first 30 minutes or so, but then it settled down nicely and I got TBS. I do wonder if I started the cold smoker first, unattached, would it flame up w/ too much air?
It took ~3 hours to cook the bird. I had a probe in the breast and took it off when it hit 165. When I seasoned the MES 30" yesterday, once it reached temp it was pretty consistent and fairly accurate. Today, it was quite off. The MES read 275 but my Mavrik was reading about twenty degrees cooler.
I have to say it came out pretty good! The breast was moist and the smoke was not overpowering!
So I decided to clean my smoker afterwards...and I'm guessing...most don't? I found it nearly impossible to get into the nooks and crannies! Too much work! For now on, I'll just be cleaning racks and the drip pan...
For Xmas dinner, I have a 14 lb turkey de-frosting in the 'fridge. The plan is to use some Instacure #1 as I like that "hammy" taste...