The New A-MAZE-N-Smoker

[wingman]

Well I have gone through 2 bags of dust on the test unit I reviewed on my site and posted in this forum. Probably around 10 smokes. The unit is great. I can tell you that when smoking in humid or damp environments open your dust in doors get out what you need to smoke with and quickly close the bag while releasing any air in the bag. I left my last bag sitting open for a couple hours and the next smoke I had issues with the sawdust burning completely. I had to re-light it twice. This is not fault of the product it's to be expected. This sawdust will absorb moisture and when it does it will not burn as efficiently as it does when its nice and dry. just a tip for folks.

If you have the smaller unit you can light both ends and the center. I have done this most of the time and this way my cheese smokes for only 3 hours then its pulled out. I have found the cheese stays moister this way yet gets a nice smoky flavor and no bitterness.

Yesterday I received the new 8" x 8" test unit. The build is even stronger the the first one. No more sharp edges. I was sent 9 bags to work with. Maple, Pecan, Cherry, Hickory, Oak Bourbon Barrel, Peach, Nectarine and Oak Wine Barrel. I will start smoking with it tomorrow evening. Video to follow. Another tip... I also like cold smoking at night as the temps are cooler and I have found I get better product that retains its moisture. The last batch of mozzarella, Gouda and Pecans was to die for even though I got some moisture in the sawdust. Pics below...

Try not to expose the dust to humid air too long. Trust me...

For those who have not sen my A-MAZE-N-SMOKER Videos here are a couple. See if you can see my bulldog Gus sniffing the Thin Blue Smoke...

 

[bmudd14474]

That sure is a simple but nice unit.

 

[richoso1]

It's next on my list!

 

[jak757]

Mine arrived, and I plan on using it this weekend to cold smoke some bacon I have curing.  Just hope the weather cooperates -- we've been getting a lot of rain lately -- and I think there may be more this weekend.  Darn weather gets in the way of my cooking!

 

[nwdave]

I think it's about time to trip on over to the darkside.  Of course, with the weather we're receiving in our neighborhood (the Pacific Northwest) your caution about moisture control is noted.

The background music in your post #1 youtube........who is it?  I'm always looking for such music.

 

[scarbelly]

Dave - I have been testing one of the prototypes for a couple of months and you will not regret the purchase - I have used it to cook cheese - chicken and a chuckie with great success

 

[squirrel]

I have really enjoyed my A-Maze-N smoker. I can attest to the moisture problem, but like Rob said, it's not the fault of the product, just open indoors and keep your bags air tight, not a big deal.

It really does open up a whole new world of smoking. I recently smoked some fresh apricots and made apricot preserves. A totally awesome flavor. I'm smoking flour for bread, pasta, crackers. One of my most recent favorites is my smoked pickled onions. I cold smoked the red onions and garlic then pickled them. I can't wait to crack those babies open on top of a big slab of meat! The possibilities are endless.

Thanks Rob for the great videos!

 

[tjohnson]

I try not to jump in on posts about the A-MAZE-N-SMOKER, but this post seems to be a good one to add some info.

The sawdust I get is dried to around 8% moisture content, but once exposed to high humidity, it can climb to 12% fairly quickly.  If you notice the sawdust is having issues, dump it on a cookie sheet and throw it in your oven for 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees.  Keep the bag sealed when not in-use.

Thanks All!

Todd

 

[wingman]

I think it's about time to trip on over to the darkside.  Of course, with the weather we're receiving in our neighborhood (the Pacific Northwest) your caution about moisture control is noted.

The background music in your post #1 youtube........who is it?  I'm always looking for such music.

NWDave that is a background sound track that ships with Pinnacle Studio the editing package I use. It has many canned sound bytes that will auto adjust for length when one compiles a video. I was pretty surprised in some of the quality of the music that shipped with the software.

 

[flyhigh123]

has anyone here used the amaze smoker on butts and brisket with a MES?

Do you use your drip pan?

 

[scarbelly]

I have a SmokinTex which is also an electric - I have done Chicken and a Chuckie with it and had great success. You will want to use a drip pan to keep the drippings out of the smoker or you will drown it out - I just put the heat on from the SmokinTex and light the A MAZE N SMOKER under the drip pan so it is protected and it works great

Here is my configuration

Hope this helps

 

[wingman]

Here's an up date... I loaded up 4 rows with Cherry A-MAZE-N-DUST and lit it from two ends. I wanted to do this today as it was a day loaded with thunderstorms and there was allot of moisture in the air to see how the burn was in somewhat of a worst case as far as the moisture goes. I'm sure folks in New Orleans can come up with even more moisture in the air but 82% humidity is what I have here today. 55 degrees here in rainy Tacoma Washington. I do like the temps and the moisture for keeping the cheese moist. The sawdust seems to burn pretty good for these conditions. I have not had to re-light it at all. At the time of the images it's been burning for about 1 3/4 hours. I added some pics below. One of which is the local radar map that shows the rain that came through as I was starting the process. Its now moved up over to the north east.

I have some Mozzarella sticks in thee, some Gouda and Pecans. They get eaten as fast as I can make them.

So far I sampled the Gouda as it's my all time favorite cheese and its really good! I also had a couple Pecans an they too were good but they need more time as does the cheese sticks.

So far, no bitter after taste at all. I like the flavor produced from the Cherry A-MAZE-N-DUST. I can't wait to try the Pecans. I'll post an update when I pull the food off.

 

[wingman]

Update... I smoked the cheese for another hour and the nuts 2 hours. Both turned out amazing. The Cheese had a very light tint of color to it but it did not have that dry skin it often gets. It was very moist with great flavor. I really like the results of smoking cheese in the cooler part of the day and I believe the moisture in the air helped as well.

The A-MAZE-N-SMOKER worked flawlessly. It had a clean even burn and did not leave a bitter flavor on the foods. I'm impressed with the quality of the A-MAZE-N-DUST as well. Todd has done an outstanding job of refining the smoker and Sawdust. I will continue to burn through all of this A-MAZE-N-DUST and see what the other sawdusts do as far as quality of the burn and flavor.

You all have a great night.

 

[nwdave]

Rob, I think these people would have been more impressed with a radar picture of the weather yesterday about 2:30 to 4 pm.  Some areas were getting as much as an inch an hour in rain.  Now, that's what I call humidity.

 

[herkysprings]

I've got mine, waiting for colder temps to smoke up some LOX with the alder dust I got! I cant wait to use it!

 

[squirrel]

I've got a cold smoke going and it was extremely humid today so I put my maple dust on a paper plate and put in the microwave for 25 seconds. It lit right up and I didn't have to relight. Here's a pic of my goodies, pecans, almonds, fresh coconut, macadamia nuts and cocoa nibs. There will be a day of baked goods coming very soon!

 

[wingman]

Squirrel, I never would have thought about Coconut.. Man that really sounds good. I know the Macadamia nuts will be good. I'll have to get some of those to smoke. Thanks!

 

[richoso1]

Creativity keeps the taste buds going for more, thanks for sharing your adventure. Thumbs up on your post.

 

[Bearcarver]

So far I've done Salt, 6 different Cheeses, Dried Beef, Pepperoni, Deer Bacon, and Beef Sticks with my A-MAZE-N-SMOKER, and everything has been perfect & hassle free. The only problem I have had is it's a PITA typing "A-MAZE-N-SMOKER" with one finger.

I always light both ends because I'm a Smoke Freak---I like everything very very smoked. Even then, my kid says it isn't smoky enough, but I'm betting I could throw a smoldering Firestone on a plate, and he'd say it wasn't smoky enough.

I know I could light the middle of the AMNS too, but I think lighting both ends is JUST RIGHT !

Thanks Todd, for making smoking so much easier,

Bearcarver

 

[biaviian]

After watching the videos I had to purchase one (and about 5lbs of assorted dust).  I can't wait to try it with some cheese.