# Oils ???   for rubbing meat before smoking



## daveomak (Mar 26, 2012)

I have been smoking turkeys for awhile now...  the birds are pumped from the store.... I can tell by all the holes in the skin....  Bride likes to brine them before cooking.... Sooooo....

Everything was done the same as before... brine mix... time in refer..... dry exterior and *this* time rub with oil.... 

This time the bird was rubbed with peanut oil.... usually we smoke the bird dry with some sort of seasoning on the skin.... 

Anyway, the bird did not absorb any smoke to the meat... usually the smoke penetrates the skin and is visible in the meat an 1" or more during a 4 hour smoke....  this time nothing.... no smoke flavor in the meat except on the inside of the thigh where there was no skin.... 

I'm not planning on oiling birds again....  has anyone experienced this....

is no smoke penetration on oiled beef or pork the same....

Is it only the peanut oil that this happens with.....  

I was under the impression, smoke penetrated oils..... 

I'm beginning to think I was in error and have an opportunity to learn something _AGAIN_....

Help me and others learn something....  Dave


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## rtbbq2 (Mar 26, 2012)

It does make sense Dave. Oiling the skin puts a barrier between the skin and the smoke. I don't rub oil on poultry and not sure if I am going to rub oil on beef or pork any more after reading your post. Meat without skin in more porous but albeit it does hamper smoke penetration on non skinned subjects too. Kind of makes me think about it. I have used oil and that may have contributed to the low or even almost no smoke flavor I have had at times too....Hmmmmmmmmmmm? I will pay a little closer attention. I think a little chicken experiment is in order. One chicken with oil and one with just rub.

Thanks for the interesting topic to think about.............


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## 90beater (Mar 27, 2012)

I'm no expert but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn before. 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





I am guessing that the viscosity of the peanut oil is pretty heavy and prevented the smoke from penetrating your Turkey.

I commonly use Olive oil and Rice Bran oil when cooking fish and poultry. It helps to keep the meat from drying out and helps to keep the rub on what I’m cooking.

Just last weekend I cooked up a couple chickens and used Olive oil to hold the salt, pepper and garlic salt on the bird while it cooked over a Red Oak flame. The chicken was infused with the smoke from the Oak all the way thru.

I also have a Big Easy Propane Fryer and have coated the turkeys with Olive oil. They have all tasted great but didn't have any smoke in them.


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## terry colwell (Mar 27, 2012)

I use a GOOD grade Olive Oil and lightly oil the birds, I get good smoke flavor and no after taste of oil at all.


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## Tee4u (Aug 30, 2019)

Hi guys, does anyone have any experience smoking chicken with charcoal only? I've tried it and got different results. Im really confused about whether it's low and slow or high heat for a shorter time. Tips please?


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## 6GRILLZNTN (Aug 30, 2019)

I do chicken beer can style on my Weber kettle.  Inject with Creole Butter, and put a rub on it.  I try to keep the temps around 400 to 425.  I put a couple of chunks of smokewood mixed in the charcoal.  Never fails.


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## noboundaries (Aug 30, 2019)

Tee4u said:


> Hi guys, does anyone have any experience smoking chicken with charcoal only? I've tried it and got different results. Im really confused about whether it's low and slow or high heat for a shorter time. Tips please?



Wow, this old thread just grew legs...but it is an important point. I'm a charcoal guy (WSM and Weber Kettle). All meat is not the same. Chicken, with the skin on, must be cooked/smoked/grilled at a high heat for crispy skin. What's high? Above 275F. 300-350F is better. I've even pushed 400F and still came out with juicy birds and bite-thru skin, and they finished in less time. Poultry is the one meat I ALWAYS temp in the breast and the thigh. 

Whether smoking turkeys or chicken, I pat the skin dry and then put it uncovered in the refrigerator for several hours, up to overnight. If I don't have that time (or the room for a large turkey), I turn a couple of room fans on the bird(s) for about an hour to dry the skin. Then I spray with oil and dust with a rub.

Poultry will REALLY suck up the smoke. I go light on wood and usually throw some cherry in for coloring. It makes a difference.

I've done the seasoned butter under the skin. Seemed like a waste of butter.


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## johnmeyer (Aug 30, 2019)

The "smoking science guy" did a test using cotton cloth, one soaked in water and the other coated with cooking oil. The water soaked cloth absorbed a lot of smoke and the oil absorbed almost none.

Here's the link:

Summary of how smoke is deposited on meat


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## noboundaries (Aug 30, 2019)

Cool test! The reason I use oil on the skin at high heat is to kind of air fry it. I've tried it with and without. With was better flavor and bite. 

I do dry smoke because my super-taster wife says the meat is too smoky when I wet smoke. Haven't wet smoked in years.


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## dannylang (Aug 31, 2019)

dave it looks like the oil kept the smoke from getting threw. thanks for the learning lesson. 
dannylang


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