# First cheese smoke



## wutang (Mar 21, 2009)

Finally got around to trying to cold smoke some cheese. Got a pound each of sharp cheddar, mozzerella, colby jack and pepperjack


The smallest fire I have ever tended.  LOL


But my temps are about right.


Cheese after about an hour in the smoker


All done. Smoked for about 2 hrs with apple wood. Temps averaged in the mid 80's. 


This last pic is hard to judge. There is a definate color change to the outside and you can see a slight change in texture. I put them in fridge and didn't touch them for a few days. They came out good, definately something I will be doing again.


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## bassman (Mar 21, 2009)

Good looking cheese, Wutang!  I haven't tried smoking cheese yet, but getting closer.


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## smoke freak (Mar 21, 2009)

Looks good and the longer it sets the better it gets.

I like to dry my cheese overnight in the fridge. Then only smoke it for about 45 min.


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## bbq engineer (Mar 21, 2009)

What kind of remote thermometer gizmo is that ya got there?  Looked kinda cool.

Definitely gonna try some smoked cheese.

BBQ Eng.


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## wutang (Mar 21, 2009)

It is a remote digital meat thermometer that I picked up at Wal-mart. There is a meat probe plugged into a base unit at the smoker and the display can be brought inside. I normally use it to keep on eye on meat temps when smoking large cuts like pork butt. But I used it to make sure my smoker temps didn't get too high while smoking cheese.


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## m1tanker78 (Mar 21, 2009)

Looks good Wutang, must have been cold out. I gotta try my hand at smoking some cheese before it gets too hot (might be too late). Would it be better to cut the blocks up into smaller cubes/slabs to increase the surface area? Or would that cause the cheese to melt quicker? 

Thanks for the pics!

Tom


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## wutang (Mar 21, 2009)

As long as your temps are below 90, you shouldn't have to worry about melting. You could cut it into smaller pieces to increase surface area for smoke. I may try that next time but I just want a simple/basic starting point that I could easily make changes to down the road. 

Thanks for all the comments.


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## xjcamaro (Mar 21, 2009)

If your worried about temps getting high, i would definately try out the tin can and soldering iron method in the other thread, it works great if you running into temp problems like i used to. Im actually enjoying the fruits of my smoking labor of thursday night right now!


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## richoso1 (Mar 21, 2009)

Congrats on that cold smoke, smoked cheese always taste better after it's been in the fridge at least overnight. I hear you about the small fire, I usually use 3 charcoal briquettes, and maybe 4 wood chips at a time.


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## sumosmoke (Mar 21, 2009)

Cheese is on sale at our local supermarket and I'm anxious to hear how yours turned out, before taking the plunge. I figure I could smoke it tomorrow and take in by the end of the week for snacks .... 

Good looking smoke, as always!!!


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## fire it up (Mar 21, 2009)

Congrats wutang, should include some smoked cheese in a smoked dish like a fattie.
I haven't smoked cheese yet but someday eventually I will have to, gotta try everything once, right?
Did you have to watch it like a hawk with the temperature or were you able to keep it within tolerated levels easily?


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## wutang (Mar 21, 2009)

Sumosmoke-I sampled some of the cheddar and some of the colbyjack after 3 days in the fridge-both had a strong smoke flavor. I sample them both again after the 5th day and there was a big difference. It was now a mellow smokey flavor. I have not yet incorporated them into any recipes but I have plans for for cheesey, bean & beef burritos for dinner tomorrow with the pepperjack. Sounds good to me.

Fire it up-I started the smoke farely early on a cool morning so ambient temp wasn't an issue. There were a couple times towards the end of the smoke when the temp went just above 90F. I just opened the lid on the side firebox (I use a horizontal offset smoker) to let some heat escape. The temp came down within a minute or so.


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## sumosmoke (Mar 22, 2009)

That's interesting to hear how 3 days made a difference in the cheese, but very good advice. Before it gets too warm down here I'm going to get a cheese smoke on!! Gotta try some new things in 2009 ..


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## smoke freak (Mar 22, 2009)

Try this
I use about 6 briquettes and place a foil pack of pistaccio nut shells on top and ignore it for aboyt 30 to 45 min. By then the shells are done and the temp has dropped. Works every time.


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## wutang (Mar 23, 2009)

Sounds like a good method, I will have to give that a shot.


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## porked (Apr 19, 2009)

I tried Wutang's method yesterday and it worked great! Used about 8 briquettes, then added 3 chunks of soaked hickory on top. Smoked some Monterey Jack for about 2 hours and definitely a successful smoke.
Thanks Wutang.


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