# 1st Cheese smoke (almost lost it)



## acs55812 (Dec 7, 2009)

At least I hope it was "almost", the green egg held at 80° for quite awhile with a indirect tray in it, then for some stupid reason I put the guru probe near the cheese (it had been near where the heat comes up along the side, and it overshot up to 150°

Only one cheese melted somewhat---I was able to retrieve that as mostly one chunk with a grill rod mark in it----the others have plenty of grease bubbled out----will they be ok? I have taken them off after 1 hour of heavy smoke.

Your thoughts? Will it be any good?


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## raceyb (Dec 7, 2009)

Only a taste will tell.  But if the fat content escaped, cheese will probably crumble and be dry. wrap it tights and let it set up for a week or two so the smoke mellows and take some pics if you can.

I'd love to see your Egg.  Thats a nice piece of BBQ gear.


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## danj (Dec 7, 2009)

just wondering if wraping cheese in cheese cloth smoking would work help to hold shape.


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## raceyb (Dec 7, 2009)

I think the best way is the way Cowgirl did it.  Take some country twine or rattan and tie it around teh cheese and hang it in the smoker as opposed to letting it rest on the grate.



Check out cheese in upper right hand corner. This is a cold smoke, so shape should be fine.


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## acs55812 (Dec 7, 2009)

New question:

As far as the temp for smoking cheese goes, if the cheese is cooler than 80° is that ok? I was getting lots of good smoke, the egg started out at 20° with a small fire in a tin can, all was well til I thought maybe the cheese was too cold--I had 80° where the heat comes up on the side of the indirect plate and moved the guru probe up to the same level as the cheese.


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## raceyb (Dec 8, 2009)

Anything above 89 is too warm and could cause the cheese to melt. Cheese below 80 is fine. It varies with the quality and type of cheese. Always choose a cold, blustery day to smoke cheese. Smoke times are from 30-120 minutes, depending on type of wood. Mesquite tends to be too strong. Apple, pecan and cherry are excellent choices for a mild flavor that won't overpower taste of cheese.

Keep cheese in fridge until ready to smoke. Good cheeses to smoke are gouda, havarti, swiss, colby and provolone. If the cheese sweats, verify smoker temp and blot with paper towel. Keep water pan empty but ice water on hand, in case you spike over 90, pour ice water into water pan.

There is a great way to smoke cheese that involves a cardboard box and a little ingenuity. http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...d+smoke+cheese


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## acs55812 (Dec 8, 2009)

Thanks RaceyB, I won't be home this Friday when the high will be 7° but should have plenty of opportunity in the next month or two to catch a cool day or two for smoking---this time was my learning experience (thats my story and I', stickin to it!)


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## raceyb (Dec 8, 2009)

7?  Ouch, lol.  Good luck and let us know how it goes.  :)


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## richoso1 (Dec 8, 2009)

Good possible answer and good advise too. Points to you.


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## acs55812 (Dec 22, 2009)

I had four cheeses in there, mostly cheddar, Daughter stopped by today and I had some on the counter and she said "you got some dry nasty looking cheese there",,,,my reply was "no its smoked",,,,,she tried some and said "this is really good where did you buy it?"

The cheddar hadn't melted, it did lose some oil or grease, but its still very good, Havarti which did melt---but I salvaged it off the grill anyway, it is a favorite as it is still very creamy.


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