# Why does my Electric Smoker 30" produces bitter smoke on the food?



## tempnexus (Aug 26, 2017)

I have smoked twice now on my smoker and the food is freaking bitter as hell!!! 

What's going on?!

I am using hickory wood and I am smoking, chicken, beef, cheese and all are bitter as heck.

Thanks!


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## JckDanls 07 (Aug 26, 2017)

How much chips (assuming that's what your using) are you putting in at a time ??  Are you soaking chips in water ??  where are you running your exhaust vent (vent on top) ,closed, partially open, full open ???  More info is needed to help figure this out... 

usually it is found out that to many chips are put in each time and that the exhaust vent is closed..  you want vent wide open when cooking


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## smokedcaveman (Aug 26, 2017)

in a word - creosote.

that's gonna be your most likely culprit

it's a black tarry distillate formed during incomplete combustion in a low oxygen atmosphere. it'll build up on the inside of your smoker as well, so you'll have to clean it off. (I suggest white vinegar sprayed on and wiped down)

( I see from another thread that you got the MES 30 digital. I'm afraid I'm not super knowledgeable about those. I use an analog version. your best bet is gonna be BearCarver, he's one of the wisest round here about the MES digitals)

which model smoker do you have?

is it digital or analog?

if you have adjustable top/exhaust vents, are they open completely?

what temp are you smoking at?

is your smoke visible?

are you soaking your chips?

how fine are the chips?

are you using pellets instead of chips?

ideally, you want to be at 225-250F temp in your smoker for your meats, exhaust vent completely open, small/fine dry chips (despite what masterbuilt says - don't soak the chips) smoldering a thin, barely visible blue smoke. also, don't trust the thermometer on the door. I've found it's rarer to find one that's actually accurate. 

although I can't figure out what you mean about 200F is 'too high' for stuff - but the 275 for chicken.. how long did that run?


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## tempnexus (Aug 26, 2017)

JckDanls 07 said:


> How much chips (assuming that's what your using) are you putting in at a time ?? Are you soaking chips in water ?? where are you running your exhaust vent (vent on top) ,closed, partially open, full open ??? More info is needed to help figure this out...
> 
> usually it is found out that to many chips are put in each time and that the exhaust vent is closed.. you want vent wide open when cooking


Yeah closed top vent, using water dish, refilling every 45 min so I guess I failed at all accounts. 

Not soaking since electric

Chips from Home Depot I don't know how fine 2" by 0.5"?

Full open on top

75F ambient

Set on 275.

Full water basin.


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## smokedcaveman (Aug 26, 2017)

nah, it's only a failure if you don't learn anything. 

and it's a common mistake. people think to keep the top vent closed to hold the smoke in.. but really, you want it to move out a.s.a.p. (I made the same mistake myself before, so I feel you)

and the water dish... well.. a lot of us don't use them. as a general rule, the masterbuilts are insulated enough that the meat doesn't dry out, and they tend to be a hassle to continually refill. a lot of people just line them with foil and leave them empty as a drip pan.

give the inside a wipedown with some white vinegar to get any lingering creosote off the walls, and give it another go. the open vent alone will make a world of difference.


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## bbqwillie (Aug 26, 2017)

You want to avoid billowy white smoke, keep the top vent wide open. You want to see thin blueish smoke or just a heat signature with a touch of smoke in it coming out of the exhaust. Don't soak your chips and think about getting an A-Maze-N pellet tray somewhere down the road (beats the heck out of adding chips every 40 minutes). OH! you don't need any water in the pan on a MES. Just foil it for easy cleanup.


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## johnmeyer (Aug 27, 2017)

See if this thread that I started a couple of years ago sounds familiar:

Thinking of selling my MES 30

If you read through the posts, you'll see that I eventually realized that the MES electric is flawed because it uses the same heating element to heat and to produce smoke. Thus, the when you set it to cook at lower temperature, it produces less smoke. Also, the quality of the smoke gets worse as you smoke at lower temps because the chips don't get going very well. Finally, if you use water in the pan or close the vent, things get downright awful. The idea of soaking chips comes from putting chips onto hot charcoal coals. In that application you have to stop the chips from simply burning up in a minute or two. In this application, they are heated up on a hot electric plate. It is nowhere near as hot as a lit piece of charcoal.

The solution is to either buy an external smoke generator (Masterbuilt makes one for "cold smoking" but it can be used for hot smoking also); or buy the AMNPS tray. Even better build a "mailbox mod" (I used a popcorn can, which is easier and cheaper). You put the AMNPS into that. and a lot of the bad stuff in the smoke condenses inside the external can before it gets into the smoker.

The external mod also increase the smoke turnover in the box (i.e., you get a large volume of smoke moving through the box). The quicker the smoke gets through the box, the better.

The pros all seem to use offset smokers, at least that's what I see on TV when I watch BBQ competitions. So if you eventually get hooked on this and want to get a better result, that's the direction you might want to go. In the meantime, for a modest investment in an external smoke generator, or at least the AMNPS, you'll be able to dramatically improve your results.


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## parrot-head (Aug 31, 2017)

Just keep the vent wide open all the time. Don't pay attention to that crap that says 1/4 closed for this or 1/2 closed for that.

All the way open is good for everything.


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## smokedcaveman (Aug 31, 2017)

yeah - really it's best to cook a bit longer with thinner smoke than wind up with thick white billows. (for one, the thick smoke makes the fire dept think your house might be on fire, and they get annoyed about showing up....)


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## travisty (Aug 31, 2017)

Agree with everything said here! Seriously look into the AMNPS, you'll realize the first time you use it that the smoke flavor your produce is so much better!(and youll never want to use chips again) The actual burning combustion rather than induction just creates a better combustion and ultimately a more consistent and better flavor. The mailbox mod is also a good option, as sometimes the AMNPS can have issues in the chamber since there isn't too much air flow in there. Keep in mind that if you live at a high elevation you will want to get the Tube smoker instead of the Maze. They have a great adjustable length tube too.

The masterbuilt generator also uses electricity, so you need a second plug handy, and I still don't think the smoke is as good a quality as the Amazin products, but it is a pretty fair price, and sure is convenient!

I am curious how you managed to smoke cheese in your MES without the cold smoking attachment? what am I missing here?


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