Creosote taste

[Dustin Dorsey]

I did a cook the other day and for the first time I didn't wait until the smoker came up to temp before putting the food on. In my case my food wound up slightly oversmoked but not inedible. White smoke in and of itself isn't that bad of a thing but if its just pouring smoke its probably too much. A light white smoke is fine. Thin blue smoke is even better. Right now I'm doing my first ever stick burn in my offset and I'm making every mistake in the book. I'm hoping I wind up with something edible.

 

[Al Silverman]

To find out if it's the added smoke wood or the charcoal creating the off taste, try cooking a chicken without any smoke wood. Fire up the smoker and without waiting for it to come to temp put on the bird.

I have always just added 15-20 lit on top of the unlit, added my smoke wood, assembled the smoker and put on the meat. I sell a ton of BBQ'ed stuff and have never had a complaint related to an off putting smoke or creosote flavor.

The exception to that rule is when I do high heat cooks for poultry and occasionally a brisket. In that case its a full chimney of lit atop the unlit and then wait about 20 mins. until the unlit gets going, then I assemble and add the meat.