Dan C. FL
TVWBB Pro
I went to the local hardware store in search of wood chunks. I was hoping to find maple chunks for the smoker because I've used the chips on the kettle and loved the flavor with chicken. It's phenomenal. But, unfortunately, they didn't have the maple chunks; they only had chips. I'd spent a lot of time around this place over the last couple of weeks, especially recently, researching the different types of wood smoke. I've tried mesquite before, which was way too strong of a flavor. The wife didn't like it. I'm sure that I probably had a hand in that failure too. But, I didn't want to go back to that well. So, so far I've used hickory and maple successfully. I remembered seeing that a lot of people like the flavor of pecan. So, I picked up a bag of Weber pecan chunks. When I got home Friday night, I remembered that we had some bone-in, skin-on, chicken breasts in the freezer. I wanted to try to isolate the flavor of the smoke to see if we liked that flavor. So, like a smart husband, I told the wife that I had picked up pecan chunks and what I was thinking about doing with them. Since she consented, I did the cook on Saturday. I used the 22" kettle and set it up indirect (KBB coals on either side of a drip pan). I buttered up the skin, added a little bit of salt and pepper (because I don't cook any meat without at least a little salt and pepper) and away she went. (Aside-This time, I remembered to use the oven mitt when dumping the coals. That made for a much more pleasant experience.
) Here's the result:
An inside view:
When I went and smelled the smoke coming out of the grill, I was a little concerned. It smelled pretty strong to me. But, I was really pleased with the flavor of the pecan wood. I asked my wife to take a bite of hers without putting any sauce on it first, to let me know what she thought of the flavor. She said that she liked it, but wasn't as excited about it as she was the maple. That is, until she added some of her family's secret recipe (I don't even know the recipe, she makes it.) bbq sauce. After having eaten mine sans sauce, she told me that I had to try a bite with the sauce. I did and it was slap your mama good. I'd serve it to just about anybody. I'm more likely to use the pecan wood for things like a butt or a brisket now that I know the flavor. But, it also gives me a good alternative to the maple for the chicken breasts should I decide I want something a little different.
) Here's the result:
An inside view:
When I went and smelled the smoke coming out of the grill, I was a little concerned. It smelled pretty strong to me. But, I was really pleased with the flavor of the pecan wood. I asked my wife to take a bite of hers without putting any sauce on it first, to let me know what she thought of the flavor. She said that she liked it, but wasn't as excited about it as she was the maple. That is, until she added some of her family's secret recipe (I don't even know the recipe, she makes it.) bbq sauce. After having eaten mine sans sauce, she told me that I had to try a bite with the sauce. I did and it was slap your mama good. I'd serve it to just about anybody. I'm more likely to use the pecan wood for things like a butt or a brisket now that I know the flavor. But, it also gives me a good alternative to the maple for the chicken breasts should I decide I want something a little different.
