Should I still see smoke?


 
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David Willis

TVWBB Member
I'm doing ribs and for the first hour or so, I saw plenty o' smoke. After that, it got less and less 'til there was none. I checked the fuel and the wood was pretty charred, but still there. I poked it with a rod a bit and I'm seeing smoke again, but I'm wondering should I be making sure there's always smoke coming out?

Thanks!
 
David,

Lots of folks who've been doing this for a long time insist that it's the smoke you don't see that flavors the most.

Don't worry about not seeing the smoke.
 
It doesnt have to have smoke to have heat, but the smoke you saw at the start probably imparted a lot of flavor. I've been going for 12 hours on the pork butts in the WSM right now, and my largest amount of smoke was the first hour or so... after that is has died off a bunch, but you still see wisps coming up here and there as the wood gets more consumed. I think it is totally normal, and probably more important to keep an eye on the temperature inside and of the meat than the quantity of smoke produced.
 
David

If you saw smoke the whole time it would be way too much, even for the strong smoke lovers. Sounds like you're just right. The WSM is very smart, let it do its thing /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif .

Don't know if you're doing BB or spares, or if you're planning to foil. Lots written here and in the cooking section on both - read. But most of all - enjoy.

Paul
 
Thanks.

I just pulled a piece of pork (1X1X 1/4 left over from trimming) Wow, I actually smoked meat!. Has a bit of zip to it (I guess the cayenne) but it's great even without that final glaze. I just realized I'm out of honey so I'm going to the store to get some now!
 
I'll agree with Tom. The puffy white smoke you see is not the good smoke. The good smoke is that whispy blue stream of some you can barely see coming out of the top vent. It may not look like much, but it carries a lot of good, clean, smoky flavor!
 
What's even worse is the dark black smoke you get from a grease fire!! I cooked next to a couple guys that had a billowing white smoke cook all night long. Finally, just before dawn they had added so much fuel it caused the cresote to catch fire, or something caught fire and all of a sudden they had flames coming out their top vent.

Never worry about visible smoke lasting the entire cook-especially for butts and brisket. There will be smoke as long as you fire is going, just becomes nearly invisible. One way to see it, especially at night, is to shine a flashlight across the vent. Easier to see it then.

For ribs, I will allow and encourage a heavier smoke during the first couple hours, but after that, I am not worried about seeing any smoke.

Dale
 
Smoke that was clearly visible was certainly something I was concerned about, being brand new to the hobby. After all, it is called a "smoker." However, I'm reminded of typical instructions by this site's host, Chris: "I added [X number] of [X sized] chunks and that's all that was required for the entire cook."

Having fiddled with my own WSM for about five cooks now, I think the visibility of the smoke should be your least concern. The final taste is the best barometer of types and amount of wood that you will decide to use on future cooks.

Today I cooked my first brisket. For experimentation I purposely put the wood chunks on the coals way before placing the mid-section and top on the cooker. Flames came off the chunks when I went back out to assemble the mid-section, grates and pan along with adding the brisket to the top grate.

Hardly any visible smoke the entire cook. Final slow smoked taste: superb.

Dave
 
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