Our double filet box of pristine, NO BARK, hardwood wood chunk for smoking ready for the next customer!

WHAT’S IN THE SMOKINLICIOUS® WOOD CHUNK FOR SMOKING BOX? Share on X

These two questions have been quite common for the 12+ years we’ve been in business. What does a cubic foot box of wood weigh? How many pieces do you estimate are in a cubic foot box of wood?

Due to the regulations imposed by The National Conference on Weights and Measures -Uniform Regulation for the Method of Sale of Commodities, we cannot specify weight on a wood product, even though we are a cooking wood. Instead, when asked about weight, we only provide an estimate clearly stating that wood is not sold by weight due to the variation in moisture level and density of the wood selected.

I can, however, tell you the details that a recent first-time customer posted to an online forum that had me elated!

The Specifics You’ve Asked About Wood Chunk for Smoking

This customer took a lot of time and effort to get to the details about our wood; the packaging and the weight not just of the carton, but of specific select pieces. This customer purchased the Serious Smoker Double Filet Wood Chunk which is our cubic foot carton product with the smallest chunk sizing. We offer an option to select up to 3 wood choices for this carton size, with this customer selecting our 3 most popular hardwoods: Hickory, Sugar Maple, and Wild Cherry.

First, let’s look at this customer’s overall purchase.

Wood Chunk for Smoking- It’s In The Numbers

The packaged hardwood weighed in a 32.5 lbs. A total of 139 pieces of wood were packaged. Of that total, 48 pieces were Wild Cherry, 44 pieces Sugar Maple, and 47 pieces Hickory.

Individual Weights

This customer owns equipment that references specific weight of wood needed to smoke optimally. In this case, just 2-4 ounces of wood is ideal.

Although weights for each of the 139 pieces of wood were not obtained, sufficient sampling was done. Here is what was reported:

• the lowest weight of a Wild Cherry chunk (remember, these are all double filet) was 1.5 ounces and the highest was 4.1 ounces
• lowest weight of a Sugar Maple chunk was 2 ounces and the highest at 5.7 ounces
• lowest weight of a Hickory chunk was 2.8 ounces and the highest at 6.4 ounces

For this equipment user, there was an estimate that 139 pieces of hardwood would provide for some 100 smoking events!

What I loved the most about this report is that it correlates specifically to the density of these 3 hardwoods. Hickory has the highest density of the 3 kinds of wood selected and this is reflected by the weight of the individual pieces sampled. Sugar Maple would be next in density followed by the Wild Cherry, all proven with the reported weights.

What Did You Learn?

Unquestionably, there is a lot of wood chunk pieces in a cubic foot carton! Which means you want to ensure you can use that much wood in a reasonable amount of time to maximize the freshness factor and peak level for function as a smoking wood. Individual pieces will vary in weight even if the dimensions of the pieces are relatively the same. That is the nature of a water-rich material – the water weight influences the overall piece weight.

We are indebted to this customer for taking the time to inform us all of his findings since, by law, SmokinLicious® can’t offer this detail.

We hope you liked this post. We’d love to hear from you so subscribe, comment and follow us on all social media platforms. Keep those suggestions coming for the future information you crave.

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

Additional reading:

–HOW MUCH WOOD TO ADD WHEN SMOKING

–BOOST UP THE FLAVOR OF YOUR SMOKER BOX!

–THE ART OF CUSTOMIZING YOUR COOKING EXPERIENCE

Our Products Discussed in this Blog:

Wood Chunks- Double Filet

Dr. Smoke- “Thank you to this great customer for analyzing our box- wood chunk for smoking.”

[Fruitwood trees are often sprayed with pesticide to maximize the fruit yield. Spraying of chemical on the bark may not be too good for using in barbecue?]

ARE FRUITWOOD TREES LIKE THE APPLE “SNOW WHITE” BIT INTO?

There is a fierce debate out there about the use of fruitwood trees, specifically apple and cherry varieties, for cooking purposes. As a Company, we frequently get the same question – “Why don’t I see Applewood as an option to purchase?” Here’s the short answer: We do not, and will not, produce our products from orchard-based woods. Our reason is simple – we do not believe in smoking foods over woods that have been or have the potential to be sprayed or growth enhanced with chemicals.

Trees

Let’s review a fact about trees. All trees produce prussic acid, better known as hydrogen cyanide. We feel that humans can use woods produced in nature when they have been left alone, unburdened by the human hand in trying to manage what sometimes is the normal cyclical pattern of nature. In the areas in which we purchase the heartwood for our cooking wood production facility, the varieties of cherry (Prunus pensylvanica L.f.) we commonly deal with are:

• Northern Pin Cherry, Fire Cherry,
• Wild Red Cherry, and Pigeon Cherry.

Of course, predominately, we bring in Wild Red Cherry. There are many different cherry tree varieties available throughout North America. The main difference in these woods is that our forest trees, the type we manufacture, tend to be on the sweet-tart side versus the sour-bitter. For the most part, hydrogen cyanide is found mainly in the leaves and seeds of the cherry tree. Black Cherry bark is also commonly used in herbal cough remedies.

Opinion:

The dominant opinion is that when used in small quantities, the hydrogen cyanide is a moot issue. Now let’s talk about the smoking application of wood. Cyanogenic compounds WOULD remain a factor in our production of cooking wood. This is because we do not allow our woods to deplete their moisture content to a level that other wood product manufacturers may (what is commonly referred to as “seasoning of the wood”).

For ideal smoking of foods, wood needs to have a moisture level preferably at ~20%. This results in the wood smoldering rather than burning at a rapid rate. The resulting smoke from the plant material provides for that wonderful flavor. Because smoking is done at low temperatures for longer periods of time, the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH’s) found in wood molecules are not stimulated as they normally would be when cooking, say, a steak over a hot flame. Thus, the health risk associated with PAH’s and smoked foods is not considered an issue. The same can be said for ember cooking – using the heat of the residual coals to cook foods.

OUR CONCERN:

Our main concerns regarding woods used for wood-fired cooking methods is to always ensure a bark-free product. Bark does not hold moisture but rather is designed to rid the tree of wastes by absorbing them and locking them into this area. In fact, this is the reason why bark-on woods burn so much faster than bark-free wood pieces. This portion of the tree is responsible for temperature flare-ups, tainted smells, ‘spotty’ appearance of the food’s skin, creosote, an increase in the production of ash. Additionally, once the temperature is increased during wood-fired cooking, heterocyclic amines, or HCAs, are created due to the reaction of the amino acids and creatine with the higher cooking temperature.

In a nutshell, a person is at greater risk of cyanide exposure in treated wood products for home construction than they are when consuming BBQ or other wood-fired foods. Knowing the source of the wood being used in the cooking application is vital to ensure that the necessary steps have been taken to prevent tree disease and pest infestation spread, as well as to ensure that the wood has not been exposed to any chemical/toxin treatments.

It is our hope, that one day soon, inspection of the wood products used by restaurants, caterers, BBQ competitors, and grocery stores who promote smoked and natural-wood fired foods, will occur as normally as food inspections. After all, I think we all can agree that WHAT you cook the food over is just as important as what food you are cooking!

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

For related reading:

TO BARK OR NOT

TASTE IS AROMA!

WOOD FIRED CLAMS MAKE THIS THE PERFECT BITE

Purchase products:

Wood Chunks- Double & Single Filet
Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®

Dr. Smoke- “Enjoy the fruit of the tree because that is what they’re there for. Just be careful when using fruitwood trees from orchard based woods to cook your food.”

Charcoal that is produce properly is a fuel and provides heat! Wood adds flavor!

WHY CHARCOAL IS NOT AN INGREDIENT

There are so many methods of getting a message out rapidly given the speed of technology and the many platforms for posting opinions and marketing strategies today. In doing research for a publication, I came across a statement made by a charcoal company that made me a bit … confused.

An Ingredient Not A Fuel

This company claimed that their product was an ingredient, not a fuel!

Not a fuel? That statement is in direct conflict to what charcoal manufacture was designed for – heat.

I realize that when used with 100% accuracy, charcoal will produce no smoke and a consistent heat. We all know that the 100% accuracy is the kicker – pretty much no one is proficient at producing full ignition of the charcoal with stable air intake to maintain the high heat level the product was designed for. What usually occurs is that we start out with full ignition but given the need for longer cooks, we add charcoal and thus, start to fluctuate the oxygen feed. Only during those fluctuations does the production of smoke occur with charcoal.

Non-Carbonized Wood IS Flavor

Charcoal production is the act of carbonizing wood which means all the volatiles of the wood is burned off until what is left is pure carbon or at least a high percentage of carbon. There is no refuting that it burns cleaner, hotter, and more evenly than wood only.

Here are where differences occur though when it comes to types of charcoal.

Lump charcoal is made from various scrap wood sources like furniture manufacture, a wood packaging manufacturer, the flooring manufacturer, and building material scraps. Due to the high level of variation in these pieces, most often there is not 100% carbonization of the lump charcoal production. That’s why you can get some smoke and flavor from that product; when combustion of a non-charred piece occurs, you’ll stimulate organic compounds that produce flavor. Keep in mind, because scrap wood is used you can get other debris in the purchased bag as often this is scooped up from a site and transferred to a production facility, with the scoop gathering anything that may be in the area.

Traditional charcoal manufacture also known as briquets is also made from scrap wood, sawdust and wood chip product. It is known that some manufacturers include a percentage of softwood but for the most part, the product is derived from hardwood. Briquets do have binders added and there are some types that have accelerants added to make them extremely quick to lite. Personally, I can detect those additives and feel they do change the overall flavor when cooking foods over them but you can make that determination for yourself.

Controlled flavor only comes from wood and the best and safest flavors, from hardwood. Charcoal is a fuel, it is for heat, and the only flavor it produces is when meat/poultry drippings fall directly on the hot coals and vaporize, stimulating flavors. Never are flavors stimulated from the briquet or charcoal.

So, Who Is The Ingredient?

If the definition of an ingredient is a substance that contributes or makes up a mixture, then truly hardwood, regardless if it cooking wood form is in chips, chunks, logs, dust or charwood, is an ingredient in wood-fired cooking recipes as it gives off its distinct organic flavor compounds that make up the cell structures. Heat is NOT an ingredient and that is what charcoal is: HEAT! A claim to be an ingredient just holds no truth.

Did you find this post informative? Leave a comment or suggestion as we’d love to hear from you so we can bring the information you’re looking for. And don’t forget, follow us and subscribe so you don’t miss a thing!

Other related reading:

related reading on our blog for smoking with wood.

HOW TO TURN YOUR CHARCOAL GRILL INTO A SMOKER

HOW TO USE CHARCOAL WITH WOOD IN COOKING

HOW MUCH WOOD TO ADD WHEN SMOKING

Products discussed in this Blog:

Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®

Wood Chunks- Single & Double Filet

Charwood

Dr. Smoke Charcoal needs to be supplemented by Smokinlicious wood products!

These are the small bags of wood chips for the technique BBQ Grill & Smoker pan, try the 3 pack or a box!

Welcome QVC shoppers who purchased the Technique Pre-seasoned Cast Iron 11″ BBQ Grill Pan & Smoker over the U. S. holiday weekend (July 4th). Dr Smoke did some research and watched the demonstration of this product by the great people of QVC. During the segment that I watched they recommended the use of Smokin’ Dust® with this unit. While this is true, I would also recommend the use of Smokinlicious Wood Chips as well! We have tested other stove top smokers and found that with the heavier “cast” iron pans our Wood Chips sometimes perform better than our Smokin’ Dust®

When applying our Smokinlicious Smokin’ Dust® with the Technique Pre-seasoned Cast Iron 11” BBQ Grill Pan & Smoker you may have to add water to make a paste and put it on the bottom tray of the unit. This will prolong the burn life of the Smokin’ Dust® and increase the smoke flavor during the cooking process

We have ordered a unit and will be testing our products in the next couple of weeks. Dr Smoke and the culinary crew will be testing this unit and will be adding information to our “Match your Cooker“ section of our web site. Please check back to Smokinlicious®for updates! Please enjoy your unit!

If you need additional assistance, regarding product compatibility, or tips on smoking,please call 1-800-941-5054

Bon Bar B Q!

Dr. Smoke-create smoked foods with our wood chips for the Technique BBQ Grill & Smoker

We do a summer favorite WOOD FIRED GRILLED WATERMELON!

WOOD FIRED GRILLED WATERMELON BECOMES A STAR

You may have seen segments on grilling watermelon before which show slices of watermelon on a standard gas grill. Although I agree that the heat generated from the grill will produce a sweet outcome, there is no comparison to doing a grilling technique that incorporates wood for added flavor.

In this segment, I’ll show you how to grill watermelon on a grill of your choice with wood chunks for the unique combination of sweet and char flavors that only comes from grilling with wood.

Grilled Watermelon- Easy Prep

I think this is by far, the easiest preparation for the grill. All you need is a watermelon of your choosing and a grill; gas, electric or charcoal. Just 2-3 wood chunks from SmokinLicious® and about 20 minutes once you have a lit grill, and this method of bringing flavor to the standard watermelon will be complete.

As watermelon contains a lot of water, it is essential that you work with a medium heat setting on your gas grill and hot coals with a moderate flame for the charcoal grill. If using a gas grill, be sure to set up the wood chunks on just one side of the grill and allow the chunks to smolder first so there is plenty of smoke vapor. Since watermelon grills in no time at all, you want to have enough smoke vapor produced to give a great tasty outcome for both a gas grill or charcoal grill method. Electric smokers are self-contained allowing for simple dialing in about 15 minutes worth of smoking time.

For the watermelon, cut lengthwise in half and cut each half into individual slices about 1-1/2 to 2” thick. Or, you can remove all the rind and grill just the watermelon meat. Keep fire safe tongs at the ready so you can turn the watermelon slices just once as they evaporate some water and sweeten up. DO NOT leave the grill! This fruit requires a careful watch so stay put and you’ll have every piece cooked to perfection.

So Many Uses for Grilled Watermelon

You’ll see how the watermelon darkens in color, get bits of char coloring to the skin, and is less water soluble. That’s the perfect outcome. Now it’s time to think about how to use your wood flavored melon.

First, you can enjoy it as is. When I serve this naked, I just give one additional flavor such as fresh, chopped mint. But if you’re looking for a lunch or lite dinner entrée, think salad by including some baby arugula, goat cheese and a splash of balsamic vinegar. For a spicy version, sprinkle the wedges with red pepper flakes, a bit of granulated sugar, and lime zest. Wood fired watermelon also works great with other summer favorites like grape and cherry tomato, pepper slices, sugar snow peas, and cucumber. No matter how you choose to serve it, grilled watermelon with wood flavoring is going to top your list of grilled favorites.

Proving that there’s more to wood-fired cooking than just animal proteins, SmokinLicious® brings you great ideas for recipes featuring a wood-fired ingredient. Bringing you tips, techniques, recipes and the science behind the fire and smoke.

Purchase products:

Wood Chunks- Double & Single Filet

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

Additional reading:

-WOOD-FIRED APPLES MAKE THE BEST CAKE

-PEACHES WOOD FIRED FOR A SMOKY FLAVORFUL GAZPACHO

-Smoked Snow Peas With Cucumber Salad

Dr. Smoke- Wood fired grilled watermelon is my favorite summertime dessert!

Our Discussion of Hardwood vs Softwood for Cooking

Hardwood vs. Softwood For Cooking! Share on X

What is the best wood for smoking?

Well, before you ask that question, you should want to know “What woods are safe to use for smoking?”

Hardwood vs. Softwood for Cooking- Softwoods:

Softwoods or coniferous woods should never be used for cooking because they have elevated sap levels and more air in their cell structure. This causes the wood to burn fast, hot, produce lots of sparks, and produce unpleasant flavors not ideal for flavoring foods. Let’s be clear on what a softwood is: pine, redwood, cedar, fir, spruce, hemlock, larch, cypress. These are all no-no’s!

Hardwood vs. Softwood for Cooking- Hardwoods:

Known as deciduous trees that produce broad leaves, produce a fruit or a nut, and generally go dormant in the winter, hardwoods are the woods to use for cooking and makeup roughly 40 percent of all trees in the United States.

Hardwoods are made up of mostly three materials: cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Cellulose and hemicellulose are the basic material of the wood cells; lignin acts as a kind of cell-bonding glue but it is the primary material need for flavoring in barbecue. Lignin contains phenols or hydroxyl groups which are alcohols. As these compounds work together, they produce a preservative action on the food which is antibacterial in nature. Lignin modifies the surface of the smoked food as the wood burns making the food scrumptious!

Hardwood vs. Softwood for Cooking- The Lignin Compound

Although all woods contain compounds which act as a preservative providing both antioxidants and reduction in bacterial growth, there are compounds that are more toxic to people, including compounds like formaldehyde and acetic acid which provide for an overall pH level in wood. Hotter wood fires produce a higher pH level. A good example is mesquite, which produces twice the level of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, meaning it has a pH level almost three times the level of cooler burning hardwoods like Sugar Maple and Oak. Remember, it’s PAHs that are of concern when you grill or smoke and why foods cooked by these methods can get a bad rap.

Hardwood vs. Softwood for Cooking- Orchard Woods

Don’t forget a point about orchard woods which are a hardwood.

Woods like apple, peach, and pecan are traditionally raised for their fruit and nut production meaning they are commonly sprayed with pesticides in order to ensure a productive tree. Unfortunately, these pesticides are absorbed by the tree and released when burned. That means, you release them into the cooking equipment every time you use them for grilling and smoking.

Ask questions about the wood you want to purchase, read wood packaging and look for hardwoods that are known to be ideal for wood-fired cooking like cherry, alder, ash, hickory, maple, oak, and beech. Great food memories at the grill or smoker are made when you start with the perfect smoking wood! Don’t settle for anything less.

Related reading:

More Related reading on this subject

PUT CHERRY WOOD SMOKE ON YOUR BBQ!

IS HICKORY THE WOOD TO SMOKE & GRILL WITH?

ALDER WOOD IS THE SAFE BET ON THE SMOKE FLAVOR PROFILE!

WHAT WOOD FOR SMOKING: A PRIMER

SmokinLicious® Products:

Smoker Wood Chunks

Smoking Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®, Minuto & Piccolo

Wood Blocks for Smoking

Smoker Logs- Full & Quarter Cut

Charwood

Dr. Smoke, we discuss Hardwood vs Softwood for Cooking

Preliminary Test Kitchen Results

The Smokinlicious® Test Kitchen had an opportunity to use the Technique® Cast Iron Pan and Smoker which many of you purchased via QVC. Here are some preliminary findings by our Culinary Team:

➝Use caution when selecting cuts of meat with this cast iron pan! We had purchased a 10 lb. pork shoulder and struggled to get the cover tightly on the pan. Right now, it appears that cuts less than 8 lbs. would be ideal for cooking/smoking/roasting/grilling.

➝I’m sure we were not the only purchasers to be disappointed to read in the Technique® brochure that you should “not try to smoke in the oven” with this unit. Rest assured, Dr. Smoke will see if there is a means of actually smoking in a conventional oven by using low temperature and Liquid Infused Wood Chips /Smokin’ Dust®.
/Wood Chunks with this smoker unit (more on these findings as they become available).

➝ We cooked both a bone-in pork shoulder and bone-in chicken breast. Both cooks revealed great moisture to the meat. We used the recommended medium heat setting on our gas range but found that the cast iron pan radiates a significant amount of heat. Thus, we recommend reducing the heat setting to a low-medium (“3″ if you have a digital setting) on gas units. We also turned the heat off our cast iron pan approximately 20 minutes prior to completing the cooking time in order to benefit from the pan’s ability to generate further heat on its own. Remember, all meat should rest prior to cutting.

➝ There was considerable “rendering” out of the fat drippings into the drip pan. There is significant staining on the stainless steel drip pan so you may want to consider lining the pan with foil or even parchment paper to reduce metal staining.

➝ Smokin’ Dust® Usage: although the dust will render black in this pan, it did give off a tremendous amount of aroma. We used the Smokin’ Dust® dry, about 2 Tablespoons worth, in the center of the smoking pan. This appears to be the correct amount although we did not feel it produced as much flavor to the meat as a conventional smoker.

➝ Wood Chips: we used Wild Cherry Wood Chips (standard grind) in the smoker pan while cooking a bone-in chicken breast on the gas stovetop. The chips also produced significant aroma in the air but we found that they produce much more flavor to the meat. Keep in mind, our chicken breast was just over 2lbs so it fit easily in the grill pan with the cover tightly on. The fact that more flavor was infused in the chicken could be the result of less air leakage than the pork shoulder and the fact the chicken is much more porous allowing for ease in accepting smoke. We used the Wood Chips pre-soaked for 15 minutes in water, then allowed to drip dry before placing in the smoker pan. We used approximately 1 handful and spread them in the smoking pan to allow the drip pan to fit easily in place. Once our chicken was finished, we noted that the wood chips also blackened during the cooking process, much like the Smokin’ Dust®.

At this stage in our testing of the Technique® Cast Iron Pan and Smoker, we feel it is comparable to other stovetop units that we’ve tested. One important difference is the fact that there is no built in thermometer, so you must check the meat with a handheld or wireless thermometer to ensure you remove the food at the proper cooking temperature. Here are some other points worthy of mention:

➝ this is a heavy cast iron pan and all parts of it become very hot
➝ the pan can use some additional seasoning as there is some food sticking occurring with the grill pan
➝ it does take some effort to clean but if you re-season and continue to use the cast iron pan, I would anticipate this to become less of an issue
➝ there is a significant convection occurrence when cooking which produces a very moist product but as mentioned above, you must time the cooking process to ensure no over-cooking

Stay tuned for additional posting regarding this cookware. Our plans are to try the Smokin’ Dust®.
mixed with liquid as well as to try our Woodscuit ® Flavor-Infused products.

Till then, “Bon-Bar-B-Q!”

Donna G

Dr. Smoke- The Technique® Cast Iron Pan & Smoker passes the Smokinlicious® kitchen test with flying colors when using our sized hardwood smoking chips!

For more related reading on stove top smoking, check out these articles:

Stove Top Smoked Riccota Cheese Delight

The Easy Method to Make Cold Smoked Cheese

Yum, Yum! – Infusing Wood Smoke Flavor into Brussels Sprouts

“You are what you eat” is a saying that is truer today than it was years ago!

‘YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT’ APPLIES TO WOOD COOKING

Summary of You Are What you Eat

Healthy eating recipes, eat smart with Bark free cooking wood, cooking wood as a food ingredient is a clean eating basic. Responsibly sourced wood and only using heartwood Hardwoods avoids what woods are toxic to humans. Please remember you are what you eat when it comes to smoke flavor in food and your sourced wood.

We’ve all heard it, likely from our mothers. You are what you eat. If you truly understand the meaning of the statement, you know that we extract necessary nutrients from the foods we ingest to energize and stabilize our bodies. The nutritional content of what we eat determines the composition of our cell membranes, bone marrow, blood, and hormones. Every day we lose cells which is why the foods we consume are so vital to our body’s health.

Like Any Other Food Choice

If you’ve been a follower of my writings then you are aware of the stress I put on recognizing the wood used to cook foods is just as important an ingredient as the cut of meat, choice of spices, quality of oil, etc. There has been a lot of focus on the origin of food and how important it is to source locally both as a means of supporting local business and to control what you’re putting in your body. From our perspective, you want to know that the wood used for cooking is sourced close to the growing area. This ensures that there is knowledge about how the wood is processed before it gets to you and it assures the freshest product.

Minimal Processing

Just as with the clean food concept which focuses on minimally processed foods and as direct from nature as possible, SmokinLicious® holds to the same approach. Sourcing wood from forest regions (direct from nature) that are in close proximity to our manufacturing facility, provides us with the unique advantage to process into the various cooking products the hardwoods harvested that meet our strict criteria: 100% bark-free (we don’t allow any bark-on product to cross our threshold), 100% heartwood (no outer cores of the tree cross our threshold), harvested hardwood that is less than 6 months of age (ensures this is still a “green” product), chemical-free (no pesticide or growth enhancement techniques employed), and in raw state to allow us to process it into a suitable cooking wood size.

The Risks

If you love foods that are cooked with wood, then you should know a few specifics to keep you on the path to health and long life.

Hardwoods only!

• Softwoods or coniferous woods should never be used for cooking as they have elevated sap levels and more air in their cell structure. This causes them to burn fast, produce lots of sparks, and unpleasant flavors that are not ideal for flavoring foods. These include pine, redwood, cedar, fir, spruce, hemlock, larch, cypress.

Toxicity Risks:

• There are many known toxicities in certain species of wood with softwoods containing the highest risk. Other woods have the potential to cause sickness and in some cases death if a person’s system is already compromised. Most of the risks are associated with the cooking process rather than the ingestion of the actual wood-fired food. But know that if a balance of the wood-tar creosote is not found, then the ingestible risks of the food heighten. One of the best means of obtaining a balance is by starting with hardwoods that are considered safe for cooking, are clean, are bark-free, and derive from the inner cores rather than outer of the wood, where more impurities lurk.

Cooking Technique Influence Risk:

• At some point, I’m sure you’ve read about heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These are the chemicals that form when meats, poultry, and fish are cooked using higher temperature methods like grilling. Why does this pose a health risk? Because these chemicals cause changes in DNA and when you change DNA and they are metabolized by specific enzymes in the body, you can increase the risk of cancer associated with these compounds. There is no definitive link between HCA and PAH exposure from cooked meats and cancer in humans. There is no way to differentiate between other exposures to the chemicals from the food exposure.

HCAs are found to only be associated with meat cooked at high temperatures. While PAHs can be found in other smoked foods. Remember, PAHs are also in cigarette smoke and fumes from car exhaust. A recommendation is to remove any charred portions of meat, continuously turning meat over the high heat source, and avoiding direct exposure of meat to the open flame to reduce exposure. Here’s a tip that can also reduce the risk of forming HCAs – marinate your foods for at least 10 minutes.

Purchase products:

Wood Chips: Grande Sapore®, Minuto®, Piccolo®

Wood Chunks: Double & Single Filet

More Related reading on this subject

Additional reading:

-Food & Smokehouse Processing Double Standard?

-TO BARK OR NOT

-COOKING WITH WOOD YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE TO THINK ABOUT YOUR SAFETY

-HOT TREND MAY NOT BE THE SAFEST BET

Dr. Smoke- As we promote a healthy diet enjoying different foods please remember “you are what you eatII” !

Our recap of Smoking-Grilling Wood Selling Terms

WOOD SELLING TERMS DEMYSTIFIED

Package labeling. It is the key to drawing attention to a product, to reduce interest in other similar products, and to make someone buy a specific product. Let’s be honest. Not everything printed on a label necessarily provides ALL the information. Use certain words and an “implied” thought will occur.

When it comes to packaging wood for smoking and grilling purposes, there are a lot of terms floating out there that certainly can be deceiving. Let’s see if I can provide clarity on what specific terms and wording mean when it comes to purchasing wood for cooking, smoking, and grilling. SMOKING-GRILLING WOOD SELLING TERMS

WOOD SELLING TERMS:

100% Natural

The intended meaning of 100% natural implies that it has not been touched by human hands. As such, with wood, this would refer to the fact that a tree is a plant designed by nature and other than cutting the tree down, it is not modified in any way.

However, we do know that trees, like flowers, can be manipulated when it comes to their genetics. Genetically modified trees are quite common in the growth of orchard woods, especially those seeking to develop dwarf varieties or specific blossom colors or hybrids. Keep in mind, genetically modified trees will have a reduction in the lignin compound which is responsible for the flavor the wood gives when it burns and gives off smoke vapor.

Currently, it is not legal to genetically modify forest trees but there is a lot of allowances when it comes to plantation and orchard/nursery trees, which often have chemicals applied to make up for the weak lignin which makes the wood susceptible to decay and pest infestation.

Kiln-Dried

Wood that is dried in a closed chamber in which the temperature and relative humidity of the circulated air can be controlled is called “kiln drying”. There are three types of Kiln Drying methods: low-temperature drying which is below 130° F, conventional electric dehumidification drying, and conventional steam-heated drying which have temperatures up to 180° F.

For the most part, when a smoking or grilling wood product lists “kiln-dried” on the packaging, it does not state the type of method being employed. Also, many that use this term do so without providing any information on what compliance record keeping is in place to attest that they are doing what they say.

There is one company who states that they adhere to the protocol designed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) but quote a core temperature and length in minutes of the heating process that is not the standard written by the USDA. Their compliance agreement is provided by the state in which the business is located, which may have a different standard in place than the USDA.

Air-Dried

The process of drying green wood by exposure to prevailing natural atmospheric conditions outdoors or in an unheated shed is known as air drying. There are three dominate Air Drying methods: open yard, shed, and forced-air shed. The first is not held in high regard as the wood is exposed to all the elements making it the longest method of depleting moisture content from the wood. The second has the addition of a roof covering to maintain a precipitation-free environment, while the third option is mostly used by traditional lumber companies as it produces quicker results meaning products can be sold quicker.

Here’s the issue when you see “Air-Dried” on package labeling of grilling and smoking woods: you don’t know what method is used and no one is saying how long the wood was air-dried for. You don’t know how old the wood is, what method of air drying was employed, how long it took to “dry” it, and you likely won’t know what moisture content is left in the wood. Remember, dry out a piece of wood too far, and it is simply firewood designed for heat output only.

Naturally Cured

This is another term that floats out on the packaging that implies it is different from air drying techniques. It is not different.

Naturally curing wood means the wood is stacked in a manner that allows air to flow around the wood pieces usually in an outdoor setting. It may be left exposed, covered with a tarp or have a roof structure overhead. Naturally curing wood for fireplace use is recommend for 365 days but there is no benchmark for the timing used to dry the wood for the use of smoking or grilling. Some suppliers will use moisture levels of 20-30% as their benchmark but 10% is a large variable in moisture when it comes to wood.

Here is the biggest challenge with a natural curing method: dry the wood too quickly and you will find cracks, splitting, honeycombing, and/or warping. Dry too slowly and the wood will stain and suffer decay. Remember, decay attracts pests as that is what they feed on. SMOKING-GRILLING WOOD SELLING TERMS

Selecting

I won’t lie to you – there are a lot of choices out there for wood. How do you go about selecting from the limited information on the packaging?

Some decisions you’ll have to make on your own: do you want to cook with bark or do you find that bark indeed fluctuates the temperature of your equipment too much? Do you want to use a kiln-dried product even if you don’t know what temperature and for how long that product was heated? Would you want to use a product that hasn’t had any heat application applied to it meaning there may be pests, larvae, mold, and spores that haven’t been eliminated by a heat process? Do you want to use a product from a supplier that provides no information on the moisture of the wood? Do you want to go with a “natural”, “air dried” product that may have been exposed to anything that could access the wood: animal feces and urine, insects, chemical contaminants from the ground or another source?

In the end, I think the selection can be easy by simply looking at the wood for purity and cleanliness, looking at the packaging for evidence of air exchange meaning its likely not completely dried out and looking at the packaging information for claims that don’t seem to match the product that is packaged inside.

Most of all, you should be able to gain valuable information from any supplier’s website on the wood they are selling to you. If not, be cautious that they may not know anything about the manufacturing process of the wood and/or what is needed in wood to qualify it as cooking ingredient. We hope that our discussion of smoking & Grilling Wood Selling Terms adds clarity to your selection process.

Purchase products:

Wood Chunks- Double & Single Filet

Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®, Minuto®, Piccolo®

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

Additional reading:

-COOKING WITH WOOD YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE TO THINK ABOUT YOUR SAFETY

-Is It Fresh? Here’s Why You Need to Know

-WHAT WOOD TO USE FOR SMOKING: A PRIMER

-HOT TREND MAY NOT BE THE SAFEST BET

SMOKING-GRILLING WOOD SELLING TERMS

Dr. Smoke- SMOKING-GRILLING WOOD SELLING TERMS

FOOD LABELING TREND MAY NOT BE THE SAFEST BET

Recently, I came across a great article on the new hot trends in cold cuts and smoked meats. The article stressed how the $200 million in sales was the result of companies offering such things as chorizo, pepperoni, salami, and smoked bacon with bolder flavors and cleaner ingredients. So, why do I have a problem with this and how does it relate to food labeling?

What About the Smoke

The article went on to explain that the No. 1 trend in smoked and processed meats is products that are “uncured” or “no-nitrates added”, stating that this is due to the new health-conscious consumer. This got me thinking about smoked products in general. No one seems to be asking about the smoking process used to get that bacon hickory smoked!

If people are so sensitive to the ingredients in their foods, why haven’t we become concerned about the smoke component used for the actual process?

Food Labeling- Demand Label Changes

There are so many companies investing in the repackaging of their products to include such labels as “no-sugar-added”, “dairy-free”, and “gluten-free”. Consumers are label readers and keenly interested in how products are made, how animals are raised, how products are preserved, and the percentage of fat in the processing.

One factor in food preparation that doesn’t seem to have been included in food labeling is the actual smoking process for food products like smoked bacon, fish, or beef jerky.

Why doesn’t anyone seem concerned enough to ask what are they smoking with? Is it actual wood or the wood-flavored vapor that is used to make liquid smoke, hardly an ingredient that would be considered chemical-free?

Food Labeling- Wood Should Be a Food Ingredient

Let’s examine why wood should be looked at as a food ingredient when used for hot or cold smoking or wood-fired cooking in general.

First, not all companies selling wood products under the guise of smoking, identify what components of the tree are manufactured in the product. Nor do they give any indication if the wood used in the manufacture of products started for only the purpose of food application. To clarify this point, let’s review one common seller of wood products found on Amazon.com.

This popular choice in wood chips started as a hickory and mesquite manufacturer of log products by a single owner back in 1986. Originally, they sold logs to locals around their area. Eventually, they branched out to wood chips and wood chunks in retail packaging when BBQ became so popular.

The company was sold to a fire log company who uses recycled wood sawdust and agricultural fibers to produce fireplace log products. With the change in ownership, the company began selling other woods; pecan, post oak, and mesquite that are native to their home state of Texas, and the rest of the offerings which are brought in from other suppliers and locations. There is no bark removal, there is no separation of wood layers. Much of the product lies in open areas on the ground exposed to the southwestern sun as well as to anything else that may make contact. The product is left uncovered in outdoor areas awaiting packaging, even after it has been kiln dried which is the only reference made to any preparation of the wood.

Here is one concern with the current ownership – keep in mind, with a primary business of manufacturing charcoal and fire log products, this business was originally connected to a cedar and basswood pencil business. For those who don’t know woods, cedar and basswood are both softwoods, something that can be toxic if used for cooking food.

No Wood Regulations

There are no regulations that specifically state that you must guarantee that the wood packaged is clean, pure, and 100% of what it says it is on the label. Just about anyone can start to package wood, whether hardwood or softwood or a combination of both, as a “cooking”, “grilling”, “smoking” or “BBQ” wood. There are no regulations that it must be kiln dried or heat treated. It is a free-for-all with regard to food labeling!

There may be claims that we are label readers, but it appears when it comes to wood used for cooking, we don’t have a clue. This may be the oldest method of cooking in existence, but it certainly doesn’t have to contain the same risks as what the earliest homo sapiens endured.

The next time you see packaging that bacon, jerky, deli meat is of a smoked variety, look at the label and ask the question, “How was this smoked?” You will be amazed that little or no answers are provided. I hope you enjoyed our topic “Hot Trend” and the argument for better food labeling!

Purchase products:

Wood Chunks- Double & Single Filet

Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

Additional reading:

-THE SMOKINLICIOUS® STORY

-WOOD SUPPLIER- ARE YOU GETTING WHAT YOU PAID FOR?

-WHAT’S IN THE SMOKINLICIOUS® WOOD CHUNK BOX?

-Is It Fresh? Here’s Why You Need to Know

Dr. Smoke- Food labeling is important for health and food safety. It should apply to all smoked foods!

DINING FOR SMILES 6 COURSE DINNER EVENT

DINING FOR SMILES 6 COURSE DINNER EVENT

Alliance For Smiles began in 2004 with the mission to repair cleft palate and lip deformities in under-served areas of the world. In fact, over the years, various fund-raising concepts were instituted to offset the costs for highly expensive missions. Most missions are easily over the $300,000 level in donated surgical and treatment protocols.

Why Portville, NY

Chef Carl Vahl, Board of Directors member for Alliance For Smiles, brought attention to his local community of the efforts for this organization by presenting the Dining For Smiles event, an event which featured a six course gourmet dinner for 18 privileged guests. SmokinLicious® had the honor of preparing many of the components of the meal over a wood fire.

When hosting an intimate event like the Dining For Smiles dinner, organization and assignment of duties are key. As such, Chef Vahl utilized the full volunteer staff regardless if the members had experience in a kitchen or not. The event featured a wonderful six course dining experience with the following featured:

• Tuna Crudo- Course One
• Butternut Squash Soup- Course Two
• Seasonal Salad- Course Three
• Handmade Lobster Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage Sauce- Course Four
• Wood Fired Lamb & Canadian Salmon served with Jasmine Rice and Wood Fired Brussels Sprouts- Course Five
• Panna Cotta with Fresh Mango- Course Six

Additionally, wine pairings were presented with each course revealing an assortment of sparkling, rosé, red and white wines.

The Courses

As the 18 guests arrived and were seated at one of two tables, the first course is served – a Tuna Crudo featuring Sushi-grade tuna nestled in a Wasabi avocado cream, topped with pickled onion and finished with candied lemon peel. This course was served in a martini glass and accompanied by Prosecco, an Italian sparkling wine considered the Italian champagne.

The second course of the Dining For Smiles dinner featured roasted organic butternut squash with the subtle flavor of nutmeg and topped with a crisped sage leave and touch of maple syrup. My favorite part of this dish was its serving bowl – a charred mini white gourd. By retaining the top of the gourd, you can ensure that the soup stays hot until its placed in front of the guest. Each gourd was hand cut and charred to ensure no off flavors transferred from the gourd to the soup. Just a perfect vessel for this scrumptious soup.

Following the first two courses of Tuna Crudo and Butternut Squash Soup, the third course was the salad course featuring mixed greens of green and red leaf lettuce, spinach, and frisee; apple slices; candied walnuts; ember cooked red pepper slices; and a fresh vinaigrette. This course helped to balance the stomach in preparation for the upcoming courses that would be richer and more substantial. Paired with our salad course was a full-bodied chardonnay.

Chef prepared homemade lobster ravioli for the fourth course. This was a decadently rich dish featuring a brown butter sage sauce and fresh grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese on top. This course was paired with a beautiful Rosé, with both items being well received. As a matter of fact, I don’t recall a plate coming back to the kitchen that wasn’t completely clean!

Main Course for the DINING FOR SMILES 6 COURSE DINNER EVENT

Now, it’s time for the main course – course number five! First came the proteins. We produced a wood-fired leg of lamb and lamb rib loins cooked over charwood, ash, sugar maple, and wild cherry wood chunks. The wood-fired cooking offered a fabulous color to the meat.

Our Canadian salmon enjoyed cooking over charwood and sugar maple and wild cherry wood chunks. A combination of orange butter, olive oil, and smoke vapor produced that beautiful golden skin. After resting a while, the lamb and salmon were sliced in preparation for full plating.

We start with Jasmine rice topped with wood-fired brussels sprouts and carrot. Next to the plate, a slice of wood-fired lamb and a filet of salmon. Served with a custom mixed wine of Sangiovese and Syrah. Simply a perfect course!

Finally, we’ve reached the end of a fabulous meal – the final course – dessert. Panna cotta with fresh mango, served with a German Reisling, the perfect end to a fantastic evening.

A Meal that Stays in Memory

Chef Vahl’s vision for a flavorful, entertaining evening proved to be a realty as these 18 guests can attest to. We are so thankful and honored to have been a part of it.

If you want to donate to the Alliance For Smiles mission, visit www.allianceforsmiles.org and view all the lives that have been touched by the commitment of so many. Always remember to help others in need in any way you or your company can, just as SmokinLicious® was able to do with this Dining For Smiles event!

Glad we could share our DINING FOR SMILES 6 COURSE DINNER EVENT!

Purchase products:

Charwood

Wood Chunks- Double & Single Filet

More Related reading on this subject

Additional reading:

-DINING FOR SMILES EVENT PREPARATIONS

-WELCOME TO OUR BRAT PARTY-BRATWURST IN THE ORION SMOKER COOKER

-JUST BECAUSE YOUR SMOKING (FOOD THAT IS!) DOESN’T MAKE IT ALL BAD!

Dr Smoke- “This charity event was wonderful to do because it’s such a great cause and makes a tremendous difference in people’s lives around the world.”

Bratwurst in the Orion Smoker Cooker nicely cooked plump and juicy!

WELCOME TO OUR BRAT PARTY-BRATWURST IN THE ORION

SMOKER/COOKER

I believe that wood fired foods can be enjoyed 365 days of the year regardless of the temperature/conditions outside. To ease the challenges of wood cooking outdoors when the conditions may not be optimal, I look to my equipment options and make a selection that ensures the cooking is quick and as easy as possible.

I want to have bratwurst party! Unfortunately, I’ve chosen a -2° day to do just that. No problem! I simply rely on my Orion Cooker to provide a fast, high heat method of cooking with my SmokinLicious® Minuto® Wood Chips.

Bratwurst in the Orion Smoker Cooker- There’s Nothing To It!

Preparing your bratwurst for the Orion Cooker couldn’t get any simpler than making a few cross cuts in the skins to ensure they don’t burst while cooking.

The reason bratwurst is so popular for entertaining and for summer days is just how quick it is to prepare. When you smoke a casing containing product, you want to ensure that the juices don’t cause a pressure build up and result in your brats exploding all over the smoker. I make 3 shallow knife cuts in each brat to ensure they can plump up without exploding out of their casing. These German brats are made with a combination of pork and veal and have an all-natural casing meaning the casing is made from the intestine of an animal. I specifically purchased brats that were on an uninterrupted casing line so I could hang my brats on the Orion Cooker rib hooks to ensure smoke vapor envelopes each link completely, just like commercial smokehouses do.

Before smoking my German bratwurst, I’ve prepared the Orion Cooker by adding SmokinLicious® Minuto® Wood Chips in Wild Cherry to inside of the cooker. The wood chips are placed in the space between the cooker’s wall and the drip pan. I’ve lite a chimney starter full of briquettes which when grayed over will be poured into the fuel pan. 12 briquettes are also lit in the smaller fuel pan at that top of the unit. I’ve loaded my strings of bratwurst to the rib hooks of the unit. Next, place the lid on and let these cook and smoke for 45 minutes untouched.

Done Before You Know It-BRATWURST IN THE ORION SMOKER COOKER

Here’s why I love cooking with the Orion Cooker. On a -2° winter day, I can still use the convection heat from the Orion Cooker to finish the German bratwurst in just 45 minutes. In fact, I don’t use a full fuel tray of briquettes for this smoke. Just one chimney starter full of coals plus about 15 unlit briquettes placed on top of the lit coals. Great smoke flavor is added using Minuto® Wood Chips in wild cherry from SmokinLicious®. I’ve hung over 24 brat links on the three rib hooks of this unit so I can feed plenty of hungry people.

Fix It Your Way

Now comes the best part! Fixing your bratwurst the way you love it. Put out a variety of toppings to stimulate creativity at the brat table. I’ve included raw chopped onion, sweet pickle relish, sauerkraut, hot Hungarian pepper rings, BBQ sauce, beer brat mustard, kimchi, horseradish sauce, just to name a few choices. Whether you slice your brat down the middle or leave it whole, anything goes. German bratwurst done over SmokinLicious® wild cherry wood chips and hung on the hooks of the Orion Cooker, for that old school, smokehouse flavor. Bratwurst in the Orion Smoker Cooker!

Purchase products:

Wood Chips- Minuto®

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

Additional reading:

-GIVING AN EDGE TO SMOKY COCKTAIL SAUCE

-SMOKED BEEF SHORT RIBS

Dr Smoke “If you’re looking for something different to cook on your Orion, brats are perfect and yummy!”

The history of fire cooking part I

THE HISTORY OF FIRE COOKING: PART I

the fire

the history of fire cooking part I

For thousands of years, it was the only way to cook. Many believe that this discovery separated man from the other animals. Fire.

Estimated to have been discovered some 2 million years ago, the discovery of fire and more importantly, the discovery of how to tame fire, resulted in man’s brain development, value of food, changes in our body, and social structure. It gave us survivability. It extended our life by improving daily calories and nutritional needs by allowing us to cook poisonous plants and meats.

So how did fire cooking get discovered? That is the million dollar question. Here are some of the hypotheses out there regarding the discovery of fire for cooking:

The History of Fire Cooking Part I- Nature Provides Ignition

There are some scientists who believe that fire cooking was found by accident. A lightning strike or grass fires that sprung up due to the excessive dry conditions exposed to the hot sun. Many don’t feel man did anything to “discover” fire other than observe the characteristics of fire: it produces abundant heat, light, and when it traps an animal within its flames, it produced a more tender meat, easier to digest food source, and more pleasing aroma to the meat.

Tool Construction

There are others who believe that early humans realized the importance of tools. By sharpening stones to produce spears, cutting tools, etc., these early beings observed spark. Either through intention or perhaps with Mother Nature’s assistance, these sparks caught twigs, brush, fruit, and/or grains on fire. Remember, early human life did not involve a developed brain. A discovery of fire, however, would help advance not only our brains, but our bodies into the erect beings we are today.

The Earliest Cave Cooking

In South Africa’s Northern Cape province, a dwelling known as Wonderwerk Cave, contains the earliest evidence that our ancestors and apelike ancestors were using fire. Compacted dirt showed evidence of ashes, carbonized leaf and twig fragments, and burnt bits of animal bones. Scientists were then able to analyze this material and determine that the fragments were heated between 750 and 1300°F, which is the heat level of a small fire made of twigs and grasses.

If indeed our earlier species learned to harness fire for cooking, this would account for the advancement of our brains and our ability to become erect beings walking on two legs. Cooking on fire allowed for easier chewing and digestion and produced extra calories to fuel our brains. Fire also warded off nighttime predators, allowing for sleep on the ground or in caves rather than in the trees.

It’s All About Energy

Raw food diets have been popularized as a method of losing weight and of being healthier. However, only a fraction of the calories in raw starch and protein are absorbed by the body via the small intestine. As a result, the remainder passes into the large bowel, where it is broken down by the organ’s high population of microbes, which consume the majority for themselves. However, cooked food is mostly digested by the time it enters the colon. For the same amount of calories ingested, the body gets roughly 30 percent more energy from cooked oat, wheat or potato starch as compared to raw, and as much as 78 percent from the protein in an egg. In experiments, animals given cooked food gain more weight than animals fed the same amount of raw food.

Cooking breaks down collagen (connective tissue in meat) & softens the plants’ cell walls to release their storage of starch & fat. The calories to fuel the bigger brains of successive species of hominids came at the expense of the energy-intensive tissue in the gut, which was shrinking at the same time. If you look at early imagery of apes, you’ll see how we morphed into narrow-waisted Homo sapiens.– the history of fire cooking part I

Coming up in The History of Fire Cooking: Part II, learn more about why cooking foods by fire made us who we are today. In conclusion, did we provide you with new information you didn’t know? Additionally, leave us a comment and subscribe as we bring recipes, tips, techniques, and the science behind the fire and smoke.

Purchase products:

Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®

Wood Chunks- Double & Single Filet

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

Additional reading:

-OPEN PIT COOKING FIRE BUILDING: PART I

-GRILL-BUILDING THE PERFECT COOKING FIRE- PART II

-IS WOOD-TAR CREOSOTE THE ‘MONSTER’ TO WOOD-FIRED COOKING

I hope you enjoyed the history of fire cooking part I

Smokinlicious is proud to be a F2C company

SMOKINLICIOUS® IS AN F2C

In today’s age of selling products and services, there are acronyms that are common to marketing and sales strategies. First, there is B2B which refers to business to business relationships. This means that a product or a service is sold from one business to another. An example of each would be windshield wiper fluid being sold to gas stations and attorney services to large corporations.

B2C is shorthand for business to consumer. This is selling a product or service directly to a customer that is not necessarily a business.

Now, you may automatically assume that SmokinLicious® would fall under both these sales types, and you would be right. But there is another acronym you likely aren’t familiar with: F2C.

F2C- Making a Better Connection

F2C refers to factory to consumer or more specifically, manufacturer to consumer. There are many reasons why this is a plus to both businesses and consumers doing business with a specific manufacturer. Let’s examine the major advantages from the perspective of doing business with SmokinLicious®:

Advantage #1 Details

As the manufacturer of all the products sold under the brand SmokinLicious®, we can provide the specifics on where the hardwood comes from, the age of the wood, the handling of the product, the treatment the wood is exposed to, and the details on packaging. You don’t have to wait on answers to your product questions like with a supplier who is simply a re-seller of the wood. We give answers immediately!

Advantage #2 Intimate Knowledge

When you are committed to manufacturing a specific product, you tend to know that product thoroughly. For SmokinLicious®, that equates to us knowing not only about wood fired cooking techniques like hot smoking, ember cooking, and cold smoking but we know the science behind hardwood; molecular biology of the wood as well as for combustion. We know why smoke gives flavor and how to respect and control it.

Advantage #3 Availability

We aren’t simply selling a product to move it out of inventory. As a manufacturer, we are committed to answering questions whether on email, via phone, or social media platforms. No, we don’t operate the phones 24/7. But we do get back to anyone who contacts us, usually within 24 hours. We are available to everyone!

Advantage #4 Passion

Sometimes I feel the word “passion” is overused but that word really does describe the people who make up the SmokinLicious® Team. We are passionate about cooking with fire and the smoke it produces. We simply love to offer our perspective on cooking with wood. Remember, just because someone sells a specific product doesn’t mean it was a dream of theirs. It simply may be the “thing” to do with no real commitment. Who wants to commit to that type of supplier!

Advantage #5 Skilled

We have a test kitchen/patio and we use it – all the time! That’s the only way you can know all the different applications for the product we manufacture and sell. We possess the skills to guide you on what might be causing bitter flavors, poor color, equipment failures, and so much more. Plus, we offer daily postings on recipes, tips, techniques, and the science behind cooking with fire and smoke.

Advantage #6 Global

We can be everywhere because we know our commodity and the regulations that relate to our products. We don’t cut corners because we are as concerned about our environment and forests as the agricultural agencies around the world. You won’t ever need to worry about having your supply cut off because a regulation or law wasn’t followed.

Advantage #7 Exclusivity

You’re purchasing smoking wood to cook with. That means, food is exposed to the wood’s components. Don’t you want assurance that it’s clean? We only sell hardwoods for cooking and culinary use! That’s it! We don’t take waste product from some other wood process and sell it off under a new label or brand. We don’t buy woods from anyone who can’t document on paper where the smoker wood is from and if exposure to chemicals is possible. SmokinLicious® is exclusively a culinary wood product!

These are just some of the advantages to working directly with and purchasing directly from a manufacturer, or F2C. When you want assurances that any question you have can be answered, that any product need can be met, that your equipment will be protected, then seek a direct manufacturer first and eliminate a middle man that may only be in it for dollars and cents. Or one day you could simply find they’re no longer in business or they no longer can ship product throughout North America or other continents, leaving your Company with a big problem.

Purchase products:

Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®

Wood Chunks- Double and Single Filet

Smoker Logs- Full & Quarter Cuty

More Related reading on “What Wood for Smoking” and other great smoking and grilling tips and techniques

Additional reading:

-SMOKIN’ DUST®: A SPICE FOR YOUR EQUIPMENT

-WHAT’S IN THE SMOKINLICIOUS® WOOD CHUNK BOX?

-WHEN A FLOP COULD HAVE BEEN A SUCCESS!

Our primary focus is on the consumer of our products. Our culinary team provides support to all chefs!

Building the perfect fire for cooking! Our chimney starter full of flaming hot charcoal being poured into our kettle grill.

In Part I of our series on lighting an outdoor fire for cooking, I addressed fire production for the outdoor fireplace or fire pit cook, known as open fire appliances. In Part II, I’ll address the needs for kettle, drum and box grills’ fire set up.

The Wood-Fired Environment

There are many choices in equipment for working with a wood fire but each has different material components that determines how much work would be involved to cook on the unit. Here is the primary point when you’re selecting equipment for live fire: how will you cook on that equipment?

If your plans are to always do indirect cooking whereby the source of heat (fire, coals) will be on one side and you will cook on the non-heat side (in my opinion, the preferred method for all cooking), then know that most any equipment selected will work. However, the time for the equipment to heat up may play a factor, as the heating time is directly related to the insulation of the grill. Plus the amount of radiant heat it can hold.

If a unit is manufactured from heavy metal, brick, clay, or ceramic housing, then it will perform exceptionally by giving radiant and retained heat. Why is that important? Because producing retained and radiant heat means less fuel consumption and even cooking results.

The Kettle Grill

For thinner material grills like the traditional kettle grill which are very popular, low cost, and preferred

by many, you can compensate for the potential heat loss and improve efficiency by adding fire bricks to the walls and floor of the grill. You will simply start your live fire directly on the fire bricks rather than the charcoal grate. Fire bricks will work well in any grill that could improve on its insulation.

Drum/Barrel Grill

The overall cooking space in a drum/barrel grill is larger than that of a kettle grill. However, just like any metal material, there are different grades so quality can be variable. Same rule applies to these grills: if the insulation is not great, add fire brick to improve the performance.

Box Grills

These units are traditionally made of high heat metal with a deep, metal charcoal pan that includes grid and vents. A grilling grate is suspended above and there often is a lid to the unit.

Fire Set Up

As I’ve stressed before, a good fire needs 3 elements: fuel (wood, charcoal), oxygen (air intake vents), and heat. As with any fire cooking, a small, hot fire is ideal.

Double Filet Wood Chunk

To start your fire in one of these pieces of equipment, first open the air intake vents at the base of the charcoal firebox area. This will ensure that oxygen can stimulate the start of the fire. Since this is an enclosed firebox area, the size of the wood pieces may need to be adjusted from what you would commonly use in a fireplace or fire pit/fire ring.

I like to use the log cabin method of starting a fire with this equipment. Lay 2 longer pieces of hardwood parallel to each other with about 3 inches of air space between them. Lay 2 more hardwood pieces on top perpendicular to the first pieces. Place the last 2 in position to match the base woods’ alignment. In the center, add a pile of tinder which can be hardwood chips, pine cones, even newspaper if need. Again, I like to use wood in its natural form as much as possible. Pile some kindling size wood pieces on top of the tinder pile. You can drizzle vegetable oil on top of the kindling and tinder to assist with ignition which proves helpful if you plan to light with a long wooden match. I prefer to lite my fire using a MAP torch.

Don’t Rush It

It is imperative that you allow the fire to go through the full stages of combustion before you introduce foods to the cooking grate. Too much flame and smoke will ruin the foods. The ideal is to wait until the fire burns down to glowing embers. If your equipment has the room in the firebox, rake or shovel some of the hot embers to one side and add just a small quantity of additional hardwood to keep the heat steady. The rest of the hot embers are what will be used to cook with.

Position the foods based on the heat needed for the cooking. Meats will require more of the heat while vegetables and one pot dishes will take the medium to low heat. An infrared thermometer will aide with knowing heat levels in your equipment or you can use the hand test: hold your hand over the coals the distance your foods will be. If you can only hold your hand for a count of 2 seconds before you need to pull it away, that is high heat. 3-4 seconds is medium-high, 5-6 seconds is medium and 7-8 seconds is low heat.

Be sure you visit Part I of this series so you can view the list of recommended tools to have when you wood-fire cook.

I hope you gained some new information on lighting a fire. Whether you plan to cook over/in your kettle, barrel or box grill. Leave us a comment and subscribe so you don’t miss anything concerning wood fired cooking, flavors, and the science behind the fire.

Purchase products:

Wood Chunks- Double & Single Filet

Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®

More Related reading on this subject

Related reading:

-OPEN PIT COOKING FIRE BUILDING: PART I

-EMBER FIRED FRESH ZUCCHINI

-BEYOND PRICING: THE TOP THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN PURCHASING COOKING WOOD

Dr Smoke- “The key to any success in grilling and smoking outdoors is building the fire with the proper materials and patience to develop the right base before you attempt to cook the food.”