Smoke
When we are cooking outside, one of the big advantages for flavor enhancement is the addition of “smoke flavor”. I often like to joke that “smoke flavor” is something that makes things taste better without adding calories! Smoked meat will have an aroma that can fill a room, it will have a look that makes your mouth water and a flavor that is unforgettable! Literally, because that smoke flavor can linger into other things. Try smelling your fingers after you eat some great smoked ribs. Why is bacon so good? It’s the “smoke flavor”! Bacon is made of pork belly which is very rich and fatty, but after it is brined and cold smoked, It becomes that incredible bacon flavor that we all know and love! I smell bacon right now.
The type of smoke that you cook meat with is extremely critical. I used to think all smoke was created equal and boy was I wrong. For a brief overview and the intent of what we share at The Grill Coach is the following:
Black Smoke: absolutely terrible, you don’t want your proteins around black smoke at all. Meat cooked in this smoke will make little deposits of creosote on your protein. It smells bad, tastes worse and makes your tongue feel funny. Yes, I have experienced this.
Gray Smoke: Stay away. Often this is something else burning that doesn’t belong in the flavor or your meat. This could be a grease in your cooker on fire or something else that doesn’t belong below.
White Smoke: This kind of smoke is good for short cooks, or even cocktails! No really, they sell little smoke machines that can help you smoke something right at the bar. I like to get this kind of smoke on smaller meats like steak or pork chops. This smoke can be heavy or strong on what you are smoking so use with caution.
Blue Smoke: Don’t confuse this with that first bit of smoke that comes off charcoal when the binding products and fuel are burning. This is the Michael Jordan of smoke! There is nothing better and this is what every bbq cook is trying to get. This smoke is almost translucent and it's hard to take a picture of. The best way I can help you visualize is when you are sitting around a campfire. When the fire is burning its “cleanest” there is no smoke getting in your face and choking you out. That is what we want to cook with! This smoke adds the perfect amount of smoke flavor and intensity.
Let's discuss some techniques to produce clean smoke. The type of cooker you have plays a huge role in the quality of the smoke that you can produce. For instance, a pellet cooker will produce clean smoke for you. (See our article that explains 5 reasons to buy a pellet cooker.) All cookers can produce that clean smoke but it's about understanding how you need to get there. The one thing that you really need is Oxygen. I know we said that in our Fire blog post also. Only because these things go hand in hand, when you have enough oxygen to make a great fire, you produce clean smoke. So you need heat and smoke to produce good bbq. The most common is a combination of charcoal to produce the needed heat and wood to produce the desired smoke. So as your charcoal fire is used for heat, you can add wood chips or chunks to produce your smoke. What about the stick burning guys? Well, they burn sticks (split logs) and burn them down to “coals'' then add more sticks for smoke flavor. I will admit, this is the most challenging form of bbq. The ability to maintain a burning fire to produce clean smoke for a long period of time while cooking with sticks takes a special kind of cooker and a talented cook.
For now, let's focus on what we can control. Reminder: Always cook with all your senses. Look at the smoke. Smell it. Put your hand over the vent. Be curious about the smoke and heat coming out from your cooker because this is what is going on to your food. You need to remain in control. If it’s not right, don't put the meat on. Like I did the other day while grilling salmon. My salmon was so bad, I couldn't eat it because I tasted some foul smoke. A few days later, I corrected it when I was cooking Tri-tip. I was a little more patient and when the smoke was not coming out right, I walked away and let the bad stuff burn off for a while. Once that smoke cleared up, I then made the small adjustments slowly to get the temperature and the smoke color that I wanted. What resulted is one of the best Tri-tips I ever made.
So make sure you are getting a good fire. Make the necessary adjustments to your cooker until your smoke is burning clean. Dont starve your fire for airflow or you will have a hard time getting clean smoke. Learn your cooker. Take notes and pay attention to the weather and outside temperature. If your cooker is brand new, take it for a test drive and see what kind of temperatures and smoke that you need to get and how long you can hold those temperatures. Most importantly reach for the goal of clean smoke, stay in control of your product so that you can raise eyebrows when they eat your food!
Get out there and grill