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New to the Game

S syseboMember
Hello, fellow CS smokers! I have enjoyed reading the forum over the last few weeks, so much so that I finally took the plunge and ordered a CS smoker last week! I figured it would take a while to get here, but was surprised when it arrived at my doorstep this past Friday! I just got it started with a hickory wood smoke (without meat) for about six hours, and tomorrow, I will attempt my first butt roast. So far, my first impressions of the machine are good, and I'm happy with the buils of the product (I have a 008 and this thing is a lot heavier than I thought!).

Quick question: I seem to be without the scale I've had for years to measure ounces of wood. Any idea how many ounces the average "chunk" of CS wood weighs? I'm hoping to use between 2-3 ounces for my first smoke to get a feel for how "smoky" I want it to be, but I don't want to overload the box. I may just settle for one chunk of wood, just to be safe.

Thanks!
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S syseboMember
Thanks, all, for the great advice! Did my first smoke on the pork butt yesterday - roughly 12 hours at 225 degrees. Let sit for about 20 minutes, then pulled perfect pork sandwich meat (so good we barely needed the sauce). I know right away that I prefer more smoke than the meat put out, so next time I will bump up the chunk number. Next up: chicken breasts with some pork chops on the side, then an attempt at Christmas turkey smoke.

This is a great site, and a great product. After trying every type of smoker known to man, this one has made Q'ing exciting again. I love the smells, the anticipation, and, of course, the eats. Even the cleanup wasn't too bad, and I love the residual smell that my box puts out.

RL
FM Former Member
Welcome sysebo,

Sounds like you've been around the smokin' game a while. My only reminder would be: to remember that poultry is easy to over-smoke in a CS. Just as you did with the pork, you might want to start slowly and work up.

Smoking a couple of batchs of thighs is a cheap way of deciding how much wood to go with. And as has been said around here more than once, "you can even eat your mistakes."

A friend introduced me to cherry and I think it's great on chicken.

Hook
T tomMember
When you are adding extra wood to the pork,remember you are laying smoke onto the outside-not penetrating the meat,deeply.

You can get a bitter ,or creosote taste-as log burners can.

If you need more smoke and bark,you can always butterfly the butt.

You can also cook down around 180� a few hrs,and boost the smoke.

Just a thought.
S syseboMember
This is all great advice. Although I'm fairly new to "true" smoked barbeque, one thing is certain: Of all the meats I've done over the last few weeks, the Cookshack has turned out a restaurant-quality product on most of them. So far, in addition to the pork butt and the chicken breasts, I have brined and smoked the perfect Christmas turkey and ham, a pork loin that was so good we ate it right at the smoker, and a beef brisket (a little tough, but delicious nevertheless when sliced thin). Today, I am attempting to smoke ribs using rib hooks I purchased from Cookshack. I'm about roughly tw hours into a three-slab smoke.

I have yet to try different methods of smoking - I've been satisfied with the results from the cookbook and the info provided by this wonderful forum. I did my first "tasting" party two nights ago, with excellent results from my company.
FM Former Member
I used Mesquite wood for my first "Smoke" wow, was I suprised at all the flavor. I also have some hickory and plan on getting some pecan soon. I have read that the Salt Lick Smokehouse in Texas uses Oak, so that being plentiful around here may work as well. Has anyone used oak?

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