Alder vs Oak vs?

I'm a hickory guy myself. Alder and oak will be very similar in taste. Reason I use hickory is because thats what i started with years ago and just using one flavor of pellets really simpified it for me. Hickory is what most midwestern smoke houses use the most.

doesn't anybody else want to chime in? I'd sure like to hear some opinions on this.

Kerry

Tell us what you thought about it. Did you use it on your first run as noted above?

KD,

You have to be a little patient. This is a pretty new forum and so you don't always get immediate answers to questions.

There is a thread about wood in the other forum you might want to read. About the various types and perceived effects.

Woods are basically in categories. Oak/Hickory are stronger than the fruits like cherry/apple/pecan. Me, I have a 40lb page of Pecan pellets and that's a moderate taste that I like. I'm personally tired of oak/hickory as that's what everyone seems to use.

Alder works well for fish as it's a gentle smoke, without a lot of impact, but I wouldn't use it on beef. Not enough flavor for me. But then, you might like it.

Try things, experiment, keep good notes and see what works best for you.

I'll throw in my two cents if you wish.

I have only had my FE for 4 months or so. When I ordered it, I requested hickory, cherry and pecan pellets. These are the same woods that I used in our old JR log smoker. We used hickory and then the other more mellow flavored woods to prevent the food from becoming over smoked with hickory.

What I am now discovering is that these may not be the best woods for my FE. I'm not getting as strong of smoked flavors with the FE, thus I may start smoking on mostly hickory in hopes of increasing the flavoring.

I'm still playing around with various combinations, though at the moment, this is the direction that our team is leaning.

Just picked up 400 lbs of hickory at the Traeger Plant, I think I am going to like it.
$16.00 for a 40lb bag.

Hey Duck!

I've bought all my pellets at Your Back Yard ($23 a 40 lb bag)because Traeger's website sells them for something like $34!! How come so cheap at Traeger's plant and so expensive on their site? Any idea?

BTW, did you get your FE for Xmas and do you have a son named Ryan?

quote:

I'm not getting as strong of smoked flavors with the FE, thus I may start smoking on mostly hickory in hopes of increasing the flavoring.
QB]

That was the FIRST thing I noticed tasting my first run at ribs on my FE. But that was a WELCOME result. In my offset log burner I found I had to wrap whatever I was cooking after a few hours because of too much of a smoke flavor. All I could TASTE was smoke. Now the smoke flavor is there but doesn't predominate the flavor of the meat. My last batch of ribs were the best I've ever done, and I think a major reason was the control of the smoke.

Well right now I am using Mesquite. Just because I had 50 bags that came with the smoker.

Craig

Yo!, Ryan is the other half of the Go Ducks! bbq team and assisted his mother in getting me the FE for X-Mas. Don't know exactly why Traeger charges $16.00 per 40 lbs bag at the plant but I don't plan on asking. We go to Portland all the time and a little swing off the freeway to Mt. Angle is not a problem.

Better talk to Fast Eddy about buying pellets. He has the best proven...probably as good as Treagers but a lot cheaper. I am pretty sure he'll still sell 40 pound bags at $10 or $12. Seems like CS should offer you the same.

The pellets are a blend with oak. I have been using hickory commercially and my customers have commented that my competition about a mile away with his Southern Pride has to much smoke flavor. I don't do anything but put the butts in at 225*F on any shelf but the bottom and don't touch them until they come to temp of 190-195. If I needed more smoke then I'd put the control on smoke for a hour or maybe more, I'd have to experiment, then up to 225*F. Ribs at 275*F on the top shelf, no touch until they start to split their skins when I pick them up in the middle and the meat has pulled up the bone a bit...about 3 hours 10 minutes for 4 racks, about 3 hours 30 minutes for 8 racks! So on and so forth...
But I haven't had to mess with more or less smoke with the hickory blend.

This last Thanksgiving I smoked some turkey breasts to bring to a family holiday get together. Two of the older ladies approached me at different times and commented how they don't like smoked meats but absolutely loved those moist breasts I brought. I used cherry blend pellets and took the breasts out at about 163*F. Cooked at 225*F skin down with Bad Byron's Butt Rub which I use on everything I cook for my customers and myself! I use it heavy on the butts accept the top fat cap, there it is light to medium. Med to light on the ribs cooked bone down or in rib racks with outside membrane removed.

For chicken I used hickory and preheated the oven to 350*F then I put the birds in skin down on the bottom rack and turned the control to 275*F. In about 1 hour I turned the control wide open and in about 40 more minutes the legs shooks hands very nice and loose. They were my best yet! The skin was crisp, the inside very juicy but where the breasts were on the rack the skin was kinda messed up, soft and broken up but not rubbery. Next time I'll try them skin side up and see if I can get juicy and crisp. I might be off on turning them skin side up but you gotta try different techniques!

Check me out at
my web page! for my story! And I mean a story!!!

I might mention not to take any of this to heart, at least not yet, I have only had my "Q" open since the middle of September and this is my first restaurant of any kind! I am just telling you my discoveries with my FE100 that I have had since last spring. And just love it to death. I think it loves me back!

quote:

Originally posted by CaptPetesBBQ:
[qb]Better talk to Fast Eddy about buying pellets. I am pretty sure he'll still sell 40 pound bags at $10 or $12. Seems like CS should offer you the same.[/qb]

Yeah, but start shipping 40lb bags across the country and the price equalizes out a tad.

CaptPete,

Thanks for the VERY informative post. Being new to the FE, I'm hungry for all the experience I can glean from others.

Question for you (and the others). I read how you put your butts or ribs in and walk away and forget them until a certain temperature is reached. Does anybody worry about A. mopping; B. Turning; and C. Rotating the ribs and butts during the cook?

quote:

I don't do anything but put the butts in at 225*F on any shelf but the bottom and don't touch them until they come to temp of 190-195. [/QB]

What happens on the bottom shelf? Too hot? What DO you put on the bottom shelf? And lastly, by "don't touch them" do I gather that you don't mop or rotate within the smoker?

Thanks.

No I don't do anything to any of my meat once they are in the smoker. Please realize this is for commercial purposes not competetion. As DrBBQ stated to me once "commercially you can only do 90 percent but you can try to do that 100 percent of the time.

Shipping of one pallet of 50 bags of pellets weighing 2050 pounds from KC, Mo. to Cornelia, GA, which is n.e. of Atlanta 90 miles, cost $215! I did my homework before ordering, believe me! It saved me a lot then spending what you're talking about! Eddy gets a very heavy discount by his freight line.

Peter

Oh yeah you asked about the smoke inside. My FE 100 is not the CS/FE100 so it has the gasket on it and it does not leak. I did have the CS150 and it only leaks until it warms up but I had the optional hood which caught all that smoke.

Peter

peter, sounds like you are having the time of your life. same here. about pellets.... i prefer apple. but i like the mixture. i start with mesquite, then hickory, then mesquite, then hickory, then apple, then apple... whew, yea thats how i like to do it...
about traeger..... i buy one bag of apple at a time. 40lb for 33.00(includes shipping across country). however, there is now a distributer in alabama. so i called him, and what do ya know.....
i paid the same price! i guess he gets to pocket the shipping differential.. i do know that traeger is looking for a distributer on the east coast. not a bad deal if you have 3500 to start up. they even send business to ya.