I have trouble getting wood to smoke at 135 degrees. Thats what mo recipe calls for at the beginning of the smoke phase. Help??
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When making sausage or smoking cheese I use saw dust with a hot bar b que briquet on top of the saw dust.
Law, I have made many batches of venison sausage so I can probably chime in here. You are safe to crank your heat up to 170degF. as long as you dont take your pit temp above 180 you are safe. I understand that fat renders at 180degF fo as long as you stay below that you are OK. I smoke all my sausage at 170deg until an internal of 160 deg is reached. The problem I have is I dont like the product when it comes out of the CS. So I use a homemade propane burner file cabinet smoker to do my sausage. I also use sawdust in it, Dry. Sausage is possibly the most dificult and delicate item I have ever smoked. Have patients. Also understand that not always will you see the smoke. You will always smell it. If your sausage comes out with a "skin" the smoke did its job. I could go on for days but I will spare you, Bubba
I can get mine to make good smoke at 100F by using very dry wood, chopped into little sticks like matchstick size. I usually throw in one larger piece of wood to make the smoke last longer. Have had trouble, tho, with wood that wasn't really really dry. Plenty dry for firewood, just not dry enough to light up at that low temperature.
Bubba my product comes out perfect now since I have been experimenting with it. I leave the door cracked during the entire cooking process and my product is butcher shop perfect..I finish at 175 until my internal temp reaches 152.