I have had a Kenmore Electric smoker for several years now. The element burned out and I never got around to replacing it. I was able to make a cold smoke generator from some perforated steel that I had in the garage. Using pellets (hickory so far) I'm able to keep it at about 90º for many hours on end. I ended up drilling a couple of extra holes for the smoke to escape and this seems to really help the flow quite a bit.
My first smoke in it was cheese. I had about 6 different kinds and about 10 lbs. total. With the exception of almost losing a block of Havarti it went without a hitch. I tried a second batch and this time added a water pan to help absorb the heat. No problems with the cheese melting so i think i may be on to something. May try my hand at making a cold baffle with two plates and a space between. Will post pics if I do.
Here is the smoker before:
Here it is after 3 hours. Notice the Havarti (middle left). I think it was just too close to the heat from the pellets with no buffer.
All packaged and ready to rest for two weeks. Opening day = St. Patricks' Day!
Today is cold smoked sausages. Next up I am going to get some shallow trays (or make them out of aluminum foil) and smoke some spices.
If this works out then I'll try my hand at some salmon one of these days.
My first smoke in it was cheese. I had about 6 different kinds and about 10 lbs. total. With the exception of almost losing a block of Havarti it went without a hitch. I tried a second batch and this time added a water pan to help absorb the heat. No problems with the cheese melting so i think i may be on to something. May try my hand at making a cold baffle with two plates and a space between. Will post pics if I do.
Here is the smoker before:
Here it is after 3 hours. Notice the Havarti (middle left). I think it was just too close to the heat from the pellets with no buffer.
All packaged and ready to rest for two weeks. Opening day = St. Patricks' Day!
Today is cold smoked sausages. Next up I am going to get some shallow trays (or make them out of aluminum foil) and smoke some spices.
If this works out then I'll try my hand at some salmon one of these days.
