Birch smoke

[akdutchguy]

Just wondering if anybody has smoked with birch wood. I have 3 acres of birch in the back yard that need to go up in thin blue smoke. If it worth it.
Jason

 

[ak1]

Birch is good.  3acres... you're good for life.

 

[akdutchguy]

I think I will give it a shot and see what I think. Shipping anything to AK is outrageous. I would hate to have to import wood if I don't have to. I have a bit of alder around when I can get some salmon. Just need to get a bigger smoker built.
Jason

 

[trippy]

Take off the bark. Birch is very similar to maple smoke.. But do not use the bark at all it has wicked oils in it.  Actually you can pack a can with birch bark and heat it up to extract the oil. The oil was used in tanning leather back in the day. 

 

[akdutchguy]

Thanks for the reply. I will give it a shot. I am In need of a bigger smoker. I am still working on the design. I hot more than I cold smoke at this point in my addiction. I can see that change when I get going with sausage. I'm thinking on a cold smokehouse with a seperate firebox. Then add a Texas style pit over the smoke pipe. Still a work in progress. Now that I will have wood available I will go with wood fired. It should taste better.
Jason

 

[bluewhisper]

Being of a Lithuanian background, I'm trying to track down whether they smoke with birch. So far I've found this, which still doesn't answer the question.

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Smoking is the final step in the production of sausages, and traditionally it occurs in a curing chamber filled with a smoke of a hardwood. Smoking is in fact saturation of meat with ingredients of a wood smoke. Due to high temperature substantial amount of water is removed from meat. Smoked meat changes its color, taste and smell. A crust is formed on the surface and this dry cover prolongs inner meat juiciness. During the process meat protein structure is changed in a way similar to cooking. In consequence smoked and dried meat is suitable for consumption without any further processing.

source

http://www.tastingpoland.com/food/charcuterie_sausages.html