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I'm smoking a rib for dinner tonight and I'm not sure which wood to use for smoke... hickory, pecan or mesquite. I'd like to try mesquite but not sure if it will over power the taste of the beef.
What do you guys think?
In my opinion Hickory is stronger. Never tried Pecan. Maybe just try and use the wood for the first quarter of your smoke, then get heat from lump til cooked through.
Pecan is a great wood I use it 50% of the time on spares mild and suttle like a fruit wood. The other 50% is hickory and apple just for different tastes.
Oak is also a good smoking wood for beef. A lot of steak houses that cook on wood coals use oak. It has a mellow flavor that really enhances the beef. I'm going to smoke a chuck this weekend with oak using DDAves Tri-level rub.
Of those 3 I'd go with the pecan. If on hand my preferrence would be oak, but pecan is a close 2nd. Mesquite and Hickory are too strong for a rib roast, IMO.
I have been using Apple Cherry and peach a lot. I will only give it a kiss of mesquite. I do know of cookers who use only mesquite and it is powerful. For some reason I like to taste the food too