how warm is too warm for cheddar?

[chuckerg]

am doing an unplanned cheddar smoke today as I have a large beef roast and many other things planned to restock the freezer. problem is the temp outside has managed to warm up instead of drop and inside the smoker it is floating from 40 to 50 Fahrenheit and don't want to " reshape 5 pounds after it is done. can cool it by opening the door but don't want to loose smoke any more than needed.

have major upgrades in the works in the not too distant future but for now its just my MES 30 and amnps

 

[chuckerg]

Starting to think my temp probe is on its way out temps are hitting up to 70 but no melting yet

 

[chuckerg]

did some quick research and found the "melting point" of cheddar is around 144 tho oil separation occurs first

 

[driedstick]

If you get into the 90's you best put a pan under to catch it when it melts thru the racks. temp is 40-70 if it gets colder than that you may want to either smoke it longer and just bring smoker up to that temp and shut it back off and use just the amps or another device just to generate smoke, no heat to the smoker.

good Luck and remember what they say

A full smoker is a happy smoker.

 

[chuckerg]

am only using the amps for smoke the MES is only being used as a smoke chamber same as when I do salmon or veggies. and yes I have a boatload of pics but they are on my phone and upload sux to say the least. just rechecked now that its night time and added some more pellets ( bringing the total up to a full trays worth) and just starting to get the nice color.

 

[cmayna]

When I smoke cheese, I plan it so that the smoker temp never goes above 80.  Since I typically smoke butter along side the cheese, keeping the temp down at a very low temp is very important.  Yes, the AMNPS should be the only source of heat.

BTW, if you have a smart phone, use the tapatalk ap.  You can then download your pics directly.

 

[kbosch74]

I have smoked cheddar and gouda up to 120 without it melting.  It does start to oil up a bit, but not melt.  Turned out fine.

Havarti, on the other hand, did start to melt at this temp.

 

[kbosch74]

I have smoked cheddar and gouda up to 120 without it melting. It does start to oil up a bit, but not melt. Turned out fine.

Havarti, on the other hand, did start to melt at this temp

 

[spacetrucker]

Remember even in the cold weather months, here some winter days are in the 80's so a pan of ice in the smoke chamber helps to keep the temperature down. People look at me funny when I tell em I'm buying ice to put in my smoker

 

[cmayna]

I don't think using ice for keeping a cheese smoke is the best thing due to the amount of condensation which the cheese will absorb.

 

[knuckle47]

Had my first high temp since starting cheese smoking about 5 weeks ago. I've usually smoked with outdoor temps below 50 an most of those days were more like 40. Yesterday the outdoor temps were around 55 and with the amnps running for about 3 hours as I was working next to it. I'd ignored it while and went to the store quickly. After 30 minutes I checked it and it started going warm. Inside temp got to near 85. Never had it go above 70 in the 9-10 times I've used it.

The driest of the cheese in the barrel , an aged cheddar, seemed to suffer the most . It was slightly soft and the surface was a touch oily. I let it cool in the fridge over night and vac sealed it this morning. Looked darn good so I'll wait and see.