Maiden Cheese Smoking Attempt

[SGMan]

Well today was the day - The lady was ribbing me about smoking most everything BUT CHEESE. So, while at the store I picked up a few hunks on sale as well as some sticks.

On the racks were: Pepper Jack, Sharp Cheddar, Colby Jack, and Mozzarella.
I also did some sticks of Havarti and Poly-O Cheddar/Mozzarella

From there, they went into the MES30 with my AMNPS and MB Mod with Pecan pellets.
Temp was holding steady at around 76 degrees, and I planned to let them go for 2 hours on the smoke. It was at this time that I was reminded of my monthly VW club meeting... Dang it, now I cant babysit.

No worries, I only filled one row of the Amazen tray and that usually goes no more than 3 hours. (So hopefully a little 'extra' smoke wont totally kill them.)

Got home from the meeting and pulled the cheeses and into the vacuum bags and into the fridge for a couple of weeks to mellow.

At a glance, the Havarti sticks look to have taken a LOT of smoky goodness - 2 weeks cant get here fast enough for me to start sampling!

 

[pc farmer]

Looks great. I wipe off the wet stuff if there is any and let dry then vac seal.

 

[Jabiru]

Nice work. Glad I spotted this thread. I am just about to do my First Smoked Cheese, thanks for the info PC Farmer, I will wipe and let dry before sealing.

 

[bregent]

From there, they went into the MES30 with my AMNPS and MB Mod with Pecan pellets.

Not sure how you have your MB mod configured, but I find if I run it though 8 feet of ducting, it mellows the smoke enough so that it does not need any rest time.

 

[SmokinAl]

Looks real good!
Nice color!
And I agree with bregent, if you run the smoke thru some duct work, it will clean it & you can eat the cheese right away.
Al

 

[SGMan]

Interesting... I *may* just have to sample some of the cheeses to see how they fared.

My MB does go through a couple of feet of hose to get into the smoker.
And I *did* separate my cheeses into separate bags.
1 each for the test subjects, and the rest (by cheese) in their own bags.
All vacc'd and in the fridge. Maybe today will be a test day to see how they taste!




Thanks everyone!

 

[SGMan]

Ugh...

No. Just No.

2-3 weeks it is. LOL

 

[chopsaw]

Ugh...

No. Just No.

2-3 weeks it is. LOL

I remember that taste . I have some been in the fridge a year . Might be time to try it again .

 

[SGMan]

Okay, so I got antsy and tried a lone piece of havarti stick just to see how its advanced.

Still a bit harsh, but I can definitely see how it has mellowed (even over a week)
I think that the 2-3 week mark might in fact be the sweet spot (if not longer)

It wasn't terrible but it most certainly wasn't great either.