I used to cold smoke in my Kamado which is insulated. The pick below shows my AMNTS on the charcoal grate at the lowest level, which is hard to see. Even with the coal door closed it breathes better for the pellets than in the MES or Kamado.
Initially I had the same problem with cold smoking cheese. I was cold smoking in weather that was in the high 40s to low 50s, I think. Todd advised that I place a couple of plastic jugs with frozen water inside my MES 30 Gen 1. That helped keep the temp down but I was keeping the cheeses in the smoker too long so that the water thawed back to liquid. I plan to cold smoke for no longer than 2 hours. Also, I bought some QMATZ from Todd to keep the cheeses from sinking between the rack tines. Haven't used them yet since I haven't gotten around to any cold smoking yet.
Cold smoke in a grill. Anything uninsulated. That way you don't have to wheel out the MES. Cold smoking is not synonymous with an insulated box. As I'm cold smoking 3 chops for three hours like Todd does within the 40-140 in 4hr rule before grilling. I never hear of any AMNPS,TS owners doing this other than Todd and myself. Cold smoke for 3 hours year round in these wonderful tools then put then flame to it. Damn they work everywhere!
I never heard of cold smoking in a grill or even cold smoking (I gather) pork chops. Since I'm a lazy cuss I'd rather grill the chops over charcoal with wood chips or with wood pellets in a small tube smoker I was just given.
It's been so cool lately and the mornings in the 50"s. I say uninsulated because my insulated Kamado with the AMNPS/TS in the shade at 58*F would give 2.5 hours before getting to the high eighties in the Kamado. My grill in the shade stays cooler longer. Grills with a removable ash pan breathe so well you don't have to spend so much time lighting the AMNPS/TS. I put the pellet smoker anywhere on the charcoal grate at the lowest level and pull out the ash pan an inch so air comes in the bottom at the front and back of the grill. In the pic the charcoal access door is open and you can barely see the AMNTS. I keep the access door closed while cold smoking but it is convenient to access the AMNPS/TS without letting out all the smoke if need be. I keep the lid cracked to keep the smoke moving. I just got lucky that the design of this grill makes cold smoking hassle free. This is my first year cold smoking meats a few hours before grilling for added smoke flavor. I get a good charcoal flavor when grilling but not as much of a smoke flavor in a ten minute high heat grilling without cold smoking first. As well as time permits me to cold smoke first.
I only go for the added smoke flavor when indirect cooking of meats such as pork ribs and beer can chicken. Those can take 90 minutes to 2 hours so there's plenty of time for absorption of smoke. With steaks and burgers I don't care about smoke flavor. We've tried various methods for grilling pizza with mixed results. I typically like to sprinkle cherry wood chips over the coals for chicken and veggie pizzas.
It's been so cool lately and the mornings in the 50"s. I say uninsulated because my insulated Kamado with the AMNPS/TS in the shade at 58*F would give 2.5 hours before getting to the high eighties in the Kamado. My grill in the shade stays cooler longer. Grills with a removable ash pan breathe so well you don't have to spend so much time lighting the AMNPS/TS. I put the pellet smoker anywhere on the charcoal grate at the lowest level and pull out the ash pan an inch so air comes in the bottom at the front and back of the grill. In the pic the charcoal access door is open and you can barely see the AMNTS. I keep the access door closed while cold smoking but it is convenient to access the AMNPS/TS without letting out all the smoke if need be. I keep the lid cracked to keep the smoke moving. I just got lucky that the design of this grill makes cold smoking hassle free. This is my first year cold smoking meats a few hours before grilling for added smoke flavor. I get a good charcoal flavor when grilling but not as much of a smoke flavor in a ten minute high heat grilling without cold smoking first. As well as time permits me to cold smoke first.
-Kurt
I once took a BBQ class where the instructor claimed that meat wouldn't absorb any more smoke after the pellicle was fully formed at about 160F° IT. A few guys here debunked this. Personally, I go by time, not just IT. I like to foil when a beef brisket, chuck roast, or pork shoulder IT stalls, anywhere from 160-170°. In my MES that's anywhere from 4-5 hours. I prefer to foil at about the 6-hour mark and I leave meat foiled until just about when it reaches the finish IT.
Unfortunately the pro's aren't the only one's eating it, nor are the comp judges. I'd rather cook or smoke something to how people like it, not some pre appointed "judges" I like a lot of smoke myself, and i've had only compliments about my BBQ vs other places. So i think it's to each their own.. My 9 pounders take 22 hours usually, sometimes more.So foiling could be an option to sppeed things up, and at the same time reduce the smoke, i will refill the AMNPS twice if i have to.
My wife and I watch a number of TV cooking competition shows and we used to watch BBQ Pitmasters. We've seen over and over again how food judging, like ice skating judging, is entirely subjective and thus is subject to glaring lapses in judgment, in my opinion. Everyone's palate is different so, you're right, to each their own.
I've had my problems also, with the Pellets both smoking properly and staying lit but since have found if I nuke the Pellets, they will stay lit and smoke better and if you nuke them 3 times for 2 minutes each time plus one more minute, like I did this past Sunday, you will have plenty of smoke. Can't wait to do this again to verify that the nuking like I did is the answer.
What is the cold smoker addon? I've been relighting my AMNPS for 12 hours today, every hour or so... Now running a brisket, so i don't have a spare to light while the other goes out. I am so far behind on my gig, because of all the babysitting.. And i've tried everything heh . No loader, half way loader etc.. then now with 3 butts in there, it's a dripping fiasco. Had to discard and start over once, and i then tented which restricted a bit of airflow. I get more smoke from my JD chips, but they get burned up so fast with the machine constantly on and full.
Thank you so much for this comment, it's changed my smoking life. No more fan, now I have more problem damping down the pellets than the pellets going out. I did nuke the pellets 3 times the first time I tried this. It charred the pellets, and they burned so quickly I used up a whole AMNPS tray in 6 hours. I think fire may have jumped the dividers.
I've been using my AMNPS in my MES 30 Gen 1 for over 3 years. It's as broken in as it can be. But I have problems with pellets staying lit during cold smokes, especially if the outside weather is cold. I think it's an airflow issue with the MES and in my case has nothing to do with the pellets absorbing outside moisture. I never nuke my wood pellets. On a hunch I carefully attempted to heat the smoker up to about 100° (since it quickly jumps up to between 130-150°) and then shut down the controller. My hunch was right: the warmer air inside the smoker helped keep the pellets lit. In fact, they were then harder to snuff out!From my own experience, and from others that have posted on this forum, I've come to the conclusion that the AMNPS just need to "break in!" After a dozen or so smokes they seem to work fine. Maybe it's the wonderful smelling smoking residue that accumulates in the smoker. Maybe it's that we learn to hold our mouths in a certain shape while we're lighting the tray. I don't know -- all I know is that mine now works great and I don't know that I'm doing different from when I first got it and struggled
In my case I'd have to wheel out the grill. I have a Weber One Touch Silver that I store in my garage along with my MES. But your suggestion might be worth an experimentation. I'd place the AMNPS on top of the charcoal grate and array the stuff to be cold smoked around the cooking grate. In fact, to double production I could place my 2nd cooking grate, supported by bricks, on top of the first grate. Leaving the top and bottom vents halfway open should be sufficient but I could fool around with it. This might be fun.
