New Guy from Norther-Norway!

[Martin Bang]

Hi all,

in advance, sorry for bad English writing.

Intro/background info:
In Norther-Norway or in whole Norway - Grilling is the thing. Mostly on the summer but i don't mind standing outside in -15(Celsius) and grilling a burger. I Grill on charcoal and gass all year around. I have done some smoking before on my charcoal kettle-grill and gassgrill. and it turn out great. Mostly ribs and pork neck. I got my hands on some Hickory chunks, that worked great. But to get the right wood here, like Apple, cherry, hickory, maple... yeah that don't exist. In my region i know of 2 apple trees, and apples only grow on them if the summer is good. if you are lucky you get them bigger than a golf-ball. hehe

I have family that live in Seattle, so i have been there many times on vacations. In Seattle i had my first experience with smoked meat, real BBQ on a offset smoker. After that i was hooked!
To do BBQ in a offset smoker in the north of Norway is not easy. I was planning to do some ribs 2-day but it started snowing up in the mountain, from 300meter above sea level, and the temp is 5 Celsius on ground. So its a challenge(its excepted). Wind, weather, moisture. Yeah we get it all. I guess its like the condition in norther part of Alaska.

After some research i got my hands on a smoker. I know i needed a smoker with some heavy steel to be able to keep some heat in the smoker. To get a smoker is also i challenge. In Norway there is only 1 shop that sells good smokers(online), but they are so overpriced because of the shipment and import tax from US. So i did order a smoker from Landmann in Sweden, they have a Norway office so i got a good price on it. i got free shipping to the door.

Also the Smoker-series is going out of production and they have started a new series. The new series has only 0.80mm steel. That is to thin in my mind. Mine smoker has over 3.0mm. That is why i chose that smoker.

This is my first Offset smoker. So i have little experience with offset smokers, but i have learn a great stuff from this webside. I have done some smoking but that's only on my kettle. i Also have a setup for cold smoking where i smoke fish, game-meat etc. But thats done in a traditional way here in the North. So some experience with smoke i got.

My smoker: Landmann tennessee 300.

After i put it together i used some heat-resistant silicon to be sure it sealed good. Everything fitted verry good. I only had to apply it to the firebox.

I season my grill with birch wood. I have tons if it, that have been drying for 4 years. It grows everywhere where, and is used for cold smoking. So i figure, if i take of the bark it would work great for BBQ. The bark contains a lot of oil. that why.I filled a charcoal chimney with lump charcoal(natural) as my fire starter.

The smell was fantastic, i preheated the logs and got the smoker up to 325F, then adjust it down to 250F. almost no white smoke. added 1 stick around every hour, to maintain heat.
I had my exhaust full open and my vent on firebox full open. did this for almost 6h.
I have not tested it with meat, just to try to maintaine fire and airflow.

I took a weekend trip to Lofoten-island(my home place) and found a shop that sold Weber cherry chunks. So i did buy everything the store had on stock. I then started to read about birch wood, where some said it was bad for BBQ. i then figure i had to use Charcoal as my main heat source and the cherry wood chunks And don't use Birch wood. I did a test run, but the charcoal briquettes i used did make so much smoke, so i had to trow them away. I then did find some natural Charcoal Briquettes that burned good.

My problem/questions:

1. Is birch wood ok for BBQ?

2. I did some ribs: I added a full chimney of briquettes. i Waited around 30 min until everything was lit and red hot. In the firebox i placed around 12-15 briquettes unlit. so i use the minion method. I put the lit charcoal in the box, placed 4 lumps of cherry wood chunks. waited to they got lit good and closed the dor to the firebox. i got the temp up to 275F and dial it in to 250. I could smell the smoke from the exhaust (fully open). I did not see any white smoke. I then placed the meat on the grill. and did maintain the fire. I did preheat some more Cherry chunks when they where burn out. 2-3 chunks and maintained it for 3 hours.(using the 3-2-1 method).
When i was going to eat them they tasted funny, the smoke ring was perfect. it just tasted wierd smoke. almost sour-ish. And i don't know why. I did a second run on some belly pork meat and same there. The meat was nothing wrong with before. its just tasted damn weird. not as i remembered form what i have tasted in Seattle.
My guess is the charcoal, but it can bee the wood. I also wound if the chimney of the smoker is to small. Its not wide enhoug. i don't know.
3. Shoud i have done test with Birch wood. And use Lump charcoal (natural) for a test? ofc when the wather gets bether:)

Hope someone can help me. Or give me some input.
If you need more info just ask:)

All the best Martin / Norway.

 

[bluewhisper]

Welcome to the board! You certainly face a lot of challenges!

There isn't much mention of birch as a smoking wood, which suggests that it isn't much good. I recently got a few pieces of it, and I'll just use it for camp fire wood.

About the chimney being too small, maybe so since that firebox looks much larger than most, in comparison to the cooking chamber volume. It looks like it invites you to make a larger fire than you need. But since you're going to cook in cold conditions, you might want a big firebox.

You mention Norwegian smoking, please tell us more. My family is Lithuanian and there's plenty of smoked fish there. I should have taken a picture of that display case full of various smoked fish, in Palanga.

 

[gmc2003]

Welcome aboard Martin, glad you joined. My fathers parents were both from Etne Norway. I still have some distant relatives living there and would love to go visit and see the land.

As for your questions, I'll leave the smoker questions to those who use a similar type smoker, but I do believe birch wood can be used for smoking if it's properly seasoned.

Chris

 

[Martin Bang]

Welcome aboard Martin, glad you joined. My fathers parents were both from Etne Norway. I still have some distant relatives living there and would love to go visit and see the land.

As for your questions, I'll leave the smoker questions to those who use a similar type smoker, but I do believe birch wood can be used for smoking if it's properly seasoned.

Chris

Yes it is properly seasoned. I around 10% moisture in it. some have less when i tested them.
I just cant figure out where the funny taste comes from.
Etne is south in Norway. nice pleace. more stable weather. I was just looking out the windows and it was snowing and raining.
If you have a chance go there. Life is to short to just think:) just do it!

 

[Martin Bang]

Welcome to the board! You certainly face a lot of challenges!

There isn't much mention of birch as a smoking wood, which suggests that it isn't much good. I recently got a few pieces of it, and I'll just use it for camp fire wood.

About the chimney being too small, maybe so since that firebox looks much larger than most, in comparison to the cooking chamber volume. It looks like it invites you to make a larger fire than you need. But since you're going to cook in cold conditions, you might want a big firebox.

You mention Norwegian smoking, please tell us more. My family is Lithuanian and there's plenty of smoked fish there. I should have taken a picture of that display case full of various smoked fish, in Palanga.

For cold smoking fish the traditional way, especially salmon. we use a mix of birch and juniper. the juniper both seasoned and fresh. the best smoke you get from fresh old bushes that have become abit old and dry.

The setup: "it is great to have in a small hill". The pip is best when its around 6-10 meter. My Great-Great-grandma used almost 20m dirt tunnel. the length is to take out the heat form the smoke. Its just like in BBQ, you need to have good airflow unless you get yellow-brown-creasot taste, and your salmon can turn yellow. But that can come from to much heat in the smoke. The firebox: we burn a good fire with birch wood almost down. and when there has become coals, we place the juniper over. and smoke it for some hours.Just need to have good airflow so that the smoke dont stay in to long. The difference her is: its supposed to be white smoke.

If we take salmon, we cure it with salt and sugar for 24 hours. a 2/3 ration on both. depends on how thick the fish is. After that we clean it with water and leave it to dry for 24h in the smoke house. When you have the setup right, you can smoke anything.
I smoke: Salmon, Grouse, deer, cod, halibut etc.
here is a picture on how it can look. but in my opinion to short pipes.

 

[Hank R]

Welcome Martin from Western Canada. Here is a link that came up the other day and reply #5 a Member here uses Birch wood. So I think you should be good.

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/canada-wood-source.276165/

 

[Martin Bang]

Welcome Martin from Western Canada. Here is a link that came up the other day and reply #5 a Member here uses Birch wood. So I think you should be good.

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/canada-wood-source.276165/

Tnx, i will give it a try. have precut stick's. Would be interesting to see if that weird smoke taste goes away.
I will try with lump charcoal and birch wood.
have never tryed smoking with cherry so i just have to test and see where the weird taste comes from. as i mention its abit sour-ish smell to it. even if the meat is fresh and good.

 

[Hank R]

Your Cherry wood was it Choke Cherry wood if that is what it was would have a bitter smell to the smoke.

 

[Martin Bang]

Your Cherry wood was it Choke Cherry wood if that is what it was would have a bitter smell to the smoke.

Hi, i have no idea. it just said Weber cherry chunks.

I have this bag. but the chunks inside are kind of whiter than on the pciture

 

[bluewhisper]

Martin, your picture shows what I have seen in diagrams, a distant firebox and long underground passage to the smoking chamber.

"it is great to have in a small hill"

Lithuania's geology includes many glacial features like moraines and eskers and kames There are many small hills.

You may already know that many Europeans settled around the Great Lakes, and they smoke fish, too.

 

[Hank R]

Martin, how are you and your smoker making out with the Birch wood?? Let us know..

 

[Martin Bang]

Martin, how are you and your smoker making out with the Birch wood?? Let us know..

Hi,

After it stop snowing and raining yesterday i had a window to do a testrun with some pork chops and salmon.
8-9 Celsius

This is what i did:

First of all, i did buy some lump charcoal and put the briquettes to the side. I wanted to see if that wierd smoke smell/test came from them.

I filled up 1 full chimney with lump charcoal. Waited 30 min to everything was burn down good.
Put it on the far side of the firebox and added 1 medium size birch wood stick(splitted). I put 2 new stick on the other side of the firebox so the got preheated. I got the smoker up to 300+ F. i then closed the firebox door and left the vent full open. it then run steady on 275F. The smoke was perfect. No white smoke. could not even see the smoke. just some "pof pof" when i added the log the first 3-4 min or when the wind changed direction.

I also removed the bark from the logs, since they contain alot of oil. so i think that was a good idea. There where no dens or moisture in the exhaust.

I placed to meat on the smoker at 275F and had the fish on for around 1h(abit long). but just to taste if the fish got over smoked.
The pork chops went for 2h. did not sprites them or no anything. all natural. just to see how the smoke was.

So after the 1,5 h i notice the lump charcoal did burn up, and the coals from the log kept the heat. I may on the next run use 2 full chimneys of lump to get a a more steady coal bed. I also did try to add 2 logs. (after the coock). just to see what happens to the heat. it went 325f+ so 1 stick is enough on the size i use. I just ned to put the log on before the first one burn up so it can lay on the coals of the stick. So i figure 1 stick every 45 min would do the trick. and also preheat logs in the firebox to get them quick on fire. this will hold my temp steady at 250-275. depends on how much airflow, and when i add the logs. i will make a test to split the logs even more to see how much i need to get a steady 225F.

The fire in the box was like fire should be. Burning. But i need to keep my vent full open and my exhaust. dont care about that. i goot so much wood... yeah i got alot!!!!

Conclusion:
First of all i think the bad taste came from the charcoal briquettes and maybe the cherry wood from Weber.

The taste of the meat and fish was PERFECT! with Birch wood!." it to me back to Seattle for some moments".
You just need good and seasoned wood. And open all hatches on the firebox when lighting them to avoid white smoke. White smoke is pretty strong on Birch.

So to all who wounder. the Pork chops where good. like damn good!. You should not be afraid to use Birch wood to BBQ as long as it is seasoned well.

I would call the test a success, and fire management where so easy VS Charcoal Briquettes and chunks!

Later on when the weather clears up in the week i will try to make a rack of spareribs.
I also will do test with Lump charcoal and Cherry chunks from Weber. If that works i know for sure that the bad taste where the Briquettes(that supposed is natural made).

So if you have Birch, cook with it! do a test and learn how to control the smoke with it.

hope this helps other ppl.



PS: i did not use any rub or BBQ sauce. So the taste could have been different, but all natural is good to get a idea of how the smoke taste!

I will post more info when i get the time where i only use birch wood! next will be spareribs. 3-2-1 method

 

[Hank R]

Good to know. Thanks for the update.

 

[gmc2003]

Sounds like it was really good.Thanks for the results of using birch. Now with my limited knowledge of Norwegian would that be considered svinekoteletter(sp?)?


point for sure.
Chris

 

[Martin Bang]

Sounds like it was really good.Thanks for the results of using birch. Now with my limited knowledge of Norwegian would that be considered svinekoteletter(sp?)?


point for sure.
Chris

yes, that is correct. PorkChops = svinekoteletter
we also say only "koteletter" whiteout referring to what part of the pig it comes from. Same as when we say svinekoteletter, it don't refer to a part of the animal. The only referring i know is nakkekoteletter = From the neck.

i will do some ribs maybe this weekend with birch wood. I did wake up to snow on my doorsteps 2 day- So it have been colder that usual. need some heat before i fire up the smoker. around 6-9 Celsius. at the moment its only 2.

 

[Hank R]

Martin were you able to just smoke the cherry wood without meat to be able to smell the smoke?? Then you would know the charcoal briquettes are a no go...

 

[Martin Bang]

Martin were you able to just smoke the cherry wood without meat to be able to smell the smoke?? Then you would know the charcoal briquettes are a no go...

HI, yeah i smell the smoke. but i figure out it was the Briquettets. So i but them back in the garage. I did buy some lump charcoal and it was perfect.

after we had some snow "AGIN", i manage to make a small pork shoulder(lower cap). With 1 chimney of LUMP as fire starter and Birch wood.

I smoked it on around 275. It tends to get abit higher 300+ when adding wood. Bet gets down quick to around 280-275 and keeps good and stedy, but only for 30 min in the weather i had this weekend. I have alot of wood so that's not a problem. but i would like to not have the Vents on the fire box fully open. so it burns longer. But when i start to close it get abit white. not thick white. So i don't know if it is bad. But i tend to keep it so clean as i could. i also had to add 1 more chimney of coals fully lit to get the heat up, insted og build a big fire. I did a test when the meat was done, and if i add 1 log it burns not as god if a add 2-3. but then i get the temp problem. I maybe can adjust it with exhaust. as long as i don't close it to much. 1/4 closed i guess i a MAX.
I also did the porkskin. cracking it up to 325 to crisp it up before serving the pulled meat. i did wrap the meat after 3h 1/2 H. i dont know if i like wrapping it. So i will do a test on that.
here are some picture of the cook.

The fire: i think the hole to from the firebox to the drum is to big so i maybe have to do some mods. guess mabe thats why its harder to keep a steady temp. see picture in start of the the Post. about my smoker


The smoke:


Raising temp: i cooked it around 260-280. But it tended to go up to 310+ when adding wood. so i just open the firedoor lit to not overheat.


Placing the meat:

After 3 1/2 H

Finish product:


So my goal for the next cook is to Maintain a beather temp controll. 250-275. and try to not use as many logs.
And also not have to go outside every 5 min to check. I got my self a wireless temp. so i could see the temp. But i dont see the smoke:p


I pulled the meat of when it hit 198f and rested it for 45 min.. It tasted very very good. But alot of work for 6-7h cook:)
So i guess i need to make smaller sticks, but then i need to add more often if i cant do smothing with the vents. to get longer cooktime on each logs.

 

[Hank R]

Hope you have your smoker working good for this weekend and no snow, I guess you could stand close to firebox to keep war,..