New kid on the block!

[ashton]

Ashton here.

I live in Texas as a matter of fact I live in what is considered the BBQ capital of Texas. :lol:

I have been grilling for a number of years, but love country ribs and brisket so I bought a New Braunfuls Black Diamond smoker. I have dreams and aspiration of a bigger unit ..you know size does matter!! :lol: But really this one is perfect for me.

I like using mesquite, oak, cedar and pecan to smoke both because I like the flavor they give and because it is plentiful in my area. I reciently made my own cedar planks to smoke fish on. I tried catfish from a recient fishing trip. It was ok, not bad, just not impressive. The tillapia I did another time was much better. Guess catfish is just better fried.

Looking forward to learning and sharing ideas with all here.

Ashton.

 

[Dutch]

Welcome Ashton. A lot of good tips can be found here at SMF if you're up for some light reading. Folks here are helpfull too on those Que questions that you can't find an answer for. Since you are a newbie to the art of smoking, check out tulsajeff's Smoking Basics eCourse. It has great info to get you started right.

 

[ashton]

Thanks for the welcome Mr. Official Welcome Guy! I've been checking things out. See ya around.

 

[jminion]

Ashton
I noticed you said you use cedar for fuel, may I suggest you don't go there. If anyone your feeding has allergies to cedar it can be a serious medical situation. Even those that are not allergic can find that they will develop welts and breathing problems.

There are some techniques that uses cedar planks to place salmon on to cook but you don't burn the planks.
Jim

 

[Dutch]

Ashton, Jim is right on about using cedar as a fuel wood. Nice catch there Jim, I don't know how I managed to miss it-I was probably still half a sleep :P.

Cedar is fine for plank cooking and using for shingles, but I make sure that the cedar planks are well soaked (at least over night in a large bucket of water) before using on a grill.

 

[ashton]

Boy do I know about alergies to cedar! I live smack dab in the middle of cedar fever country! I am one of those with the alergy! :(

I mis-spoke myself I didn't mean I use it for fuel, all I have used it for so far is for planks for the fish and chips to smoke ribs once.

I guess I probably soaked a bit longer then necessary since both times I put them in water for 3 days before I used them. They certainly smoked well!! Can you over soak...over smoke? Could that have been the wang that we tasted it was definetly more so with the fish, but fish is more deliicate then ribs, but it was there with the ribs too. Not a bad taste but different.

 

[jminion]

I never soakwood I'm using for smoke, it does little to no good. You can't rehydrate wood.

When using cedar planks soaking is advised but what you are looking for is the flavor inparted by the oil in the cedar as it comes to the surface of the plank.
Jim

 

[jlloyd99]

Howdy Ashton, just wanted to add my welcome to the group. Hope you enjoy the forum and looking forward to hearing from you in future posts.

 

[ashton]

Thank you very much! I look forward to spending time in here learning and sharing

A