Water in the Waterpan, adds moisture.......theory or myth

[walking dude]

for as long as i have been on this site.........most everyone has said, the water in a water pan DOESN NOT ADD MOISTURE TO THE MEAT.........its a THERMAL mass...........and it made sense to me............till tonite.

We STEAM our left over pp and brisket.......and it DOES moisten up the meat quit abit.

SO now my question..........when i use water in my water pan it BOILS, creating STEAM............so why does it NOT work the same way in a verticle water smoker, as it does in a rice steamer, which i reheat my smoked meats in?

Seems to me, it the SAME thing........boiling water creates steam adding moisture to the meat, whether in a rice steamer OR a VWS?

Let the arguments BEGIN! ! ! !

 

[sumosmoke]

I'll throw my $0.02 out there ... when heating water with heat, it creates steam, and with the lid on a vertical smoker, the steam is circulated a bit (i.e. convection oven with some steam) to help with the cooking process.

 

[smok'n steve]

I don't have a smoker like yours Dude, but, my thinking is this-----yes you get "some moisture/humidity" induced into the meat due to your water pan, but without the water pan, there would be no great way to keep your temp down which might dry the meat.

For me, in a reverse flow, a baffle acts like your water pan which is a thermal, and this baffle also receives drippings which sizzle and create steam which does the same thing, keeps the moisture level up therfore reducing the chance for drying?

SMS

PS--In short, I think its better to say that steam may help you prevent drying of the meat rather than "adding" moisture to it:-), Therefore, technically your answer to the question is Myth---"technical answer"

 

[capt dan]

Does your steamer have a chimney?

Case closed.

If moisture was that important, then boiling is the best option!

well thats my .02 anyways!

 

[short one]

I agree with Steve. When the humidity is high nothing drys out as fast as when the humidity is low.

 

[travcoman45]

As a boiler man I'll give ya this steve, yes the water in the pan of the smoker is evaporatin, but not at a great volume such as that made in a steamer. Steamers get very hot (just like a boiler) ta create a larger volume of steam. We are not generatin that kind a heat in our smoker.

Know by the same token, that water evaporatin inta the smoker box will slow down the loss of moisture from the meat, will it add any moisture to it? Probably not a great deal, but it will assist in keepin what moisture the meat has in the meat.

A dehydrator works by passin dry hot air over the meat, removin the moisture from it. So, ifin we don't keep the humidity up in the cabinet, we are in a since doin the same thin with the smoker.

So, the water pan heps stablilze temperature swings an heps keep the meet from dryin out. There be my two coppers worth on the subject. I never run a dry water pan, always put water in it. Hope that heps ya out some buddy.

 

[ddave]

Just to add to the confusion, I'll throw this out there. In my lumber drying days, we operated knowing that wood is "hygroscopic" meaning that its moisture content will equalize to match the EMC (Equilibrium Moisture Content) of the surrounding air. The EMC is a function of temperature and humidity. If we dried common grade lumber to 19% EMC, then moved it outside and let it set in very dry conditions as was the case where the mill was located, the lumber would continue to dry sometimes down to 8%. At which case the knots would fall out of 4/4 boards and the graders would ***** at us because it was overdried. We would show them our pull sheets where we tested it upon exiting the kiln and the average of our samples were 19%, but the newspaper would list the humidity for the two weeks that the lumber sat in the shed prior to being surfaced as around 8 to 10 percent and the lumber continued to dry.

Sorry that was so long. But I would say, that water adds moisture to the air. If the EMC of the air is lower than that of the meat, then the meat will lose moisture as it equalizes although at a slower rate than if moisture was not being added to the air.. If the EMC of the air is higher, than that of the meat in the smoker, (which would be pretty unusual given the high temperature and the fact that the stack is venting all the time as Capt Dan pointed out) then the meat would absorb moisture during the equilization process. In a steamer, the EMC of the air would likely be higher than that of the meat so the meat would absorb moisture as it equalizes with the air.

Hope this makes some sense.

Dave

 

[davenh]

I've used sand in the pan last two times with the MES, going back to water in the pan. I've noticed my salmon came out drier this last time, pork loin was also a little drier than usual. Temps/conditions were no different than when using water in the pan.

I agree with those that said the extra humidity created by the water helps to retain moisture in the meat by slowing down evaporation.

Actually, I may leave the sand in the pan and add an extra water pan on the lower shelf. Best of both worlds, water for humidity and the sand for heat retention.

.

 

[pineywoods]

I tend to agree the water pan may not add moisture but I think it helps the meat retain moisture. The water definitely goes somewhere and the inside walls aren't covered with moisture. I don't feel any moisture coming out of the stack either. So my belief until shown otherwise is that while it doesn't steam the meat it does help the meat retain moisture.

 

[krusher]

about a month ago I made a fatty out of cround chuck,,that thing was like cuttin a piece of beef jerky, until then I was skeptical about wether or not the water addes moisture, but after that ,, I am pretty sure it doesnt. and also I have noticed that when the water pan gets almost out the temp in the smoker starts to rise

 

[meowey]

Well put!

My take from reading this thread. Having a water pan in the smoker "helps the meat retain it's moisture longer", rather than "adds moisture to the meat". The thermal buffer action is also very helpful.

I always have and will continue to use a water pan when I'm smoking meat. (I don't think it will help me when I'm smoking cigars! - LOL)

Dude - Thanks for starting this thread!

Take care, have fun, and do good!

Regards,

Meowey

 

[richtee]

From a ways back:
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...pan#post176292

 

[ron50]

My take exactly. Doesn't add but keeps the meat from losing moisture.

Interesting discussion :)

 

[walking dude]

nope capt dan, but niether does my ecb gourmet.......case closed

 

[walking dude]

Ken...........when i smoke my cheese, i have to put al. foil OVER the cheese, cause the lid will have moisture that drops black ugly gunk all over the cheese........now i know this is at WAY lower temps, than smoking.... but yes, at times i DO get moisture in my ecb