This round I think was successful, the first time not soo much... How do you all do it, I'm on a smoker? I ended up this round using about 6 briquettes to get the fire going. Then just continually adding small pieces of Mulberry. I know there are several of you all that do it. What kinda of wood? How to control the temperature while getting quality smoke. Any additional tips?
This is how I smoke cheese. I wait till it's about 40-50 degrees. The smoke generator raises ambient temp about 10 degrees.
Get a small metal container. Doesn't matter what it is...I use a small mixing bowl I snagged from the wife.. Drill a 3/8" hole in it. Fill it with small pieces of wood and/or sawdust. Cap it with aluminium foil. . Poke about 5 small holes in it with your pocket knife. Use a small propane torch to keep continuous fire in the drilled hole. Put that rig inside your smoker. Instant cold smoke.
I save the pellets at the bottom of the bag. They are usually full of dust and make for a good smoke. I use hickory, apple or a blend for cheese
like ohiostihl said i only smoke cheese below 45° or so.your going to need to buy or make a smoke generator like the one pictured above.anything much above 50° and the cheese will start to sweat.
How long do you guys smoke the cheese for? I've seen from 1 to 6 hours? The one I did yesterday was for about 3 hours.... lukem - the small blue bottle of propane? How long does one last for smoking like that? OhioStihl - where did you fine that wire rack? SKEETER McCLUSKEY - nice assortment of cheese... yes, this weekend will be another cool one... I'd like to try it out again....
I use a standard size. You turn it down just about as low as it will go without going out...Not sure how long but guessing days
I guess I'm not sure of that. I'm just used to the propane torches we have at work... there's no adjustment to them... I'll investigate...
The smoke generator came from amazon I think. Its great for cheese but sometimes I just light it when I'm going to be working outside by the garage just so I can enjoy the smell.
Softer cheese like fresh mozzarella only need about an hour. Harder cheeses like cheddar need a couple hours. After that I can't tell a lot of difference. That's been my experience anyway. I usually cling wrap them up real tight and let them sit in the fridge for a week before eating.
You can build a "bypass" box too, it's a lot like the box lukem described, but put an outlet on it that can move the smoke to a separate chamber. Keeps a lot of the heat away from the cheese.
Worth trying for sure! I have paid $10.00 a lb. for smoked Gouda cheese.. My wife asked how I liked it and I replied "It's good but it's not $10.00 a lb. good!"
Well I tried the cheese before I vacuum sealed it tonight... it was good.... I picked up a few more blocks for this weekend to try, since it's supposed to be cool again. I'll post up pictures when it happens..... thanks for all the tips and advice, so far...
