Cold Smoking with Natural Lump - 02/28/13 10:31 PM
Cold smoking
Some guys inquired on the cold smoking process I noted in another post regarding DIY lump charcoal, so thought I'd share a few photos and the cold smoke process.
The cold smoking process is useful for infusing your choice of smoke flavor items you do not want to expose to heat. Cheese is a perfect candidate as it cannot withstand temps beyond 100 degrees without melting. Consider a hickory or oak for strong cheese like sharp cheddar and fruitwoods like pear, apple, or plum for swiss or jack. Cheese can easily be oversmoked, especially with the stronger nut woods mentioned above, so carefully watch the smoking times. Starting with 30 minutes is a safe bet, and as your experience grows, you can steadily increase the time and infuse more smoke flavor. You can also cold smoke shelled nuts like almonds - they are very good with a hickory blast.
I also choose to impart smoke flavor to my steaks. However, since meat stops absorbing smoke after it's been exposed to high temperatures and seared, it presented a problem now resolved by cold smoking. The following is the process I follow to achieve a rich smoke flavor in my steaks BEFORE I place on the grill.
I'm a NY Strip fan, less marbling and a little leaner than Ribeyes. I ask the butcher to make 1.5-2" cuts if I haven't done on a loin already myself.
I like to use a rub consisting of garlic, onion, pepper, and dried cayenne and red bell pepper. I stay away from salt - it can lead to drying out your steak.
I then start the grill and choose the type of wood to use. Mesquite sounded good!
Once the grill is rolling I back it off to 300 degrees and add my wood chunks.
Immediately thereafter I attach my dryer vent duct to my Green Egg chimney and the other end to the cold smoke box. The box can be pretty low tech - like this modified cooler.
It's time to cold smoke some fat strips!
After an hour of vigorous smoking, I remove the vent duct from the chimney, replace the grate on top of the coals, and fire up temps to 650-700 and prepare for grilling. After five minutes the grate is ready to sear so I toss on the steaks. My preferred method for grilling is to sear for one minute, flip and sear for another minute, then shut the vent and cap the chimney and cook to a medium rare. For 2" steaks this might be 6 minutes/side depending on the temperature of the grill.
I used to worry about creating perfect diamond shaped grill marks, but no more. These beauties were succulent with Mesquite tones and just the right amount of char my family prefers.
Hope some of this is useful!