I know this may be a little off topic in this section, but I cant find the meat section on here. Anyhow I have done alot of sausage making and have always used cherry or hickory chips in my smoker. Dad said they always used willow branches back in the days and it was always good. The sausage maker in a town nearby also only uses willow also I just found out, I didnt find out if he removes the bark or not though. Does anyone else use willow? I ate some of the stuff he made and the willow smoke was spot on!
Smoking wild meat with willow?
- Thread starter saskboy
- Start date
BrotherRockeye
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Rural Saskatchewan
yup...this right here.
Imo Alder is the best wood for smoking fish and wild ducks/ fowl, oak or mesquite for red meats.
I have had willow smoked suckers, a traditional food, doesn't sound appetizing but it was pretty good. Iirc goldeye is usually smoked with willow (maybe cherry?) by commercial operations.
I have had willow smoked suckers, a traditional food, doesn't sound appetizing but it was pretty good. Iirc goldeye is usually smoked with willow (maybe cherry?) by commercial operations.
Generally speaking any smoking wood should have the bark removed if you don't want an ashy or bitter taste in whatever you are smoking. Some commercial chips come with a bit of bark and it won't kill you but I wouldn't use this as a standard if you're processing your own wood.
fingers284
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Alberta Cowboy Ranges
But...But...I watch the BBQ comps on food channel a time or two and they stoke their fires regularly with "bark on " wood. I have eaten some "southern" bbq and damn that's good stuff
In short, you use whatever deciduous wood is available.
There are so many things effecting the smoking, that have far more affect on the finished quality, than the kind of wood used.
You can take all the bark off of any kind of wood used, but if the smoker lacks good ventilation, the fish will taste like creosote. This is especially apparent in the metal smokers.
The Native Indians use whatever type of wood, very often white poplar, that is available beside the stream they are netting the fish from. They never take the bark off and their smoked fish is great, without any harsh, or creosote taste. But have you seen how they smoke them?
Their smoker consists of a pole for a ridgepole secured about eight or ten feet above the ground. They cut green poplar trees, long enough to lean against the ridgepole while angled back. They loosely cover it this way and hang the fish fro the pole, then make a fire on the ground below the pole. It's only the leaves of the loosely placed small poplar trees that direct smoke to the fish. One can look in through the leaves and see the fish hanging there, so of course air can move freely in and out of the smoker. In short, lots of air available to the fish and the end result is superb.
Bruce
There are so many things effecting the smoking, that have far more affect on the finished quality, than the kind of wood used.
You can take all the bark off of any kind of wood used, but if the smoker lacks good ventilation, the fish will taste like creosote. This is especially apparent in the metal smokers.
The Native Indians use whatever type of wood, very often white poplar, that is available beside the stream they are netting the fish from. They never take the bark off and their smoked fish is great, without any harsh, or creosote taste. But have you seen how they smoke them?
Their smoker consists of a pole for a ridgepole secured about eight or ten feet above the ground. They cut green poplar trees, long enough to lean against the ridgepole while angled back. They loosely cover it this way and hang the fish fro the pole, then make a fire on the ground below the pole. It's only the leaves of the loosely placed small poplar trees that direct smoke to the fish. One can look in through the leaves and see the fish hanging there, so of course air can move freely in and out of the smoker. In short, lots of air available to the fish and the end result is superb.
Bruce
I use a propane water cooker/smoker for cooking. I use thumb size pieces of white poplar cut green and kept in the freezer. I put a few in the smoke box. I haven't taken the bark off. I also will use green crabapple sticks from the old tree in my yard.
When I am up at the wife's cabin, I cook meat outside on a small fire on the ground. I get a good fire going with whatever wood is handy then feed it with dry poplar. When it dies down to a good bed of coals, I put a green stick or two in the coals while I cook. I will peel the sticks next time, as I do notice a bit of black on the meat. I would never use what we prairie boys call black poplar, as it smells like really dirty socks.
When I am up at the wife's cabin, I cook meat outside on a small fire on the ground. I get a good fire going with whatever wood is handy then feed it with dry poplar. When it dies down to a good bed of coals, I put a green stick or two in the coals while I cook. I will peel the sticks next time, as I do notice a bit of black on the meat. I would never use what we prairie boys call black poplar, as it smells like really dirty socks.
There is a fella close by me who has his mother in-law (baker) save all her apple peelings for him. He freezes them till fall, and ads them to his maple when making his smoked pork sausage.. Best sausage made around these parts by far.
RE: bark on whole chunks of wood.
If you are using wood as your primary fuel source and not a charcoal smoker with wood chips you will usually fire the wood until it is charred to warm the smoker anyways so the bark is gone. For refueling I always burned the chunks in a chimney starter before putting them in a vertical smoker.
When using an offset smoker the creosote collects in the flues. Airflow is important as others have said.
I like to use woods like apple, cherry, hickory and mesquite in conjunction with oak. This is especially important if you using wood as fuel so the food doesn't taste like an ashtray.
If you are using wood as your primary fuel source and not a charcoal smoker with wood chips you will usually fire the wood until it is charred to warm the smoker anyways so the bark is gone. For refueling I always burned the chunks in a chimney starter before putting them in a vertical smoker.
When using an offset smoker the creosote collects in the flues. Airflow is important as others have said.
I like to use woods like apple, cherry, hickory and mesquite in conjunction with oak. This is especially important if you using wood as fuel so the food doesn't taste like an ashtray.
I have used alder and willow with great success. Wild willow is great but the best I found is a type of willow grown for windbeaks and ornamental. It has a very light colour bark. Also used the greenest shoots int the spring. It seems that no matter how much you smoke with this type of willow IMHO there is never a bitter or oily flavour. My proportion is 80% willow 20% alder. Just my experince
Use a Big Chief, so electric burner for the chips. Prefer hard wood chips (hickory) and always baste three to four times (watered down maple syrup) during the smoke. The sweetness of the baste will offset any bitterness. Generally fill smoker tin with chips three times over approx. eight hour period. Do not like the flavour alder imparts. The Big/Little Chiefs should have insulation of some kind as the wind will change cooking/smoking times by quite a large margin.
saskgunowner101
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- near Prince Albert
I use a propane water cooker/smoker for cooking. I use thumb size pieces of white poplar cut green and kept in the freezer. I put a few in the smoke box. I haven't taken the bark off. I also will use green crabapple sticks from the old tree in my yard.
When I am up at the wife's cabin, I cook meat outside on a small fire on the ground. I get a good fire going with whatever wood is handy then feed it with dry poplar. When it dies down to a good bed of coals, I put a green stick or two in the coals while I cook. I will peel the sticks next time, as I do notice a bit of black on the meat. I would never use what we prairie boys call black poplar, as it smells like really dirty socks.
I'm embarrassed to ask, but how do you tell the difference between white and black poplar? AFAIK, we only have white poplar around, but it smells like arse when you drop a green chunk in a fire pit.
