Cold smoking temps ?

[stout]

I am either getting a cold smoke plate for Christmas, or I am getting one for myself after Christmas.

so either way win win

but i'm wondering what is the lowest realistic temp i can set my 3D to and still expect to make smoke?

 

[polarlys]

Hi Stout.  I'm new to the 3d but I've done a few cold smokes using 2 different ways.  I have the big kahuna external generator and it works good with little to no temp added to the 3d.  Just last week I made about 4# of jerky and got a nice gentle slow smoke at 130 deg.  That's what I was looking for and I'm not sure how much lower you could go and still get smoke.  Might take some experimenting to get it where you want it.  I found that the big kahuna generates a LOT of smoke and I left the door open a crack to vent some of it faster.  I've only used it a couple of times so it might take some experimentation to get it right.

Merry Christmas.
Roger from NJ

 

[SuperDave]

The trick with cold smoking in these units is the fuel. Think small, sawdust or shredded will produce smoke at the lowest temps. Chips will produce smoke but at slightly higher temps than the dust.  The on/off method also works.  Turn the smoker on until the smoke starts and then turn it off.  When the smoke begins to stop, you turn it back on. This is more of a PITA but works for smoking stuff like cheese. 

You can also easily create your own cold plate.  I use 2 layers of ceramic tile from Home Depot where you can get the tile for a buck each.  No need to spend big money on a SI cold plate.

 

[Pork Belly]

Use a chips screen, use a big handful of chips. With the door open, crank the heat until smoke is rolling. Cut the heat back to 100 and close the door. I cold smoke without a cold plate or ice. However I only cold smoke in the fall and winter.