What Am I Doing Wrong?

[damnfingers]

There's no smoky taste when the meat comes out of my #2! 

When the meat is cooking (Boston butt) there's a delicious smoky smell, when the door to the #2 is opened there's a delicious smoky smell, when I'm pulling the pork there's a delicious smoky smell but when we sit down to eat there's simply the taste of the meat and the rub...no smoky taste at all.

It's so damn frustrating - why does this happen?  What can I do differently?

 

[SuperDave]

Gene, is everyone in your family commenting the same?  Are the comments the same the second day?  It is quite common for the smoke flavor to intensify the day after.  Are you weighing your wood?  6 - 8 oz. for your butts? 

 

[DivotMaker]

That's my question, too, Gene - how much wood are you using?  No reason for the meat to not have a smoky taste!  Obviously, the deep meat in a butt will not be smoky, but when you pull it, and it's mixed with the meat near the surface, it better be smoky!  Or else, what's the point of a smoker!  Let us know the details.

 

[drains]

What type of wood are you using? I use hickory, 6oz for 2 butts and it's plenty smokey for me. Everyone is different though. Also you may want to save some of the drippings from the butts and mix it in once it's pulled. This will add more flavor to the finished product. Keep trying and good luck!

 

[elkins20]

Hey Gene, welcome from Kansas City, I too was in Navy during Viet-Nam era. Worst mistake I made was not staying in. I was wondering when you was pulling it and you had the really smoke aroma drifting up, did you taste the bark? And was it smoky? I have done a 7# Boston Butt with the bone. I used 3.5 oz of cherry wood and 2.5 oz of oak. It had a good smoke flavor. I also added in the juice from when it rested for a couple of hours in the cooler. Another thing I did was inject it with a recipe from SuperDave at this site. Where did you buy your wood and what type did you use?

 

[es1025]

I use about 5.5 oz of wood for a pork butt. The meat has a nice smoky flavor but not overwhelming. I use a loaf pan of water next to the firebox. I typically use a mix of fruit (apple & cherry) and hickory. The smoke flavor does get stronger over time.

 

[damnfingers]

Sorry I took so long to answer but I had to wait for supper to try it again. 

How I prepared the butt.  I injected it using a mixture of Cajun Creole Butter and Little Richard's Lexington BBQ sauce.  I let that sit for a couple of hours, the rubbed the butt with French's Spicy Brown Mustard.  I then covered it with a rub I found in a book that I really like...not too salty.  Wrapped it in tinfoil and let it sit in the refrigerator for 12 hours until it was time to put it in the #2.

The wood.  Since I've been disappointed the last couple of times with the lack of smoky taste I tried something different this time.  I was going to overwhelm the damn thing with smoke so I took some oak, soaked it in water overnight and tented it when I put it in the box.  I also tented a dry chunk of oak and put it in.  I had some whiskey soaked hickory chips , some I soaked  and some I didn't and put all that in the wood box - considerably more than 8 oz of wood in total.  All of the tented wood was ash at the end so I know there was smoke at sometime during the process!

After taking the butt out of the smoker, when it reached 195 degrees, I covered it in tinfoil, wrapped it in towels and putt it in a cooler for three hours to heat soak.  When I took it out it was still too hot to touch with the bare hands so I used bear claws to pull it apart.  It was moist, really moist...too much fat in the meat?

The bark was really good...I don't like a lot of salt so it's edible by itself and is really good mixed in with the meat...BUT there is absolutely no smoky taste at all.  My wife is the only other one eating it and she doesn't think it has a smoky taste either...smells like it should but no taste...not even this second night.  Hell, while I'm writing I might as well admit there's no taste from the injection liquid either and I'm using a lot of it.

Okay...that's my tale of woe!  Maybe I need to buy some new wood?  Find a better source of meat (Keesler AFB Comissary)?  All suggestions will be tried...I love BBQ that tastes good!

And Bill...my shore duty tour in Danang in 1966 was what convinced me to stay in...I actually had fun as the proverbial drunken sailor.

 

[elkins20]

Hey Gene, some of the people here get meat from Sam's club. I use a place called Restaurant Depot to get in I have a membership to KCBS and get daily passes to the depot. Also a lot of people are using this site for wood: http://www.smokinlicious.com/
Darn with all that would it should have been bitter. I have been adding two charcoil chips to my wood, and get a little different flavor. For the injection on pork I use SuperDaves recipe. This is very strange that you have no smoke taste. Have you smoked any ribs in your smoker? If so did it have a smoke taste? It could be where you are buying your meat.

 

[FunkedOut]

is your wife also exposed to the smoke while its cookin?
I find if I get smoke in my nose while its cooking and while getting it in/out, mopping, glazing, wrapping, pulling...
then I'm immune to the smoke and can't taste it while everyone else can.
next day, warm up left overs and its smoke city.

 

[SuperDave]

Bring in the friends and neighbors for other opinions. We are starting to question your taste buds. Lol

 

[damnfingers]

Bill and all, thanks.  I'm a SAMs Club member so next time we're there I'll get their butts.  The reason I haven't before now is they come in packs of two and I hate having to freeze one...and before anyone says to cook 'em both, remember there's just my wife and I eating this.  I'll also buy some wood from that source and see if there's an improvement.  I'll also make up some of SuperDave's injection liquid and try that next time.

As for my wife being around the smoke, not too much.  The #2 is outside on the driveway and with the daily temp in the upper 90's with the humidity just below that we aren't spending a lot of time in that area. 

I have cooked ribs and they are better but still not "smoky" flavored - I've actually started slow cooking them on the grill for just that reason...it's easier to mop/glaze them there than in the #2.

 

[elkins20]

Hey Gene, sounds like your weather is like mine. And we are getting quite abit of rain. So that keeps the humidity up and the feels like temp. in the upper 90's to low 100's. Still wish I knew what was going on that you do not get any smoke flavor. I will try my brisket that I did in the #3 but am sure it is smoky. I just used 3 oz of cherry and 3 oz of oak with 2 charcoal briquets. I know it smelled awesome on my porch yesterday. The reason was asking if you had smoked anything other than Boston Butts was to rule out the meat. But, you said there was not much smoke on the ribs also. I wish some of the other members would post their thoughts here also.

 

[damnfingers]

Update!  Day 3 and there is finally a nice smoke taste to the meat...exactly what I was expecting/wanting on Day 1. 

I did go online today and ordered some wood from smokinlicious.  Fingers crossed!

 

[elkins20]

Hey Gene, which meat has the smoky taste? Did you bbq something different? Let us in on your discovery. I also want to share this with you. Found out a local BBQ restaurant uses Oak and Maple woods to smoke their meat: ribs, brisket, sausage links, and now have chicken. But, when lived by them could swear they were burning hickory. I am glad you finally have a good tasting bbq. From the user that have used the wood from smoklinlicious.com they rave over it. I looked in my smoke box this morning from the brisket I did last night and just had a char piece of oak the rest was ash. May I ask which woods did you order from them?

 

[drains]

Sounds like it is the butt he originally smoked and the smokey flavor he was missing finally came through. I have known for a while now that the smoke flavor becomes more pronounced even the next day after. That's good to hear Gene!

 

[DivotMaker]

Gene, I think part of your initial problem was the soaking/tenting/etc. of the wood.  I won't go into more detail, since you've ordered some really fine wood (Smokinlicious).  Be sure to measure your chunks!  3-4 oz for ribs, 6 oz for butts and briskets.  No soaking or anything - just put it in the box!

 

[damnfingers]

Yep, original butt.  Maybe I'll just have to let it cure and wait 3 days before we eat from now on...just kidding!

Bill, ordered a mixture of sugar maple, hickory and wild cherry.  I have oak here so didn't need any of that.

 

[DivotMaker]

That's the mix I got, Gene.  Great combo!

 

[elkins20]

Hey Gene, I think you will be pleased with that combo of wood. Now will share with you what my 1st Master Chief shared with me. He spent 22 years in USN and never was on board a ship. On his 1st duty station would request land sea duty sites. And when he would re-enlist would also put in his 3 requests for land sea duty stations, then would rotate back to the states. But, he said it worked for him. If I would have had a decent chief at my station in Jacksonville I too would have stayed in. Oh well water under the bridge. I am sure you was able to see a great many interesting places with your time served. I thank-you for your service.

 

[SpottedCow]

Keep in mind that butts and shoulder can take a LOT of smoke. 7 oz of hickory/apple mix is usually what I do.

Brisket is another cut that can take a boatload of smoke.