Food thread: Would this cold smoker work?

[NetWareHead]

I have a smoker (Weber Smokey Mountain) which makes great food. But it is a "hot" smoker that functions as an outdoor oven. It typically operates at temps over 200 F so the food also cooks while it picks up smoke flavor.

What I want to do is cold smoke certain food. Smoking foods at room temperature allows them to stay unheated and just pick up smoke flavor. This is perfect for making smoked salmon and other fishes, bacon, cheeses and sausages. The cheese would melt and sausages' fat would melt and render out of the casing if hot smoked so cold smoking is the only way to smoke some foods.

I ran into this page http://www.lastappetite.com/cold-smoker/ and it is cheap and easy enough to attempt it without much financial loss even if a failure. Use a steel can, poke a hole in it and stick a soldering iron in it. Fill can with food grade sawdust, replace the lid and turn on the iron. The lid will stop most oxygen from entering the can and allow the dust to smolder instead of catch fire. Put the assembly in the base of my smoker where the charcoal & smoke wood would go. Turn it on and hope it functions more as a smoke generator and not generate heat.

Going to follow advice and get a new soldering iron that has never touched lead solder. Also going to burn the can to cleanse it of anything that might be on it before using it in this manner.

Some of my projects need hours of smoke application, some of them days. Does anyone know if a soldering iron can stay on for hours or days long?

Also the first few inches of the iron will be inserted in the can. I guess I need an iron without plastic in the shaft part of it to protect it from the burning sawdust around it.

Appreciate any comments/observations...thanks.

 

[jaskes]

Check our A-Maze-N pellet smokers. https://www.amazenproducts.com Uses wood pellets that smolder without producing any noticeable heat. I've used the 5x8 pellet smoker several times to make cheese, and also used it in my regular Weber propane grill when I was cooking some other stuff, just to get some smoke flavor.

 

[NetWareHead]

Check our A-Maze-N pellet smokers. https://www.amazenproducts.com Uses wood pellets that smolder without producing any noticeable heat. I've used the 5x8 pellet smoker several times to make cheese, and also used it in my regular Weber propane grill when I was cooking some other stuff, just to get some smoke flavor.

Do you have their pellets or have you tried it with sawdust?
How long does it last for, as I am planning a few cold smokes that might be a few days long... (website says the 5x8 pellet smoker will smoke up to 11 hours...does it live up to that claim?)

I read mixed reviews of this thing losing the smoldering fire so thats why I am gravitating towards a soldering iron that is a constant source of ignition. Are you happy with yours?

 

[Good4Me]

I did this to smoke cheese. First time I just stuck it in me regular smoker with this as the smoke source. It still melted the cheese a bit because me smoker is insulated. Second time, I just set it in my grill and it worked great. Have fun

 

[thescreensavers]

Check our A-Maze-N pellet smokers. https://www.amazenproducts.com Uses wood pellets that smolder without producing any noticeable heat. I've used the 5x8 pellet smoker several times to make cheese, and also used it in my regular Weber propane grill when I was cooking some other stuff, just to get some smoke flavor.

Holy Lurker batman

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Holy Lurker batman

First post since 2006, that's freaking impressive.

 

[jaskes]

I lurk like crazy, read the forums every day, and never have much time to post! I've gotten into smoking all kids of food, and this caught my eye.

I've used just the pellets, not only their brand but others as well. I have peach, cherry, apple, oak whisky barrel/Jack Daniels and 1-2 others. This thing will last for hours and hours on a full tray of pellets. I usually just fill one row up and let that go, that's enough time for the cheese and other stuff I've done.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

I love my A-Maze-N tube smoker. I have used it on its own to cold-smoke bufala mozzarella (yum!), and in tandem with running my Yoder YS640, to add additional smoke flavor. It's a really handy tool.

 

[TheSlamma]

My friend and I made a cold smoker with 2 cardboard boxes, a dryer tube, some aluminum foil and an electric burner. Meat turned out amazing.

Not rocket science

 

[waggy]

Check our A-Maze-N pellet smokers. https://www.amazenproducts.com Uses wood pellets that smolder without producing any noticeable heat. I've used the 5x8 pellet smoker several times to make cheese, and also used it in my regular Weber propane grill when I was cooking some other stuff, just to get some smoke flavor.

i been wanting one of those. not sure if i can justify the price.

but man i loved smoked food.

 

[Squisher]

My friend and I made a cold smoker with 2 cardboard boxes, a dryer tube, some aluminum foil and an electric burner. Meat turned out amazing.

Not rocket science

There's a youtube of Alton Brown doing salmon in a cardboard box with sawdust in a 7" cast iron frying pan on a hot plate with an aluminum pie plate turned upside down on top of the frying pan.

 

[OutHouse]

My cold smoker setup. works like a charm and zero heat. just pure smoke.








Uhaul wardrobe box. 9 bucks
metal dryer tube from home depot. 3 bucks
a 1.00 battery operated fan from walmart

after i got my fire stable i cut a hole in the bottom of the garment box and ran the dryer tube from the smoke stack of my smoker. about half way between the box and stack i cut the tube and put in the battery fan.

3 hours and my 3 cured pork bellies were perfect.

one thing i learned, let the butcher remove the pork skin from the bellies. its much harder to do it than i thought it.

also the box lasted about 3 hours before the moisture in the smoke makes it soft and cant hold the weight of the meat.