Cold smoking meat questions

nopeda · Joined: 11 Oct 2014 Posts: 1

Hi,

I am trying to cold smoke some meat like chicken thighs, pork steaks and swai. Then cook it in an oven or frying pan inside hoping it will retain the good smokey flavor. So far it has not gone well because it seems the meat either cooks or changes consistency/texture while in the smoke. I've been using Hickory pellets and an amazin pellet smoker in one mailbox, then piping that to a second mailbox where I put the meat. Letting it smoke for an hour or a bit more. But when I take it in and cook it like I always do without smoking it gets rather burned and overdone. Does anyone have any suggestions how to get it to come out nice and juicy but still smoke it enough to give it smokey flavor? Also should I poke holes in it with a fork or knife before smoking to let the smoke be absorbed better or would that make it dry out more? Now I'm thinking maybe try poking holes and smoke for 30 minutes instead of an hour? Or...???

Thank you for any help!

David
ME USA

CrazyChef · Posted: Jun 15 2020 Post subject:

Cold smoking (in the way you're referring to it) should only be done on items that are not immediately perishable. Such as cheeses, salt, etc. Cold smoking meat the way you're suggesting is an open invitation to bacteria - in fact, it's a freakin' amusement park. The only exception would be for cured meats, such as cured pork belly (unsmoked bacon).
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Smokin Mike · Posted: Jun 16 2020 Post subject:

No, don't poke holes in the meat. That's a great way for all the juices to escape. Poultry likes high heat so fire up the pellet smoker to 325° + and pull the thighs out when they hit 165°. The pork steaks are a little trickier, you'll dry those suckers out in a heart beat. I would grill those using a natural wood charcoal. I had to look up swai. Most fish like a colder smoke of around 150°. The trick is to not bubble the fat out of the fish. You can pull those around 145°. There plenty of topics here detailing chicken thighs and fish, like salmon. I don't recollect anyone smoking pork steaks but there's been a few pork loins done around here.
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jess · Posted: Jun 16 2020 Post subject:

JMHO but it sounds like you have two problems. First it seems you might be "cold smoking" at a higher temp. than you believed - which is a good thing safety wise so when you put it in a skillet you are twice cooking it. Second problem is pellets are notorious for not putting out enough smoke flavor. If I smoke mullet ( it's a Fl. thing ) or salmon I get my offset or a ECB indirect to about 200. Brine then smoke / cook them for 2-3 hrs. depending on thickness of the fillets. Use the wood of your choice - I like buttonwood or pecan for fish. On the ECB I use chunks and splits in the offset. Good luck...