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tacklebox
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Joined: 07 Jul 2009
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Location: Big Bend, WI
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 Posted: Sep 28 2010 Post subject: My Cheese Stinks!!! But it tastes great 10-4-10 update |
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Literally  Last week I smoked some sample cheeses in my home-made cold smoker. (No lies...you can see it in this forum and the cooker forum  ) First cheese, first run on the smoker. Used apple pellets. It friggin smells terrible, even after a week in plastic wrap in the fridge. It smells so off-putting, I don't even want to take a bite  Is this normal?? I smoked it for 3 hours using my new cooker(soldering iron, aquarium pump, grease drum, and an aluminum cylinder), and it smells stagnant. I think I may have a drafting problem, leaving stale smoke in my cook chamber, but I would like the cheese smoking experts to chime in if they would. Thanks for any info.
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Last edited by tacklebox on Oct 05 2010; edited 1 time in total |
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Oregon smoker
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Joined: 07 Nov 2006
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Location: Portland, OR
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| Posted: Sep 28 2010 Post subject: |
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Did you season that smoker before you used it to cook?
The smell can be horrendous on some of the cheeses that go more than an hour. I made the faux pas last year of smoking some cheddar for 3 hours that went into gift baskets for Christmas. I warned everyone it may not be good, got no complaints, and actually had several people ask for more.
All i can suggest is to wrap it some new plastic wrap or even vacuum seal it and stuff it in the back of the fridge for a few weeks to see if it "weakens".
Cheese and meat packaged. |
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tacklebox
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| Posted: Sep 28 2010 Post subject: |
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No...I didn't 'season' it. I cleaned it out with some detergent and rinsed it real good. The inside is bare metal, and right now I don't have a way to get it warm enough to season it. I have a hot plate, but I don't think that'll do.  This is to be a dedicated 'cold' smoker, only running up to 155°F or so. I'll try the vac-pac thing. If that doesn't work, I'll adjust the variables one at a time until I get it right. I think three hours may have been a little too much  Thanks Oregon
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patruns
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| Posted: Sep 28 2010 Post subject: |
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Just a shot in the dark here but how common is smoking cheese with apple wood? I usually see hickory mentioned in the store bought stuff. Maybe the sweetness of fruit wood doesn't work well with cheese?
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Oregon smoker
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Location: Portland, OR
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| patruns wrote: | | Just a shot in the dark here but how common is smoking cheese with apple wood? I usually see hickory mentioned in the store bought stuff. Maybe the sweetness of fruit wood doesn't work well with cheese? |
Interesting.
I can drive 1.5 miles to my super grocery store that has a huge cheese section that is almost as good as a yuppy whole foods cheese department and they have several smoked cheeses and i dont believe any of them are smoked with hickory.
YMMV. |
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tacklebox
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Location: Big Bend, WI
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| patruns wrote: | | Just a shot in the dark here but how common is smoking cheese with apple wood? I usually see hickory mentioned in the store bought stuff. Maybe the sweetness of fruit wood doesn't work well with cheese? |
I believe the 'Hickory' you speak of is Liquid Smoke. That's what I have found in my research/stumblings along my way to producing good smoked cheese. Liquid Smoke and colorings/dyes are usually used in mass marketed smoked cheeses. This usually does not apply to artisanal cheeses. (Not saying I'm trying to be an artist, I just want good smoked cheese )
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patruns
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| Oregon smoker wrote: | | patruns wrote: | | Just a shot in the dark here but how common is smoking cheese with apple wood? I usually see hickory mentioned in the store bought stuff. Maybe the sweetness of fruit wood doesn't work well with cheese? |
Interesting.
I can drive 1.5 miles to my super grocery store that has a huge cheese section that is almost as good as a yuppy whole foods cheese department and they have several smoked cheeses and i dont believe any of them are smoked with hickory.
YMMV. |
What woods are they smoked with Oregon? Maybe it's a regional thing....
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patruns
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| tacklebox wrote: | | patruns wrote: | | Just a shot in the dark here but how common is smoking cheese with apple wood? I usually see hickory mentioned in the store bought stuff. Maybe the sweetness of fruit wood doesn't work well with cheese? |
I believe the 'Hickory' you speak of is Liquid Smoke. That's what I have found in my research/stumblings along my way to producing good smoked cheese. Liquid Smoke and colorings/dyes are usually used in mass marketed smoked cheeses. This usually does not apply to artisanal cheeses. (Not saying I'm trying to be an artist, I just want good smoked cheese ) |
May very well be tacklebox. I was just commenting on the type of smoke flavor 
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tacklebox
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| patruns wrote: | | May very well be tacklebox. I was just commenting on the type of smoke flavor |
Yup, I got that. That will be one of my variables that I will play with as I journey down this (so far) smelly road. I got some Jack Daniels pellets along with hickory and cherry to try also. Mmmmm....whisky cheddar
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Oregon smoker
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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If its supposedly hickory smoke, your getting liquid smoke.
The stuff i see is smoked with fruit woods.
Rogue Creamery makes a blue cheese that is smoked with hazelnut and hulls and is very good, IMO. If you have never had Rogue Creamery cheeses i suggest you search them out and try them they have won several awards.
http://www.roguecreamery.com/group.asp
It looks like they are only selling their blue cheeses online. They also make several(15+) other varieties of cheese all of which are very good. |
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Gunner69
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Joined: 24 Dec 2009
Posts: 213
Location: Hillsboro, OR
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| Oregon smoker wrote: | If its supposedly hickory smoke, your getting liquid smoke.
The stuff i see is smoked with fruit woods.
Rogue Creamery makes a blue cheese that is smoked with hazelnut and hulls and is very good, IMO. If you have never had Rogue Creamery cheeses i suggest you search them out and try them they have won several awards.
http://www.roguecreamery.com/group.asp
It looks like they are only selling their blue cheeses online. They also make several(15+) other varieties of cheese all of which are very good. |
I'll +100 to that their Blue Cheese is to die for especially when crumbled over a freshly grilled burger. |
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Oregon smoker
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| Gunner69 wrote: | | Oregon smoker wrote: | If its supposedly hickory smoke, your getting liquid smoke.
The stuff i see is smoked with fruit woods.
Rogue Creamery makes a blue cheese that is smoked with hazelnut and hulls and is very good, IMO. If you have never had Rogue Creamery cheeses i suggest you search them out and try them they have won several awards.
http://www.roguecreamery.com/group.asp
It looks like they are only selling their blue cheeses online. They also make several(15+) other varieties of cheese all of which are very good. |
I'll +100 to that their Blue Cheese is to die for especially when crumbled over a freshly grilled burger. |
I am sure you guys have a large farmers market on that side of town. They usually have someone sampling the Rogue cheeses. I abuse the privilege so much at the Milwaukie farmers market that i break down and buy some from time to time.
If your ever down south stop by the creamery they have a cool little store there.
Joe i thought of something else, your not trying to smoke some fromundah cheese are you?
Last edited by Oregon smoker on Sep 29 2010; edited 1 time in total |
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killswitch505
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tacklebox
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Location: Big Bend, WI
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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killswitch505, well now, after that, I've lost my appetite for cheese
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~Joe
This post is not intended to offend, unless I intend it to
Life is like a penis, some times it gets hard for no reason
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Teleking
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day_trippr
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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Oh, man - please don't ruin bacon for me!
Cheers!
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tacklebox
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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Thanks all...you even allowed me to hijack my own thread, dammm you guyz are good  Cheese is in vac pacs as we speak. I know, no pics.... Me and the SWMBO are leaving for Michigan Thurs. morning for some fun and festivities for a friends wedding. We get back on Sunday, I will report back then.
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~Joe
This post is not intended to offend, unless I intend it to
Life is like a penis, some times it gets hard for no reason
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Oregon smoker
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Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 6246
Location: Portland, OR
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| tacklebox wrote: | | Thanks all...you even allowed me to hijack my own thread, dammm you guyz are good Cheese is in vac pacs as we speak. I know, no pics.... Me and the SWMBO are leaving for Michigan Thurs. morning for some fun and festivities for a friends wedding. We get back on Sunday, I will report back then. |
Have fun!
I am sure the cheese will mellow.
I dont worry about the smell so much as the taste. If it hasnt mellowed by the time you get back try leaving it out on the counter for a few hours under a paper towel, maybe even lightly dampen the towel. |
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milt
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Location: June-OCT N.Y. Nov-May FL
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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Next time leave the cheese in one chunk, DON'T CUT THE CHEESE. 
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SmokinOkie
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| Posted: Sep 29 2010 Post subject: |
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| tacklebox wrote: | | ... This is to be a dedicated 'cold' smoker, only running up to 155°F or so. |
I don't see 155 as Cold Smoking. Everything I see usually says below 100 degrees so that you don't do ANY cooking of the product.
For me, 3 hours is too much. And key is how much wood and smoke you're generating.
Try a batch at lower temps, and do two steps. Step one, smoke some for an hour, step two, smoke some for 2 hours total.
Seal and taste the next day.
Then you can come the wood flavor itself with two different durations. |
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