Most people are overlooking their smoke color during a cook

I was watching a buddy run his offset last Saturday in Nashville and he kept loading white smoke onto a brisket for 3 hours. He swore it tasted fine but I could smell the creosote from 10 feet away. A clean thin blue smoke is what you want, not that thick white stuff that makes the meat bitter. Anyone else had to explain this to someone mid cook?

2 comments

2 Comments

rowanc296d ago

The white smoke thing is so common with guys who think "more smoke equals more flavor." You have to catch it early or they get defensive about it. I tell people to look at the smoke coming off the stack right after they add wood if it's thick and white they need to wait for it to catch properly before putting the meat in. Thin blue smoke is the goal and you barely see it once you get the hang of it. With your buddy you could try showing him the difference by running a clean fire on one side and his regular fire on another but some people just won't listen until they taste the bitterness themselves.

wesleybutler6d ago

Has your buddy tried the same brisket cooked with thin blue smoke side by side with his usual heavy white smoke method? I'm curious if he'd still claim it tastes fine once he had a direct comparison to work with. Sometimes people just get stuck in their routine and don't realize what they're missing until it's right in front of them.