What type of hickory wood for smoking

Hickory — A classic wood excellent for pork—especially bacon—but can be too heavy for chicken. Pecan — Similar to hickory, pecan wood has a nutty smell that mixes well with fruit-wood when used for smoking poultry. Wood Configuration. Wood chips have a short burn life, which is why they should be a last resort. Three to four-inch wood chunks burn longer than wood chips and mix well with charcoal. Small splits are long, thin wood pieces that burn evenly and yield consistent smoke.

Should I Soak My Wood? Let me know if you have any questions about this. JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Different species of hickory trees? I have several different species of hickory in my area and scattered across some of my land. Are certain types better to smoke with than others.

I'm told scaly bark, water hickory aka bitterpecan , bitternut, nutmeg, and mockernut red hickory are the common species around here but I'm still learning how to tell most of them apart. Right now I've got a little over a cord of two different types of hickory that came from one of my neighbors place. I know its definitely hickory but all I've got is the bark to look at so I'm going to go back to his place and check out the other standing trees so I can see the leaves as well.

My tree ID book should get me pointed in the right direction if I can compare the leaves. Red Oak is the king of hardwoods and oaks, especially when it comes to smoking meats. Oak is strong, but it does not tend to overpower the taste and texture of the meat. If you are cooking or smoking beef or lamb, this is the best hardwood to use. Favored by restaurants, this naturally oily wood burns hot and fast. Mesquite is not the best choice for hosting long and lazy BBQ.

Use Grapevine cuttings for BBQ beef, poultry, and fish. It will give your meats a nice, delicate flavor. The downside of grapevine cuttings is the vast amounts of pungent smoke. Applewood imparts a mild flavor and sweetness to meats. It would be best to only use this wood for BBQ pork, especially ham, and poultry. The pecan tree is in this genus of trees. Hickory trees are typically long-living and produce nuts, some of which are sweet and edible.

All hickories fall into the Juglandaceae family the walnut family. The bark is identifiable by the long, vertical strips on the outer bark. This tree is found in much of the Midwestern and Eastern states.

Also called Swamp Hickory. It is short-lived compared to other hickories only to about years. Like the Shagbark, it is found throughout much of the Eastern and Midwestern states of the U.