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Hi guys, what kind of wood do you use? I use hickory since I have a nice supply at the moment. I wood (haha) like to try oak, should I use red or white? I have some apple woodchips I picked up at the store but that one bag won't last long the way I run my cooker!

I know they say nut bearing wood is good but you never hear of walnut being used. Also how about maple?

Lugnutz wrote:Hi guys, what kind of wood do you use? I use hickory since I have a nice supply at the moment. I wood (haha) like to try oak, should I use red or white? I have some apple woodchips I picked up at the store but that one bag won't last long the way I run my cooker!

I know they say nut bearing wood is good but you never hear of walnut being used. Also how about maple?

I have always advocated "Use what is readily available and inexpensive for you where you live"

I wish I had access to massive amounts of Hickory for an affordable price. We typically burn 4-5 full-cords of wood each summer for our BBQ catering business. And the woods we have locally in abundance are Red Oak, and Sugar Maple. I will find some White Oak occasional and I use that too.
I designed my rub and sauce to work in harmony with the wood I burn, You may want to consider this too.
Maybe it will be different for you because you want to try new flavors, whereas I need to be consistent from year to year due to customer expectations.

All the Oak varieties are very similar in taste and burning characteristics and they create an abundance of live flame when burning with little coals. Maple on the other hand produces huge amounts of coals, but little live flame once burned down some.

I like using 100% oak, but some people may consider it too flavorful, so I add some maple to the mix to lower the flavor strength, and provide a bed of coals.

You got to pay attention to Oak and its moisture content, it typically takes me 3 or more years to dry it enough for cooking once it is split.
Maple will be usable within 12 months (as short as 8 sometimes)

Have you ever considered Pecan? it has a similar flavor as Hickory, but not as harsh and pungent.
if I remember correctly, Walnut wood has a compound in it that may not be good for cooking. Or it may be a certain variety of Walnut that is not a good choice. Just be careful until you verify it's suitability for cooking.

I use sugar maple and Cherry most of the time as its free and plentyfull.

Thanks guys, I kinda thought maybe walnut had some bad stuff in it but couldn't remember for sure. I have acess to hickory and oak more than anything else. Lots of maples but not sugar maple, I got those darn silvers and all the helicopter seeds a kid could play with.

From:

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/smoking/wo ... moking.htm

"Walnut – heavy smoke flavor. Can impart bitter taste if not monitored. Good with red meats and game."

HTH

Phil

Thanks Wheels, I have lots of walnut but I aint cuttin em down till I have to. I have 3 on a creek bank that someday mother nature is gonna claim, I'll try them in moderation.

Thanks for the list, dang Mulberry ?? You know how much of that I tossed in the fire the past 2 winters??? But I know where to get my hands on 2 or 3 more trees!!