No sorry I was actually trying to post in this and other threads and was getting error messages.

I cleared the auger the other day and did the meat log (beef only).

Straight almond. I very much like. It's deep, but mellow if that makes sense. Not sweet like cherry or the various apple woods/mashes.

My loaf was not the best I ever made, way way too lean. I should have mixed with other meats like my usual or added fat/oil. PLUS I used coconut flour with almond flour for filler. I learned that coconut flour = very drying. PLUS and worst of all, I was working on something in the shop and over cooked the damn thing, it went up to 200°F or so. Uggh.

It was tasty, wife LOVED it. But too dry and a bit too crumbly for me. All that spewed, smoke went in a good 3/4", lucky there.

I want to do a real smoke with Almond soon.

Nice!!! I knew you would like it! Its unique and pleasing - isn't it? It can stand by itself and really doesn't need anything more - I realized that I've burned thru my half bag in the tube really fast since I don't mix it with anything else. I liken it to an alder profile -- only much better. I know some who had picked up the plum/almond deal back aways didn't rate it that highly, but its hardly fair when you pit it up against plum... I can only imagine that almond would be a fantastic choice for smoking cheese... I wish I had the desire for smoked cheese.

I can't wait to hear what you think of the wine almond compared to the plain... You'll have to try some plum next -- although is seems like its availability has been limited lately.... sign up for the Knotty Woods email notifications for when they have another sale.

I did the two butts yesterday.... Kind of a good story.... so I was planning on trying to go toward the lighter side with the smoke for the newbie neighbors..... chatting with him the night before while I was showing him how to prep the pork butt - he mentioned that he has limited sense of smell (going in for surgery soon) but liked his first smoked chicken that his daughter made for him..... so I decided to go back to my original plan of going BIG with smoke just for him --- hoping it wouldn't turn out too smoky for his wife.

Staged up the coal and wood chunks in the WSM for a 'snake' burn for what I would expect would run for 6-7 hours --- alternating plum - cherry chunks on the bottom --- good sized chunks - more than I've ever used before --- coals on top - then 3 decent chunks of apple on top of the coals --- lots of wood!!! Fired up the smoker at 7 am - meat on by 7:30 --- everything running good - temps running low, but figured that was because it was 42 degrees when I started..... Let it run for 3 hours - billowing smoke the whole time....yeah, I know what everyone would say --- but thats the way the WSM works with lots of wood - get over it --- checked at the 3 hour mark and hardly any bark forming, but looking dry already, so started spritzing. Checked the coals --- it had already burned thru 2/3s+ of the snake and most of the wood!!! I was baffled how it could have burned that much while still struggling to get to 250?!?!??! Guessing it was the chilly morning.... Wood and smoke were burned out by the ~4 hour mark leaving just coals, so every time I saw no smoke, I threw another chunk on there. It was getting close to coaling out by the 5 hour mark, so I loaded some more coal and wood in there hoping to take it to 7-8 hours..... I (and most) probably would have stopped right there based on the amount of smoke thrown at it, but the bark was still not formed well enough --- baffling to me why it wasn't forming like it usually does.... same rub and prep as usual. Took it to 7 hours - throwing MORE wood on there as needed - until it coaled out - wrapped and finished in the oven. Not a bad bark, but not what I was expecting/hoping for either.... kind of inconsistent - hard bark on the edges/corners but minimal on the big surfaces...


I was surprised when I unwrapped mine how much darker the bark had gotten --- I usually don't see that happen after wrapping.... Flavor turned out as usual to my smoke blinded nose last night - my neighbor loved it saying he could really taste the smoke and his wife didn't think it was 'too smoky', so I'm happy.... will give it a full assessment tonight with a proper sammy instead of just picking out of the pan.

I'm amazed by the amount of wood that I threw at them (somewhat unintentionally) and the amount of what most would call 'dirty smoke' they got that it wasn't a 'punch in the face' level of smoke flavor in the butt.... And I didn't detect any 'sootiness or bitterness' that people say comes with white smoke. I'll be taking some up to my other neighbor who has had some of every butt I've done for critique when I bring some fat and the bone up to the FurBeast dog.

I'm thinking next time I'll use fewer but bigger wood chunks.... I'm thinking that having so many 'smaller' chunks closely spaced flamed up and caused the coals to ignite and burn faster.... Nice that I keep the wood in slabs so I can choose how big the chunks can be!

You need to check your temp gauge for accuracy JMB, I think it's Lying to you if you can't get a Good bark burning a forest in that thing. Good quality Charcoal matters too.

They should have looked like this. Then again, that's a Pellet smoker that holds a proper temp.

Notice the Lumberjack pellet box? Yeah, I tried it a few times with (of course) Lumberjack pellets. Not really needed but it adds a nice touch.

Tried something new to me tonight

“Over the Top” No Bean Chili
Cast iron Dutch oven.
Cooking the burger “over the top” in the Kamado Joe
275°.
At 150° internal break up the burger & stir into chili. Simmer in smoker another 20 min..
About 2.5 hours total cooking time

No beans!

That looks amazing! I would be all over that.

It's good to try new things, even better when it turns out great.

Damn I'd be all over that chili.....wife just made some smoked ham hocks and beans so I could go for some beanless chili.

I'm dry brining some Sockeye fillets to smoke tomorrow. Safeway has the fillets for 7.99lb, that's a good price. I'm not a big smoked Salmon guy, but my wife loves it so 4.5lbs of fillets will be smoked.

Wow. Quite the many man huh? Go out and catch your own. What the hell else you have to do all day?

No boat, no gear, and I still work a couple days a week.
Safeway is closer to, and fish are already filleted.

And he doesn’t need to take Dramamine to get it, unless his driver is putting her makeup on.

Truth right there...and I don't get seasick.

I was on a Deep sea charter out of Aruba years ago with the three other couples from NY. Big rollers out there, my then Wife and I were the only ones still fishing after an hour.

The rest of them were laying on the deck or cabin Floor.

Don't worry, we'll get you city slickers out to see the county sooner or later might catch your own fish, kill your own game, can some food, even learn to really smoke some meat......

The only store bought seafood I eat is king crab legs....the rest I catch myself.....salmon,steelhead,crab,shrimp,trout,sea bass,going for ling cod opening day in May