Smoking salt, paprika and chilis - questions abound

[SoCalBuilder]

My sister has been after me to smoke some paprika for her. I've read about that here and also making your own smoked salt. The first question is how much smoke and what kind. I can see all kinds of personal preferences coming on the kind of smoke, but a learned concensus might be helpful. I can see where a cold smoke might be also, primarily to get the water bowl out of the smoke. Moist salt might not be cool, but if the smoke duration is short, you could pull the pan and dry the salt like you do jerky.

The next thought is smoking and drying various peppers to grind later, like chipotle. Might be fun to experiment with different peppers and smoke.

Anyway, any insight and suggestions would be appreciated.

[Quarlow]

Having never done it my piece of advice is to put your spices onto coffee filters for smoking.

[GusRobin]

coffee filters work. I have done it using paper plates. Another good item to smoke is ketchup. I put a couple of bottles in one of those disposable aluminum pans, added 1 1/2 hours of smoke and it was great. Everyone that tries it loves it.
Since you are cold smoking, I would start out with minimal smoke maybe 1/2 to 1 hr, do a taste test, and add some more smoke if desired. Everyone has their own likes and dislikes. You can always add more smoke time but you can't dilute over smoked.

[squirtthecat]

Ditto on the coffee filters.   I 'acquired' a few commercial sized Bunn filters from the office.  Each one covers a Bradley rack, and will hold a pound of salt.

Last salt I smoked got 3.5 hours of Pecan.

Double ditto on the ketchup.  It sounds crazy, but it turns out fantastic. 

[muebe]

The coffee filter idea is great. I wanted to smoke some salt tommorow morning and was gonna ask the best way to do it.

[jiggerjams]

BAVIND gave me hickory salt he smoked himself in the Christmas exchange and it is fantastic!!

[Bavind]

I smoke salt with hickory for 30 hrs comes out amazing. I can never keep any for my self except what I hide  ;D My friends and relatives some how find out I am doing salt and almost line up for their share. I have done it a couple times this last year and am going to have to do another batch soon.

[Bavind]

I usually use cheese cloth rather than coffee filters smoke seems to get at the salt better. I also stir the salt multiple times part ways though the smoke

[GusRobin]

I smoke salt with hickory for 30 hrs comes out amazing. I can never keep any for my self except what I hide  ;D My friends and relatives some how find out I am doing salt and almost line up for their share. I have done it a couple times this last year and am going to have to do another batch soon.

Is that 30 hours (90 pucks) in the Bradley?

[Tenpoint5]

I smoke salt with hickory for 30 hrs comes out amazing. I can never keep any for my self except what I hide  ;D My friends and relatives some how find out I am doing salt and almost line up for their share. I have done it a couple times this last year and am going to have to do another batch soon.

Is that 30 hours (90 pucks) in the Bradley?

Yes he does use 90 pucks.

When I do Mine I just put it on the top shelf and let it ride with what ever I am smoking at the time. Usually I am doing a Boston Butt and the salt gets 4 hours of smoke. I also stir it around a couple of times during the process. You dont have to worry about melting the salt. Salt melts at something like 2473º I don't think the Bradley is going to be that warm.

[SoCalBuilder]

10.5 -  ;D I guess i misworded that. I'm not worried about the salt melting from the heat, but didn't know how much moisture is really in the smoke.

[sage03]

I've used a couple of splattter screens(clean/new) that i got at Ikea for about $3 ea. I just had to bend it slightly to fit the racks and have the door close.. I've tried kosher and sea salt both work fine.Hickory or Mesquite work well...3-4 hrs...stirring a couple times...remove, put in small containers/jars.This also makes great gifts along w/ smoked cheese!!! :)     

[jiggerjams]

I like that idea sage.

I was thiniking on letting salt ride on multiple cooks until I get the flavor I am looking for. If I am using hickory I will add previously smoked hickory salt. The same would go for other salts.

Anyone try this? BAVIND is that how you get 90 hours of smoke or do you just go hard at it for 90 hours?

[Bavind]

Its usually 24 to 30 hrs and I usually do a bunch at once as the only thing in the smoker. I think that if i did it with other stuff in the smoker it may transfer the smells to the salt.