Cold Smoking Steaks

[begolf25]

My local butcher is have a great deal on whole New York strips right now and I am going to go pick one up.  They will cut them for me to my desired thickness.  I am going to vacuum seal  most of them until ready to grill.

My question is can I safely cold smoke the steaks then vacuum seal them to grill another time? Or will they get to a temperature that would require me to grill them right away?  I would rather just cold smoke a large amount instead of having to fire up the Bradley everytime I wanted a couple of steaks.

[Habanero Smoker]

By cold smoking; keeping the temperature below 90°F, and I would only apply 1 hour of smoke; if it was me I would do it. Smoke has antimicrobial properties; it inhibits surface bacterial growth.

[headgames]

lol   better try  smoking  them this winter .  been over 90 degrees outside every day for a week ..and I am in Wisconsin ..... I have never tried cold smoking  but what does one do when its 90 degrees outside ??

[begolf25]

lol   better try  smoking  them this winter .  been over 90 degrees outside every day for a week ..and I am in Wisconsin ..... I have never tried cold smoking  but what does one do when its 90 degrees outside ??

You got that right headgames.  We haven't been below 100 all week.  I will be sure to try this once we get back down to our normal temps but who knows how long that will be!

[Habanero Smoker]

Do a search on cold smoking, it will give details on how to set up the BS for cold smoking. If you smoke during the evenings or early morning, add ice or ice packs to your smoker you should not have any problems keeping it under 90°F; just make sure it stays in the shade. Because the generator is not attached to the smoker, you can remove the drip pan and you won't loose any shelf space. One other thing, move the meat directly from the refridgerator to the smoker, don't leave it on the counter for it to get up to room temperature.

[manxman]

IMHO the best cold smoke method is:

http://www.johnwatkins.co.uk/personalpages/coldsmoking.htm

with or without the addition of ice in the smoking cabinet.

Various references recommend a variety of upper limits for cold smoking ranging from 72F up to 100F although most are in the range of 80F to 90F. I tend to use 80F.

HS gives good advice about smoking in the late evening or early morning but if the temp is above those stated then cold smoking just isn't possible.

There has been the odd discussions on the forum about getting hold of an old domestic fridge in working order and converting that into the equivalent of the BS smoke cabinet with holes for smoke input and venting, and cold smoking by keeping the fridge running. As far as I am aware no-one has attempted this as yet?

[Habanero Smoker]

IMHO the best cold smoke method is:

http://www.johnwatkins.co.uk/personalpages/coldsmoking.htm

Thats the set up I use. From the above posts it didn't appear either was that enthusiastic about the idea, so I didn't bother to search for that link to post.

The 90°F temperature was more for concern about bacterial growth. You would know far more about this then me. At one time I was planning on vending at a few festivals in my area, so I did a lot of researching on the states regulations on food handling. One of the articles posted on the New York State Department of Health mentioned that between 90°F to 100°F (I’m not positive of the top number), the rate of growth of bacteria is at its most favorable. It went on to state that food can only be safely left out in this temperature range for 1 hour.

The ice does bring the inside cabinet temperature down. The last time I cold smoked, the ambient temperature was about 72°F, and the highest the temperature inside the BS got to was 52°F. This was during a 2 hour smoke. Of course when the ambient temperature is 90°F, you won't get such a sharp drop, but it will bring the BS below the ambient temperature. You also have to treat it as if you were preheating. Add the ice about 20 minutes prior to smoking to cool down the cabinet.

[begolf25]

Thanks for the link.  I think that will be the way to go for me.  Looks like we may be getting a break in the weather this weekend so I think I will be trying this out in the early morning or late evening.

Any of you guys tried this before?  If so, how did they turn out?  Any tips or advice for wood type?  I was thinking using some hickory or mesquite.

[Toker]

what type of wood do you use for it? thx

[Habanero Smoker]

I've smoked/cooked Top Loin, which is the cut NY strip comes from. I used oak. Hickory or mesquite can also be used. They will it a heartier smoke flavor. If you use mesquite, I would cut the smoke time down about 1/3 or blend it with another flavor.

[manxman]

I used oak.

I'm with HS on this. 

[CLAREGO]

yeppers im with hab too ribs are good for mesquite and jerky is another thing it does well with

[CLAREGO]

mr. mallard whackard could tell you its the devils wood!!!! (

Don't even think of MesquiteTHE DEVILS WOOD

[Stickbowcrafter]

Even when day temps are above 90, most places get significantly cooler after sundown. In the summer, I do most of my cold smoking at night. I use a separate chamber for the smoke generator http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=5264.0

-Brian

[MoSmoke]

Just thinking out loud.......
Would a couple of milk jugs filled with water and frozen work if you are just using the smoke generator.
You could get a fair volume of ice on a rack as well as cold surface area.

MoSmoke