Wood for venison bologna

[Smalls]

Hey all!  I was wondering if anyone has made venison bologna and if so, what type of wood would be best.  I have 15 lbs of bologna in casings ready to go into the BS tomorrow (10 lbs venison, 5 lbs pork cured with Hi Mtn bologna cure).  I have hickory, apple, maple, pecan, alder and cherry to choose from.  Hickory is what I'm going with unless someone has had better luck with something else.  Thanks in advance!
Bill

[BigSmoker]

Bill,
I smoked some already cooked bologna once with some pecan and it hardly had any smoke taste at all.  I would think it was because the meat is so dense.  If this tranlates to bologna that has not yet been cooked/smoked than hickory would be a good choice.  Sounds good no matter what you do though[:p].

Jeff
www.bbqshopping.com
Some say BBQ is in your blood, if thats true my blood must be BBQ sauce.

[Smalls]

Thanks for the advice Jeff.  I'm putting the bologna on as soon as I type this with hickory.  The other dilemma is to hang the bologna or put it on trays.  I used 2 1/2" casings which are about 18" long.  I'm not sure if they will fit on the racks.

[BigSmoker]

Bill,
I have read quite a few articles that give hanging the meat by hooks etc. the thumbs up.  Butcher and Packer sells hooks.  I have also heard of people hanging ribs with great success.  Also how porus are the casings.  Are they eatable?

Jeff
www.bbqshopping.com
Some say BBQ is in your blood, if thats true my blood must be BBQ sauce.

[charlie]

hey
i'd use the hickory bisquettes as well on the bologna. normally i use mesquite, hickory and oak on red meat for the strong smoke flavours. apple, cherry, maple are all very nice on white meats like pork and chicken. and if you ever smoke fish i stick with pecan or alder. just some good flavours i've found that work with eachother.
happy smokin'

[Smalls]

Jeff,
  The casings are not edible and are pretty thick.  Just some advice if you use the Hi-Mtn bologna kit: The casings are 2.5 inches wide and about 18 inches long.  I stuffed them and when it came time to smoke, I realized they were too big for the Bradley!  They were too long to hang and too long to fit nicely on the racks.  After panicking slightly and losing a lot of heat out of the smoker, I sort of forced them in diagonally, two per shelf.  Because they're so thick, you cannot invert another tray on top of them.  I did use hickory smoke for 3 hrs 40 mins.  The end result was very good.  The ends were a little more done than the center but still ok.  I would add 2 tbs of black pepper and possibly some red pepper flakes for flavor and more spice next time.  I would also use smaller casings or not fill the ones in the kit so full.
Bill

[BigSmoker]

Bill S.,
Glad all turned out well.  I will definitely put this on my to do list.  So much to smoke and so little time[:D].

Jeff
www.bbqshopping.com
Some say BBQ is in your blood, if thats true my blood must be BBQ sauce.