Hey Everyone

[nwalters1976]

Hey Everyone!  I am new to smoking since my wife just bought me a Bradley Digital 6 Rack smoker.  I am eager to get started.  I have a very newbie question....when doing a cook, the meat will only take smoke up to a certain temperature?  After that, you leave the oven at the desired temp to complete the cook?  Again sorry for may be a simple question and thanks in advance!

[Habanero Smoker]

Hi nwalters1976,

Welcome to the forum.

Do not hesitate to post any question on this board. There is no such thing as a simple question and I will prove it with this answer. :D The answer to your question is Yes, and here is why.

You are correct in that at a certain point meat will no longer absorb smoke, and smoke will only penetrate about 1/8", and if you are lucky 1/4". It is believed that when the surface of the meat reaches 140F, it can not absorb any more smoke, but is that were not the case, smoke still would not penetrate much deeper. Though smoke will no longer penetrate, it can still adhere to the surface of the meat as long as the surface has some moisture. That why you will see most recipes say, apply so many hours of smoke, then continue to cook.

If you continue to apply smoke beyond the recommended times, the meat will develop a very unpleasant bitter astringent taste. Having said that; smoke flavor is subjective, one may like either more or less smoke than what is recommended in the recipe. Below is a link to a post, that provides suggestions on how long to apply smoke.

Smoke Times

[Edward176]

Hello nwalters1976, and welcome to the forum. Like Habanero said, don't hesitate to ask any question here. We were all newbie's once too :)
Enjoy your new hobby and smoke up a storm.

[manxman]

Welcome to the forum.  :)