Bradley Smoker....any tips ?.

[croaker stroker]

Since we are enjoying such a robust fishing season, I decided I need a bigger smoker. My Little Chief has been great for years and years. But I decided it was time to get serious about smoking some more quantity.

Found this on Craigslist.....$110

Please let me know any little suggestions you might have for using this thing. I tried smoking a Pork Roast and it got way too Smoky. This thing generates a LOT more smoke than the Little Chief. How many pellets do you use to smoke a load of fish ?

[tc808]

bradleys use a wood puck right?  I think there should be a way to regulate the smoke generator separate from the "oven" section, did it come with the manual?  If not it should be online. 

[Markshoreline]

I REALLY like the Bradley!
You need to use their pucks, nothing else will work.  Each puck burns for 20 minutes and remember the advance mechanism needs two pucks to push the ones that will get burned.  So to smoke for 1 hour put 5 pucks in, three will burn and the last two will just function as spacers.
If you want to smoke for 3 hours, use 9 pucks plus two for spacers.
You can adjust the temperature with the rotating knob (which doesn't have temp gradients) so you have to look at the thermometer on the door to see what the temp is given the atmospheric conditions and how much food you have on board.
Using the cold smoke adapter, I easily ran the smoker at 65 f yesterday when I cold smoked bacon and gouda.  I've also done some hot smoking of chicken and it turned out great.  I'm heading to the Asian store to pick up some more black pig belly for another batch of bacon!

[Grilse]

I've had one for a long time, but just purchased a PID, which does a way better job of controlling temperature. Makes a huge difference when smoking salmon, really helps keep the protein bleed down.

http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=72

The other thing I've found is that you need to keep the smoke generator puck path very clean, especially the pusher mechanism. If you don't, the pucks may not advance very well.

The amount of smoke is a personal preference, you don't need to generate smoke the entire time, which the nice thing about the Bradley.

Jeff

[T-Rex]

Having 2 of these blanks is handy
http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=111

I usually only apply smoke to salmon for 2 hrs.
I also wrap a couple bricks in tin foil and place them in the bottom of the smoker, helps bring the temperature back up when you load the fish.

[T-Rex]

A PID and this is handy too... :biggrin:
http://www.amazon.ca/RediCheck-Remote-Cooking-Thermometer-Settings/dp/B0000AQL24
Its nice to monitor internal temps from the couch lol

[croaker stroker]

Great suggestions ! 

Anybody ever use "Mortons Tender Quick" or "Mortons Sugar Cure". ??

Looks like the Sugar Cure has Sodium Nitrate which may preserve the smoked fish for longer. 

[tc808]

tender quick has both sodium nitrite and nitrate which I think breaks down to nitrite over time, it works great on pork.

[wedocq]

Finally! We get to spend Croaker's money for a change.  :biggrin: :whistle:
-Shawn

[croaker stroker]

[croaker stroker]

I ordered some of that Morton's curing mixture. I will report back.


My wife took the smoked pork roast and cooked it in the Crock Pot all day...it made some of the best pulled pork that I have ever tasted !!!

[Markshoreline]

I use Tender Quick for sausage making and have some in the dry cure I'm curing bacon with currently.  It's available in grocery stores locally.
Shawn we're not spending much of Croaker's money if he's buying a Bradley for $100!

[Kingslayer]

Tender Quick and  Prague Powder, depending on the recipe. 

But in general, I don't bother with this stuff for my fish...just unnecessary chemical.  I only use this stuff for venison jerky and sausage requiring serious curing.  The fish gets vaccum packed and frozen if not eaten immediately.

[croaker stroker]

I want to smoke a chicken like they do at Lucille's. I looked it up online and the smoking forum people recommended soaking it overnight in the Morton's stuff.

Is that necessary ?

[Kingslayer]

I would brine it for sure, but it doesn't need to be with TQ.  Curing salts are serious stuff (e.g. lethal in large doses) so I don't use them unless necessary (dry cured meats, REALLY long smoking time, etc.)  Kosher salt and Brown Sugar will take you pretty much everywhere you want to go.

[Kingslayer]

Straight from the Morton website:

The Best Salt For Brining
Morton® Coarse Kosher Salt is perfect for brining because the flat, flaky crystals dissolve extremely well in water and create a crystal clear brine.

[tc808]

For foods that you are going to eat right away and are cooked at a relatively high temp curing salts aren't technically needed, however they do add a unique cured flavor and pink hue to the protein.  Any of the commercially available ones will come with instructions as to the right amount to use.  Be sure to follow directions as the amount of nitrite may vary, although all "pink salt"  aka Prague Powdwer is 6.25%. 

[Threeweight]

For fish and poultry, I've never used anything stronger than Kosher salt.

[tc808]

I don't think fish needs the curing salt but poultry (especially turkey) is really good cured and smoked.

[Threeweight]

Curing/brining are shades of the same thing.

We brine salmon, for instance (wet or dry brine) mostly to pull some of the liquid out of the fish and reduce the growth of bacteria when it is smoked and stored.  Depending on ingredients (like brown sugar), it can also add some flavor to the fish, and it helps in the formation of the film around the meet when it dries that traps some of the fats in the fish and absorbs the smokey flavor.  You can do a wet brine with chicken/turkey/etc... as well, and it really helps keep the finished meat juicier.

The more serious cures for beef/pork/chicken will have nitrate in the salt.  Much stronger at killing/preventing bacteria and it gives the beef a nice red color, but it is also the stuff in processed meat your doctor tells you to avoid. 

[Kingslayer]

What 3WT said.  Of course, if you're following what the "experts" are saying...eating anything smoked is now going to kill you, so you should probably just get rid of the smoker.

[T-Rex]

If your eating Pork,Bacon or Sausage (YuK) then your not worried about dying in the first place !

[croaker stroker]

There are mixed opinions about Nitrates/Nitrites. Aparently Carrots, Spinach, Celery..all high in Nitrates.

http://culinaryarts.about.com/od/seasoningflavoring/a/nitrates.htm

[Threeweight]

Here's one a little more science-based, explaining what the issues are:

http://www.livescience.com/36057-truth-nitrites-lunch-meat-preservatives.html

Smoked fish is probably not great for your sodium levels, but otherwise is a fairly healthy (depending on what else you use on it).  Those of us in the PNW are blessed with wild-caught salmon, which is about the healthiest meat source on the planet. 

Anyway, if you are just smoking fish and poultry, and you want it to be juicy, there may not be a need to use the strong stuff.

[Markshoreline]

Same with pork and beef as long as it's not ground, right?