Greeniaman here

[Greenieman]

I just got a 14.5 WSM and I have a Weber 22.5 grill. I love smoked food. I just set up a cold smoker and I am not happy with the smoke flavor. I am in the process of tinkering with temperature control of the Weber grill. I am learning more and more about automated temperature control as I progress.

I want to learn more about smoking food. This includes vegetables. My wife is a vegetarian and there is only the two of us. The smoker and grill are my summertime cooking sources. Summers are too hot, here in Alabama, to cook inside. In the winter, I grill for the variety and in the summer I cook outside to avoid heating the house.

When I cook meat, I have to look forward to leftovers. I need to learn how to freeze the cooked meats so that I can vary my meals and leftovers.

I have read several articles on this website and have really enjoyed them and look forward to reading more.

I am a retired engineer and I love the science of cooking as well as the art.

[_John_]

Welcome, squash and eggplant are a couple of my favorite grilled veggies, but asparagus wins by a mile. Anything particular you are trying to cold smoke? Cheese perhaps?

[David Parrish]

Welcome Greenie! We're glad you're here. I'm originally from Clanton, AL but have lived there since graduating college and joining the USAF (I'm separated).

We can't wait to help you out, but I have to point out one thing. We don't cold smoke here unless it's foods that don't need to be cooked (cheese and nuts). And we don't give out advice on cold smoking unless it's food that doesn't need to be cooked. Check out this article to understand why: http://amazingribs.com/tips_and_tech...d_smoking.html

[Greenieman]

My cold smoking is limited to cheese. The problem that I found was the bitter taste from the smoke. So I lam learning more about smoke. What I have learned is that the white smoke is a problem. I need to figure out how to get the wonderful blue smoke out of my smoke generator.

The smoke generator is a stainless steel tea caddy with a few holes drilled in the bottom and a pipe/Venturi apparatus I made on the top. The venturi apparatus is connected to an aquarium pump. It very similar to the smoke generators you see on youtube. It goes into a large plastic storage box that has grates for the food. It puts out lots of white smoke and the cheese gets a very bitter taste. I have used applewood chips and applewood pellets.

[JeffJ]

Hello Green.

Like you I have a 14.5 WSM and a 22.5 Weber Kettle. I also have a Bradley electric smoker and have cold smoked some cheese in it. I have only smoked cheese 3 or 4 times and have found that, in my limited experience, cheese absorbs smoke VERY quickly. The Bradley is a well-engineered smoker and it ONLY produces thin blue smoke, yet I've still over-smoked cheese in it on more than one occasion. 20 minutes of blue smoke should be plenty.

Please note - I am not suggesting dropping $500 on an electric smoker, just pointing out that even in a precision device that puts out blue smoke I still over-smoked all but one batch of cheese I put into it.

[David Parrish]

If money is no problem there's always the Mak 2 Star General. If you want to make what you have work the key is burning the wood at a very high heat.

Can you show us pics of your setup, or link us to a youtube video that shows something similar to what you have?

[Greenieman]

Go to youtube and search for smoke generator or cold smoker. Here is a video that shows a smoke generator similar to mine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDw0jufZuvU

[David Parrish]

Got it. You should check out the Video Seminar on Smoke:

[Huskee]

Welcome Greenieman ncie to meet you and welcome to The Pit! You'll love it here, lots of good folks to help out or at least offer some conversation.

Since this is your first post, please check out our homework assignment post for new members, it contains a few how-tos and please-dos.

Hope to hear & see more from you!

[Jon Solberg]

Hey Gman! Welcome.

[The Burn]

As for freezing for leftovers - get a FoodSaver. I've got one of the low-end models and it does wonders. I seal up pulled pork, pulled beef, sliced brisket, etc. Then to reheat, you can either cut off one corner of the bag and microwave or you can place in a pot of simmering water. Tastes as good as original