How Long do I Smoke Meats For?

by BILL
(Toronto, Ontario Canada)

I recently smoked a brisket, and after the initial amount of time, the smoke went out.

When starting up a second smoke pack (punctured foil, with a mix of wet and dry chips) can you increase the heat on the indirect side of the grill to "fire up" the chips?
Is there a point in the smoking when it becomes redundant to be using any more smoke, if the produce has absorbed its' fill of smoke?

Thanks


Chef Todd Says:
"You can't smoke something too much". If you are cooking something under a dry heat smoke, you should be able to let it smoke for hours if you'd like. Because the item isn't being cooked directly, it is a slower and softer cooking method. As with everything, you should have a thermometer to cook to a finished internal temperature of your product, not just time.

When you add more soaked chips to your smoker, do not increase the heat, continue with "low and slow" of the smoker until your thermometer tells you it's done.

Remember, your smoker should be about 120-140F. Each time you open the lid or door of the smoker, you loose 75 degrees or so. It takes another 20-30 minutes for the smoker to recover. So, don't mess with it! Get yourself a wireless thermometer and you won't have to open the smoker once.


Chef Todd.