I did a cheese smoke a couple weeks back and posted on another board .. might as well throw 'it up here too
Read on another board a tip to keep below 90ºF or the cheese will 'sweat' this is supposed to be fat rending. I'm no expert but the advice has worked for me. I'm still eating vac packed cheese I smoked in 2007.
Dec 14 2008
Dang, it was -15ºF here today but the cheese smoke had to happen. I opnened it Thursday, had to cancel. Wasn't leaving it open in the fridge another day.
So this is the coldest ambient I've done a cheese smoke in. I found myself in the weird position of wanting to make sure I ran a big enough fire to keep it at least 70ºF in there.
I made a little larger fire than usual. Assembled, added a few (half a handful) of apple chips, set vents and watched. 3 bottom vents set like in the picture below.
In 20 minutes hit max dome temp of 87ºF then a slow decrease over the next 90 minutes down to 50ºF. I added another half handful of apple chips about every 30 minutes. I cracked the door for a bit at 90 minutes to wake the fire up a bit and get back to temp.
Smoked it for 2 hours. I let it sit a month before I start eating it, the smoke mellows.
This Year's:
4 Left From Last Year:
Maybe Tomorrow:
Balderson 2 Year Aged White Cheddar:
Not Fair:
Frosty, Brinkmann Near Full of Ice:
On Parchment:
The Fire:
Just add Smoke:
Top Vent:
Bottom Vent:
Done:
Wrapped Up: