Saw a huge difference in brisket after switching my wood blend

I've been cooking brisket for about 3 years now and always used straight hickory. Last month I ran out mid-cook and grabbed some pecan and cherry from a local supplier in Nashville. The bark came out way darker and had this sweet smell I never got before. My family actually said it was the best brisket I've made yet. That one change over a single weekend cook made me rethink everything I thought I knew about wood. Has anyone else noticed a big shift from mixing up their wood choice?

3 comments

3 Comments

susan6497d ago

You bought random wood from a local guy in Nashville and it turned out better than three years of hickory? That's wild. I've been doing offset smoker stuff for a while and always thought hickory was the safe bet for brisket. But now I'm questioning my whole setup. Maybe I need to stop being loyal to one wood and just grab whatever looks good at the hardware store.

wendysanchez7d ago

Start looking at the moisture content in your wood... every supplier dries their stuff different and it changes how the smoke hits the meat. That local guy in Nashville might be selling wood with a higher moisture level than the big box store hickory you been using. Wet wood smolders more and gives you that bitter creosote taste without you even realizing it. The pecan and cherry blend probably had a lower moisture content and burned cleaner, letting the natural sweetness come through. It could also be that the tree species in your area grow different than what you normally buy... regional wood has its own character. So your switch might be less about the type of wood and more about how your new source processes it.

alexk607d ago

And @susan649, I think the bigger factor nobody's talking about is how long the wood was seasoned before you burned it. Pecan and cherry from a small shop might've been sitting around longer than that hickory from the chain store, giving you way less moisture and a cleaner burn right out the gate.