Picked hickory over oak for my brisket smoke last Sunday and I think I messed up

Honestly, I've been using oak chips for years on my Weber Smokey Mountain but decided to try straight hickory chunks from a bag I got at Lowe's for $12. The smoke flavor came out way stronger than I expected, like almost bitter after 8 hours on a 12 pound brisket. My brother said it tasted like I was trying to burn down the shed instead of cook dinner. I ended up having to wrap it in foil early just to tone down the smoke ring. Has anyone else had hickory overpower their meat compared to oak or fruit woods?

3 comments

3 Comments

ray_miller4124d agoProlific Poster

Wait, wait wait... his neighbor's SPRINKLERS went off because the smoke was that thick? That's wild. I mean I've had my smoker set off a smoke alarm in my own kitchen one time when I left the door cracked, but never the outdoor sprinklers. That takes some serious smoke output. Your buddy must have been using green hickory or something, or maybe just way too many chunks at once. I've heard of people getting a "creosote" situation where the smoke gets all thick and black, but that usually comes from bad airflow or wet wood, not just the wood type itself. Although I guess if you load up on hickory and don't let it breathe right, you could definitely end up with a smoke bomb situation like that. That shed story is making me rethink my whole wood choice for next weekend.

jordanc3225d ago

Trying to burn down the shed instead of cook dinner" is the most accurate review of hickory I've ever heard.

grace_allen25d ago

Oh man, that is spot on! I had a buddy once who tried smoking a brisket with hickory for the first time and he ended up with a charcoal briquette and his neighbor’s sprinklers going off because the smoke was so thick. @jordanc32 you nailed it. He’s got a lot of land so no damage done, but that shed still smells like a campfire two years later. Hickory is a beast you gotta respect, not a wood you just grab on a Tuesday night.