Types of wood chips
- Alder – is a mild wood and has a subtle smoke flavor. It has a natural sweetness and is a great choice for smoking salmon. It’s really a great choice for any fish.
- Maple – It also gives off a mild and sweet flavor. Due to this, it is commonly used with poultry, vegetables, and cheeses. But the smoke from maple, even though it’s sweet, will also give your meat a darker appearance. It’s also good for mixing with other woods like apple, oak, and alder
- Apple – is a go-to wood for all smoking purposes. It’s a fruitwood that gives off a mild, sweet, fruity flavor. It’s commonly used with poultry, pork, lamb and sometimes even seafood, but its flavor doesn’t really hold onto red meats that well. It can still be used, but the flavor will just not be as strong.
- Cherry – Another fruitwood that is good for all-purpose smoking. It will also give a sweet mild flavor. This one works well with both pork and beef, but this will turn your meet a dark red color.
- Oak – is a great blending wood. It’s stronger than apple and cherry. It gives a mild, smoky flavor and works well with any type of meat.
- Hickory – This one is a very popular BBQ flavor. This wood has strong smoke that gives your food a sweet flavor, but you must be careful because if you over smoke it, it will turn your meat bitter.
- Mesquite – This wood can be said to be in a classification of its own. Its extremely strong flavor holds up well to red meats. It is not recommended to use this on your lighter meats like poultry and fish. It’s highly recommended that you blend this wood to avoid over smoking and turning your food bitter.
- Pecan – gives your meat somewhat of a fruity flavor and burns cooler than most other barbecue woods. It’s similar to hickory and is best used on large cuts like brisket and pork roast, but can also be used to compliment chops, fish, and poultry.