Mesquite

[Rudi]

Up here in the PNW, we can't get Mesquite wood. I use Oak for the hot coals, then Alder, Maple, Apple, Walnut, Filbert, and some Apricot for smoke depending on the meat.

 

[twodog max]

As I live in the Ozarks where hickory is practically a weed that is what I use. A never ending supply out the back door.

 

[tops]

#1 Hickory #2 Oak... Larry

 

[Old Arkansawyer]

That means the temperature was too high on the scalding pan and the hair will not easily scrap off the hog.

Winner, winner. BBQ chicken dinner.

 

[MRB1]

I don't know if this is true or not, but I took it as gospel when I bought my smoker in 87 - was told not to use different varieties of wood in a smoker because of the different flavors involved. Although mine has never had anything but mesquite in it, I don't see how a smoker could get "confused" (their word) by switching woods ever so often. Anybody else heard that ?

 

[zeke]

Just to pay tribute, mesquite smoked hot Italian sausages for lunch today. With butter garlic buns, onions and ketchup. Shot some pics of the made sandwiches, but camera's automatic flash stopped, and was not smart enough to realize it.

 

[arjay]

I’ve never cooked with it,but piñon pine has a nice smoke

 

[jc2721]

We have kiawe wood here which is really popular for smoking meats and for in-ground roasting (luau-style). I believe it's the same as mesquite.

I've used it for smoking the Christmas rib roast for many, many years. I mostly use good charcoal with a chunk or two of soaked kiawe for the smoke--never had any complaints about the roast.




For pork, I use lychee wood--it gives the meat a nice, mild, sweet flavor.

 

[Chubbo]

Cooking with mesquite

Mesquite wood is the favorite of many for cooking. Circa 1960 There was a popular restruant in the Rocky Fork Lake area near Hillsboro, Ohio, That featured outdoor grilled beefsteaks, and used mesquite wood exclusively, and burned, a prodigious amount of it. They catered to the boat racing crowd, and also to the locals. On their menu was a 64oz steak dinner, free to anyone that could eat all of it in one hour. We watched that feat accomplished a couple of times. That was my only encounter with the use of mesquite wood in Ohio.

Chubbo

 

[2ffat]

I prefer maple, cherry, and hickory but I'm cooking ribs with mesquite right now.

I guess I'm a smoke-agnostic.

 

[Chubbo]

Historical note

Applewood burns the best for cooking of any wood that I’ve tried. It burns steady, smells great, requires little attention, and leaves almost no ash. It has another use, that’s seldom heard of today, It’s the only wood growing in the USA, that expands when it dries. Circa 1800s When large buildings frameworks were hued log beams, and their joints were pinned together with wood pins, applewood pins were the first choice, as they swelled irremovable in place, when they dried. The state of Ohio considered Apple wood highly important as a construction material, and passed, a law, banning the burning of applewood for any reason.

Chubbo

 

[walkin jack]

I’ve never cooked with it,but piñon pine has a nice smoke

When we did our fly-out fishing trips to Canada we had pinion pine for fire wood. We used it in the wood stove in the cabin and we used it to grill some steaks and some lake trout. I thought it was pretty good. That is pretty much the only tree that grows on those little islands. I wouldn't mind having some around here.