Choosing Wood Chips For Smoking: A Guide
Posted on: 27 December 2021
Smoking your own food at home can certainly yield delicious results. Smokers that burn wood chips are often easier to use than those that burn large chunks of wood. But still, so much of your success is determined by the wood chips you choose. With so many different smoking wood chips available at your average barbecue store, how do you go about picking the best ones? Here are some tips.
Consider the food you're cooking.
Before you go buy wood chips, decide what food you plan on smoking. Different types of wood are better suited to smoking different types of food. Generally speaking, the more mildly flavored your food is, the milder the wood should be. If you're smoking beef, then you can absolutely use hickory or mesquite wood chips, which are known for their strong flavors. If you're smoking chicken, you'll likely want something milder, like pecan or cherry. Pork pairs really well with applewood, but it can tolerate mesquite and hickory if you like bolder flavors.
If you plan on smoking a variety of foods, then you're best off choosing wood chips with a medium flavor profile, like applewood or oak.
Consider the size.
Wood chips also come in different sizes. True chips — the small ones — burn up pretty quickly. You'll want to buy these if you plan on smoking foods for shorter time periods. For example, smaller chips work well when you're smoking fish or chicken thighs. If you're smoking something with a longer cook time, such as ribs or brisket, then you'll want to look for larger wood chips. You don't have to go all of the way to true chunks of wood, but chips labeled "large" will be more suitable. You won't have to re-load your smoker as often with these large chips, which will make smoking easier and help you get more consistent results.
Consider the bag size.
Good-quality wood chips can be more pricey than you think. If you're going to be smoking often, then you can generally get the best value by buying a larger bag of wood chips. On the other hand, if you only smoke occasionally, or if you're smoking one brisket but usually only smoke fish, you may just want to buy a small bag that contains what you need for that single smoke.
Hopefully the tips above serve you well as you shop for wood chips.
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