#THE SMOKE RING MENU FULL#

If you keep your fuel smoldering while following the other tips, the smoke will have the best chance of seeping into the meat. Your smoke levels should be the heaviest during the first hour of cooking. If you still don’t have a smoke ring at this point, then you’re simply out of luck until your next attempt. Once the meat reaches 140☏, the smoke won’t be able to affect it anymore. This is when the smoke can fully attack the meat and create the ring before the meat has a chance to get too cooked. The first hour of cooking is the most important when it comes to getting the smoke ring. It will give NO more time to bond with the myoglobin and for the smoke to penetrate even deeper into the meat. Don’t slap a frozen hunk of meat on the grill, but don’t allow it to thaw fully. You should begin cooking before the meat has a chance to hit room temperature. Most of the chemical interactions between nitric oxide and the meat occur in the earlier stages of combustion, so starting around 225☏ is your best bet. Particularly in the early portion of cooking, you want to keep your temperature low to start. This moisture layer helps trap smoke on the surface and improves your chances of getting the smoke ring you desire. Spraying water on the meat doesn’t mean soaking it, but merely keeping a layer of moisture on it for the first hour or so of cooking. NO is produced from the combustion caused by flame, so all you’re doing is stunting the smoke ring’s potential by using wet fuel. Wet fuel creates more smoke, but it’s not the kind of smoke you need. You want to avoid your fuel getting any moisture on it, but spraying water on the meat is critical for getting a quality smoke ring. Moisture is a double-edged sword when it comes to achieving the perfect smoke ring bbq. A surprisingly useful fuel source is bark, as the amount of nitrogen in the bark is higher than in the wood itself. Try to avoid using charcoal, as it produces less nitric oxide than you need for a smoke ring.

Don’t use only greenwood, though, as too much can apply a bitter taste to the meat. However, seasoned wood tends to give off less smoke in return. You’ll want wood that gives off plenty of smoke when burnt so that it can fully invade the meat.įresh or green wood produces plenty of smoke when burned, although it doesn’t burn as quickly as regular seasoned wood. The deeper the smoke penetrates the meat, the better the smoke ring is going to look. Several factors can improve the chances of an appearance, and a combination of them is the key to success. If the talk of the badge of honor or the pride grillers gets from achieving a smoke ring didn’t tip you off, it’s not exactly easy to make one appear. The ring is only just under the meat’s surface because that’s how deep the smoke can penetrate and affect the myoglobin. What causes a smoke ring is this NO trapping the iron inside the meat and preventing the oxidizing process. This keeps the meat pink even once it’s exposed to the air. More specifically, when the NO (Nitric Oxide) and CO (Carbon Monoxide) bond with the iron in the myoglobin and prevent it from oxidizing. Something that prevents the meat from losing the pink or red hue is when it is introduced to smoke. When exposed to the air, the red fades to brown as the iron oxidizes. This iron makes the flesh of cattle a familiar red, while the much higher levels in whales or dolphins make their meat almost purple. Myoglobin has pigments within it that contain iron. Myoglobin is capable of holding oxygen inside muscle cells and is also directly responsible for how long an animal can hold its breath.

Most vertebrates have a protein called myoglobin inside of them. Luckily, some tips can help you stand together with your grilling peers, even if you know the secret of the ring. A smoke ring doesn’t affect the taste of the meat or quality.ĭespite knowing that it doesn’t add anything extra to the meat, this chemical phenomenon is still sought after by many grillers as a matter of pride in their cooking. While many grill masters like to boast that the presence of a smoke ring implies perfectly cooked food, it’s merely a chemical reaction from using the smoking process. The smoke ring appears through fact rather than theory, and a scientific reaction is to blame.

Many grillers and BBQ enthusiasts consider the ring’s appearance to mean that the particular cut is perfectly prepared and full of flavor. Less experienced diners or grillers might think it’s strange for the center to appear “cooked” more than the exterior, but that’s not the case. When slicing into a freshly smoked piece of meat, you can identify the smoke ring as the thin layer of still pinkish meat just below the surface.

#THE SMOKE RING MENU FULL#

The smoke ring menu