Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Fruit Wood for smoking...

Going to have to take down a Plum tree and probably a Peach tree in the yard. Neither one is huge, but could get 1 or 2 cookings off of each.

Is either one useful for smoking pork? I think I've heard of people using peach wood, but not sure. Have no idea on using the plum..

Thoughts.?

Yes. Any fruit wood is good for smoking. I like apple best, but I have used plum and pear with good result.

Should work real well.

Peach works just fine for pork.

On the next trip to the farm I am going to cut up a bunch of alder about an inch thick from some 2 to 4 inch rounds and bring them back for smoking. Just soak them for an hour and add to a lump hardwood charcoal in my Brinkman. Then I am going salmon fishing.

Absolutely!! Both are great!

Best fruit wood I ever used was orange. Discovered it when Florida had one of their big infestations years back. They had to cut down everything regardless. Many restaurants used the good orange wood.

That was some good stuff!!

yep, it's all good. pecan (a variety or species of hickory), oak, and the various so-called fruit woods are all good.

interestingly pecan shells are good. I don't know about peach pits because I haven't tried them.

stuff in the rose family (Roseaceae) is usually hard to beat, in general.

That Split piglets.?


Sounds sweet, wish I had some here instead of salmon in a can.


Doing some reading,..says plum, cherry, peach, apricot, apple etc. lose their flavor as the wood dries.

Any truth to that? As long as I've got hot coals going as a primary, can I throw green fruit wood on it for smoke?

I smoke all my salmon with either applewood or cherry. It's much better than alder and leaves good smoke flavor with no bitterness.

I have used pear,peach,plum,apple and pecan wood and i have no complaints about any of them.

They just make stuff taste darn good.

I have hundreds of persimmon trees on my land and I have heard it is good for smoking. Once the ticks die off, I am going to try some.

Be sure to report back. On persimmon, I've read people either love it or hate it...

DW...Not real sure how anyone could honestly make that assessment but anything can be opinionated. While I can tell the differences in some wood smoke flavor not so much with fruit woods. Other than the orange wood, which I pointed out earlier I don't see where apple wood gives off an apple flavor. So on and so on.

Where I do see big differences are with non-fruit woods like pecan, which gives off a darker bark. Different flavor?? Not sure. Hickory, oak, mesquite Oh yeah! But general fruit woods not so much. Maybe that's just me. Although, I do find that certain woods do pair nicely with certain smoked foods.

I do stay away from green wood but that's my preference. I believe the smoke flavor from green wood is too intense. Kind of like bourbon and the woodiness.

BTW one of the first competitions we did was for an elementary school fund raiser. I screwed up and used poplar instead of hickory. Just before turn in a local farmer walked up to me and asked what I was doing with the poplar. Well I freaked. I was so busy with prep I had not even noticed what my bud brought from his farm to cook with. We placed 2nd overall. Go figure. BUT we never used poplar again.

You're right on about some woods being bitter!! PLUS blue smoke bud! Blue smoke!!

Peach was always my favorite for pork when I was in OK. I would keep any good sized limbs that my uncle pruned off of his trees every year. I've not used plum, plum "trees" in my part of the state are about an inch in diameter at the base. Had good luck with persimmon the one time I used it as well.

I thnk they would both be great.

Cherry first, then apple, and all other fruit wood follows, IMO. Nut tree wood works, too.

I tried some Russian olive and don't recommend it.

Lost 3 fair sized Almond trees last year.

The local smokeheads are pretty enthusiastic about the quality / flavor.

I'd have to agree.

There's a big PILE of very old seasoned Apricot here, that's up for grabs, if anybody's so inclined.

GTC

As others have said, they are both great. Plum seems to a bit stronger to me, but that is subjective.

And a no on the green wood unless you are camping, then any thing is better than pine or railroad ties!

Would love to try Almond Greg. Just sounds great, Apricot as well.

Nice offer!!

Put the shipping co-ords together via PM , and we'll get some pointed NE

GTC