Smokehouse Modification

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Butterbean
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Re: Smokehouse Modification

Post by Butterbean » Wed Feb 10, 2021 01:00

DanMcG wrote:
Tue Feb 09, 2021 16:12
Great looking smoke house ButterBean.
Butterbean wrote:
Sat Feb 06, 2021 23:09

I'll have you hooked on real syrup. :lol:
What type of syrup do you harvest in South Georgia ? I do maple up here in NY but I don't think maple grows that far south....Pecan?
We make cane syrup. Its somewhat like the syrup you buy in the store only its much thicker because it hasn't been cut with corn syrup. It also has a much deeper flavor. Its a lot of hard work but if everyone pitches in its not that bad. You first have to cut the cane then run it though a press which was usually pulled by a mule. The squeezings are then cooked down in 50 gallon kettles which were used to scald hogs after the syrup making was done and the weather was cooler. The yield isn't that great and you'll only end up with about 5 gallons of pure cane syrup with every kettle. The skimmings were often collected by the younger folks who reserved this to ferment. Most adults turn a blind eye to this practice because they know the hangover derived from this concoction is brutal which in turn teaches the youth a valuable lesson about drinking. :lol:
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DanMcG
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Re: Smokehouse Modification

Post by DanMcG » Wed Feb 10, 2021 16:28

Butterbean wrote:
Wed Feb 10, 2021 01:00
We make cane syrup. :
LOL, Well I guess my yankeeism is showing now, cane never even crossed my mind. Sounds like a good time, a little like maple syrup making only more work. thanks for sharing.
Lorenzoid
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Re: Smokehouse Modification

Post by Lorenzoid » Wed Feb 10, 2021 19:42

Don't feel bad, Dan McYankee--I live in Atlanta and wasn't aware cane is grown in the southern part of this state. But I suppose the climate is sufficient. Why should Louisiana have all the fun?

In Louisiana some eat boudin with a drizzle of cane syrup.
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Butterbean
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Re: Smokehouse Modification

Post by Butterbean » Wed Feb 10, 2021 20:10

Lorenzoid wrote:
Wed Feb 10, 2021 19:42
Don't feel bad, Dan McYankee--I live in Atlanta and wasn't aware cane is grown in the southern part of this state. But I suppose the climate is sufficient. Why should Louisiana have all the fun?

In Louisiana some eat boudin with a drizzle of cane syrup.
Lorenzoid being from Atlanta you might get a kick out of this. My friend's father is a big syrup producer as was his father and Lester Maddox (old governor of Georgia) was a big fan of his syrup and would always fly down in the fall and buy several cases of syrup to give as gifts. One year he called to place his order and was told that the state's food police had shut him down because he wasn't using the new and improved NFS certified syrup making equipment which he could not afford. Long story short, Gov. Maddox got his syrup and my friend is still making syrup in the same equipment his father and grandfather made it in. :D
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Re: Smokehouse Modification

Post by Butterbean » Thu Feb 18, 2021 18:49

We purchased a new convection oven for the house and it got me to thinking that I might try to a convection type system in the smokehouse. I have plenty of draft in the smokehouse so it might not make that big of a difference but the idea was in my head and I thought I'd give it a try anyway because I don't think it could hurt.

Having always been intrigued by those non-electric fans that use what I think is the Peltier Effect to drive the fan I constructed a small shelf on the burner and put the fan on this and was pleased to see it worked like a charm. While the jury is still out on whether it makes that much of a difference in the overall scheme of things I do think it does help when you are first trying to dry sausages before laying smoke on them. Also, on my first trial I noticed there was no more than one degree of temperature difference between two sausages I was smoking but they were both of the same casing size so this really doesn't mean much I wouldn't think. Though I don't know if this will make a marked difference in how the smokehouse runs I don't think some additional air movement could hurt anything.

Here is a photo of it in action and I'll also try and attach a link to the video showing it working. Whether it helps or not I still think it pretty neat,.

https://i.imgur.com/nOTHjok.mp4

Image
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