Fire building 101: How to flavor your food with fire

I recently explained how to build a fire to cook your food on. In this post I want to give you some tips and tricks to make your food taste better with what you burn. What you burn makes a big difference.

FoodTribe

Fire building 101: How to build a fire to cook food on

This part will deal only with fire building

Types of wood

You can cook with any type of wood really, but the flavor can easily go from very nice to plain nasty. On the nasty side is any type of pine. Pine wood has a lot of resin, and when it burns it releases a strong smell that is not good, and will leave a nasty taste to your food. So avoid pine completely.

Another thing to avoid is tree bark. Make sure the wood you are using is clean of any bark. It will not ruin the flavor like pine will, but it is not a desirable flavor.

Now let's go over what is good to cook with. If you are cooking for a long time, like grilling a whole turkey, you want some hard dense wood that burns for a long time. In these cases I prefer white oak or hickory. You can also use red oak or mesquite: both are good choices, just not my preference.

Any tree that produces nuts will give you a more earthy flavor. Try different ones and see what you like.

Now let's talk fruit tree wood. Fruit wood provides a lot of flavor, but unlike the hard woods mentioned above, these do not burn as long. I prefer cherry, but apple is a fantastic second choice. These will provide a nice sweet smoky flavor. Peach and pear wood are also good choices. Once again, try out different ones for yourself and see what you like.

If I am cooking for myself, I really like a white oak and cherry combo. If I am smoking my meat, an apple and hickory combo is hard to beat.

Dead herbs

If you grow your own herbs, this is a goldmine of flavor. Instead of throwing away the herbs when they turn brown and die, set them aside to use for your fire. I keep ours for that extra aromatic flavor. Strong herbs like rosemary, oregano and basil work really well. I do not recommend burning the roots though, because that is not good. But the dead leaves and stems are a great resource. Onion and garlic skins work too. They're not as good as other herbs, but will impart a small amount of their flavor, and the skins are a good resource for building a fire as well. Burning herbs also makes the fire more pleasant to be around!

I hope you all find this helpful. If you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comments and I will gladly answer them the best I can. If you have your own preferences, tips or tricks please feel free to share them. Stay wonderful Foodtribe! I love you all!

FoodTribe

Fire building 101: How to build a fire to cook food on

This part will deal only with fire building