A friend has a trailer type BBQ/Smoker and we want to do a BIG batch of fish on that thing.

Anyone have ideas where I could get a bunch of Hickory wood for this thing. I don't think the Bradley chips will cut it!

Any other ideas on types of other wood that would be good?

Apple and alder work great and I actually prefer their milder flavor for fish. Lots of apple and alder trees around the NW. You just need to find a chipper.

Rather than chips, I think we will split it to kindling size ourselves. I thought about alder and I would use apple that is not from a commercial orchard (years of pesticides).

The smoker has a fire box below and we have BBQ'f with charcoal but want a smokier flavor and would rather do a wood fire.

When we run our smokehouse (used for 100+ pounds of DEER/ELK pepperoni), we use the
split alder. ours has propane burners, so we use green alder. You will want to use some fairly seasoned wood, as you will need it to keep the fire going. Maybe a small pile of charcole to get things going then swith to the alder.

Don't use any wood with the bark on it. It will impart a bitter flavor to your fish. Good luck, and have fun.

Good advice on wood without bark. I figured we would want some charcoal to get things going. I am having a heck of a time finding hickory though. I really like the flavor it creates and I am sure somebody has some for sale.

It is beginning to look like alder may be the only option.

You could go to the thrift store and get an old hot plate. Run the cord through one of the air holes. Use a coffee can or cast iron skillet and use the Lure Jenson chips for the smoke.

We used to use an old dryer shell with a hot plate. It worked great.

C & B,

My smoker that I've used for years has an offset fire box so it cold smokes essentially. I never buy chips, I just split up some alder with no bark on it and build a mini fire in the fire box using lighter fluid. Once its burning decently, I kill the oxygen to it until it is down to a smolder and then open a little oxygen back to it. 3-4 hours of pure cold smoke followed by an hour in the oven at 180 is perfect. Split alder turns out great, is easy to come by, and free. No need to use anything else. I've tried apple, hickory and mesquite and don't feel there is enough difference to make it worth while. Plus, with apple, its a real pain to try and get the bark off.

One other thing, I have found that if you throw it in the fridge for 2-3 days before freezing it or serving it up, it absorbs more of the flavor into the meat and is 10 times better than the day of the smoking.

PDawg: Isn't that funny about getting it cold for a day or two. The flavor really changes and becomes much better.

Thanks for the tips, it looks like alder may just be the way to go.