Meat in the smoker!

[Machinebuilder]

I made some beef Jerky with mine, sliced a london broil, marinated it over night and smoked at 150 till it was dry.

I tried a chunk of extra sharp cheddar, the cheese taste overpowers the smoke flavor

[LeftFinger]

Some Bacon Smokies

[Raider Bill]

Let's see the outside of that box. What's it made from?
So, bacon smokies, explain please?

[tule peak timber]

An elevated rack with a vented drum over the top making bacon. Works well for cold smoking salmon also. Last week I rebuilt my CookShack smoker that is at least 35 years old and brought it back to new condition. The CookShack for poultry and big meats can't be beat for moist higher temp cooking but a lot of the time I want cooler smoke for fish and bacon.

[Raider Bill]

Hard to beat a old cookshack smoker.
New ones have too much electronics.

[LeftFinger]

Let's see the outside of that box. What's it made from?
So, bacon smokies, explain please?

SmokeHouse is made from 2x6 and plywood 4ftx4ftx 6 ft high when it was given to me it was painted green and looked like an old outhouse.

I sided it and blended it in with my shop and most people don't even know its there. It's fired with a Tiger torch through a stove pipe to a steel plate with wood chips on it

Bacon Smokies are just a variation of Canadian smokies which are similar to Brats.

In fact there are some Thai barbecue smokies in there as well (a bit warm)

[LeftFinger]

[barbender]

As a neighbor, I can confirm that they take cheese very seriously in Wisconsin- they're not called cheeseheads for nothing!😊

[Raider Bill]

Thought maybe you had a recipe for bacon sausage, not that I need another way to eat bacon.

[Otis1]

@Machinebuilder The cheese I used was sharp cheddar and it came out plenty smoky. This was my first try at ever smoking anything so I looked everything I did up on the interwebs. I used a decent chunk of cheese, not big brand pre-packaged. In Wisco we have some pretty good cheese sections in the grocery store. Cold smoked for 2 hours. Cut into pieces about the size of a stick of butter, some recipes recommended slicing first. Used hickory cuz that's what the internet said. In fact, most recipes I saw said to vacuum seal for a few weeks to mellow out the smoke. 

[aigheadish]

Does the cheese state also have good prices on cheese? In these parts, a small block of something tasty, may cost 15-20 bucks per pound. I don't know that I've ever shopped for a good big block of cheddar, so I'm not sure of the pricing there. 

[Otis1]

"Specialty" cheese is in that price range. I've got several different kinds that I pick up as I travel throughout the state, but usually not buying huge blocks. Cheddar is pretty standard so it wasn't very expensive, matched or cheaper than big brands ( I always look at the per oz. price when I'm shopping, midwest ope).

I almost thought about starting a favorite cheese thread, but I figured it would be mostly me posting. My current favorite cheese is Marieke Gouda, specifically the Truffle Gouda. They have a bunch of flavors. It's available online to order. I certainly am not sponsored by them but if you like cheese I recommend trying it. If you're ever driving through WI they have a store and do tours.

Edit:  I should add that pretty much every cheesery in the state has a store and they are all worth stopping at.

[doc henderson]

We like pepper jack.  heat it up a bit and it melts and conforms to the small cupcake pan spots.  looks nice on a platter.  30 minutes at 200 or so.

[Raider Bill]

I grew up on ny state cheese.
I have it shipped in from Pete from bear swamps area.
Cheddar so sharp you think you bit your tongue is my preferred.

[beenthere]

After many years looking for source of sharp cheddar in Wisconsin, I settled on this Bucky Badger brand. $7.29/lb and consistent sharpness. 

[Resonator]

I grew up on Wisconsin cheese.

My dad worked for years at a small family run cheese factory, knew the milk truck driver and the dairy farmers who provided the milk on a first name basis. Had there own special reserve cooler for aged cheese, I think some was 15 or more years old.
Big specialty in summer was hundreds and hundreds of pounds fresh made cheese curds. The local fairs, tractor shows, or other special events would serve them. Deep fried in a beer batter, hot and fresh. (You ain't lived unless you've had some IMHO).
They had a little retail store in the cheese factory too, we would buy cheese curds made within the hour. So fresh you had to plug your ears because they squeaked so loud.

[aigheadish]

Cheese curds are one of the best things out there. I'm not sure how I feel about the squeek. 

[Machinebuilder]

I tried Cabot Extra sharp cheddar. I may have had the temp too high.

I grew up in western NY, around dairy farms. NY had some good cheeses.

The place next to the church we went to was known as the cheese factory, I don't think it was in operation.

My Mom's Grandfather grew up in Owen, WI.
My Mom told a story that they were visiting when she was a little girl.
The kids  would follow her uncle when he took the milk to the cheese factory with a wheel barrow so he would give them a ride on the return trip.

This is near Colby, WI where colby cheese was developed to be a better melting cheese than cheddar.

During some of my research to figure out where the farm was in Owen, I came across a list of cheese factorys in WI from the early 1900's. it seems they were everywhere.

My guess is its because they couldn't ship milk without refridgeration.