Is Bradford Pear Tree Wood Good For Smoking Meat?

There’s a good chance that a fruit-bearing tree produces lumber that’ll burn with a sweet smokiness. After all, this is true of popular smoking woods such as Apple wood, Plum wood and even Peach wood.

So, can the same be said of using Bradford Pear Tree wood in your smoker?

Not exactly.

Here’s the thing; the fruits of the Bradford Pear tree don’t make for great eating. At all.

And when it comes to mild sweeter smoking woods, Bradford Pear trees aren’t the best for smoking chicken or pork.

So, in this post, you’ll learn what kind of smoky flavor Bradford Pear trees can give to meat. You’ll also discover what you can do to make Bradford Pear tree lumber smoke more cleanly…

Can You Use Bradford Pear Tree Wood In A Smoker?

Absolutely you can.

The key thing you should always beware of, (besides flavor), is whether or not a wood is poisonous or toxic. Nonetheless, when it comes to Bradford Pear tree wood, this fruit-bearing tree is non-toxic.

Still, just because you can use a wood in a smoker, doesn’t mean its always worth using.

You see, fruit-bearing tree lumber, (such as Apple and Peach), can give your food a mildly sweet tang. In fact, a lot of trees that bear edible sweet fruit are great smoking wood choices.

But, Bradford Pear tree fruits are not appetizing. Instead, this tree produces hard round fruits that are completely inedible.

In short, Bradford Pear tree wood can add a light smoky flavor to meat. However, it’s not going to have the sweetness you would otherwise expect from a fruit-bearing tree wood.

Related Post: Is Orange Wood Good For Smoking Meat?

Is Bradford Pear Wood Really That Mild? Or Is There A Better Smoky Alternative?

If you want real deep down smoky flavor, you won’t go too far wrong by using Hickory. It adds the most traditionally smoky flavor to meat.

What’s more, Hickory is so strong, you can even risk over smoking meat with it (if you aren’t careful).

Regardless, strong smoking woods like Hickory, Oak and even Maple, go great with heavy red meats such as Beef. And they pair well with pork too.

Related Post: Is Pine Wood Good For Smoking Meat?

But What About Smoking Chicken And Turkey? Will Bradford Pear Wood Go Well With Them?

Bradford Pear wood is a mild smoking wood. Think of it as a less intense version of Oak.

So, this timber can be used to smoke poultry and pork (without overwhelming those particular types of meat). But, it won’t give a significantly sweeter flavor to your food, not the way that Apple or Peach wood can.

Still, Is It Really Safe To Use Bradford Pear Wood In A Smoker?

Yes it is. First off, this tree may produce inedible fruit, but its timber is not otherwise toxic to us.

What’s more, this tree isn’t saturated with tree sap or tree pitch resins. You see, any wood that has a lot of tree resin in it, makes for a terrible smoking wood.

That’s because tree resins can saturate the taste of meat (right along with the smoke itself). And that can be enough to make meat taste awful at best, and nauseating at worst.

And What Can You Do To Make Bradford Pear Wood Smoke Better?

The key to controlling the smoke produced by any wood, is to make sure that wood is dry. This is called ‘seasoning wood’. And this is a simple process that involves leaving freshly cut wood to dry for a few months.

That’s because freshly cut wood has a lot of moisture in it. This is referred to as it’s ‘moisture content’, and when wood is first cut, it has a moisture content level of around 100%.

Now, all of that extra moisture can cause wood to produce thick smoke. That’s because as the moisture vaporises in the fire, it steams up and thickens up smoke emissions.

However, once wood has been seasoned, (which takes 6 to 12 months), its moisture content drops by over 80%. And that’s low enough to allow you to keep smoke controlled as you slow-cook your food.

You can discover more about seasoning wood by checking out our post here: How To Season Wood (7 Tips)

To Wrap Up, Here Are The 3 Key Takeaways From This Post…

• 1). The Bradford Pear tree might be a fruit-bearing tree, but it’s fruits are not edible.
• 2). As a result, this timber doesn’t produce the same intensity of mildly sweet smoky flavor of other fruit-bearing trees.
• 3). However, Bradford Pear wood does give meat a mildly smoky flavor, one that can pair well with Brisket and Pork.

References:

Husbands, A. and Cranford, S., 2019. A material perspective of wood, smoke, and BBQ. Matter, 1(5), pp.1092-1095.