Peach wood is a beautiful grill wood with a sweet flavor that pairs perfectly with smoked salmon, glazed ham or poultry. Find out today how to use peach wood for smoking in your backyard smoker or grill.
Fruit trees like peaches are surprisingly good woods for grilling. Its naturally sweet flavors combined with the smokiness of the cooking process result in a delicious meal at the end.
You may be wondering what peach wood is good for. What makes it different from other grilled fruit wood? Thank you, we’ve put together a guide covering everything YOU need to know about using this particular wood in your smoker.
What is peach wood?
Peachwood comes from the peach tree, a species of fruit tree that originated in China but is now widespread around the world. Peach wood is surprisingly strong for the wood of a fruit tree, making it useful for woodworking and grilling.
Peachwood has a moderate hardness, meaning it’s hard enough to go in the smoker, but it’s not as hard as walnut or oak.
Properties of peach wood
The most distinctive feature of peachwood is its flavor. When YOU cook meat over peach smoke, YOU absorb the rich, fruity, sweet flavor that comes from the wood. It will have a subtle peach flavor, although not overpowering. The longer you cook the meat on it, the stronger the flavor will be.
The aroma is similar to the taste. Peachwood smells very sweet when it’s burning, which means your grill will quickly smell like you’re making dessert.
When burned, peachwood does not emit a very colored smoke. Your food will darken, but it won’t take on a distinctive hue like cherries would.
Like most other hardwoods, peachwood can burn continuously for several hours.
How to use peach wood
Peachwood is incredibly versatile. You can use it in pellet, chip, chunk or log form, whichever format works best for your smoker.
Before you can put peach wood in your smoker, it needs to be cured. This isn’t a problem if you’re getting your wood from the store, but if you chop a few logs from your yard, you can’t throw them right into your smoker. Instead, you have to let them dry and mature, sometimes for a couple of months.
Peachwood is a great wood to use alone, even if you’re a beginning pit master worried about overpowering your meat with too much smoke. That’s because its smoothness is so forgiving. You can also blend peach wood with stronger woods like hickory to balance the flavors.
One thing to keep in mind before rushing to the store to buy peach wood is that it is quite expensive and rare. Your best bet is to ask local breeders to get some.
The best meat for peach smoking
Peachwood goes well with any meat, but it pairs best with light, tender meats.
Ever heard of cooking pork chops and peaches together for Sunday dinner? If so, it won’t be a surprise to learn that peachwood pairs well with pork. The sweetness of the wood brings out the natural fullness of the meat. For this reason, the peach is also one of the best woods for smoking ham.
Peachwood is an excellent choice for smoking poultry like chicken and turkey. Poultry has a mild flavor masked by strong woods like hickory.
Peachwood also pairs well with more bitter cuts of meat, such as venison, as it helps balance some of the natural bitterness.
Once you get your hands on peach wood, it’s a versatile tool. You can use it with many cuts of meat and mix it with other wood chips to customize your smoking experience.
Writer & content creator. BBQ fanatic!
