Making Chew - First Timer

[hogateb]

OK, first post and a definite newbie in this hobby. I am trying to make some chew something like Levi Garrett-ish. I probably don't have the perfect leaves for this product, but wanted to give it a shot. I have air cured Burley that I picked it up from one of the guys here. I am working on fermenting it and then going to give it a shot.

Fermenting in a styro cooler at a heat of ~ 130F and 65 to 70 RH. Built an Arduino based temperature controller that is set at 130F. It just controls a solid state relay that turns a 40 Watt light bulb on an off as temperature gets too high/low. Measuring RH with an analog dial hygrometer from an old humidor. My lo-tech moisture control is a spray bottle on the leaves and a cup filled with humidifying crystals charged with distilled water. Thinking of grabbing a small crock-pot to alleviate some of the dryness issues that the light bulb creates. It has only been going since Tuesday (8/30).

Any recipe suggestions or ideas? Would toasting work instead of fermenting, or is fermenting the best way to go about it?

Thanks in advance!

 

[BigBonner]

I, like you ,would like to learn how to make chew , dip or snuff . There are a few chew recipes floating the web but I haven't found a good one yet . There is one with apple juice that I didn't find as good as it sounds .

 

[Jitterbugdude]

I have 2 basic recipes that I use. The quantity of ingredients will vary greatly depending on your personal preference and on the batch size. Start small, that way if you don't like it, you haven't wasted much tobacco.
1. Chocolate Chew: Put about 2 ounce of water into a pot, add 1 tsp of cocoa and a sweetener of your choice. I use Neotame. If you use sugar I would guess that 1 tsp might do. Heat this mixture enough to dissolve the cocoa. Stir constantly because the cocoa is going to want to burn on the bottom of the pan. When hot, add your tobacco ( about 1 ounce), give it a quick stir and remove from heat. You can also try playing around with this a little by adding a pinch of salt and/or a few drops of vanilla extract. I tried adding a tad bit of coconut oil once thinking it would improve the mouth texture but it made for a pretty crappy chew. From start to finish this should take about 3 minutes to make. Also, too much cocoa will give a gritty mouth feel... experiment!
1. Caramel Chew. Same thing.. you will have to tweak the quantities to your liking. I put a few ounces of DaVinci (sugar free) caramel syrup in a pot, add some non sugar sweetener, heat, add tobacco, chew. Total prep time is about 2 minutes. I use neotame (pure) or sometimes sucrolose (pure) because I do not want to have sugar next to my teeth, rotting them.

The cultivar of tobacco you use will also make a big difference. Yellow Orinoco is really good for chew. I've tried Burley, Virginia Gold and a Havana. Each tastes different. You will also want to make 3, 4, 5 batches varying the ingredients till you find a combo you like. I like my chew very sweet. My chocolate chew tastes almost like a Hershey bar.

The amount of liquid is tricky. Too much and your chew will be sopping wet. Not enough and it won't evenly soak up the flavors.

p.s. The DaVinci Butter Rum flavor is fantastic too!.. I get mine from Netrition

 

[Chrism]

I caramelized 100% apple juice, added some salt, pinch of sugar and molasses. Next time I'm not adding molasses or not as much cause it got kinda sticky

 

[Chicken]

im very intrested in your results,,, please document it,,, for future use,,

allthough i dont dip snuff no more,,, my friend does and we have discussed growing the right baccy,,and trying a go - at making him some snuff,,,

 

[BaccaChew]

The cultivar of tobacco you use will also make a big difference. Yellow Orinoco is really good for chew.

I believe you are on to something there, Jitter!

Yep, that Butter Rum is pretty good flavoring. Wife uses the sugar free Caramel Da vinci every day in her coffee.

 

[hogateb]

Thanks everyone for the input. Once my fermenting completes, I am looking forward to giving some of these ideas a try.

Jitterbugdude - Chocolate chew sounds tasty! I have a bunch of coco powder that needs a new use, sounds like it's worth a shot.

I replaced the light bulb setup with a mini crock pot and the dryness issues with my leaves has been fixed. RH was running really high yesterday (80). Modified the setup slightly by replacing the lid with the handle removed leaving a small hole for the moisture to escape from. Ran overnight with the lid in place and RH dropped to 70.

 

[Chicken]

i hope you document it with photo's..... so someone in the future can look at it for information,,{ like myself for my friend}

 

[hogateb]

I will work on taking some pics this coming week of my fermenting chamber along with the Arduino and other components for anyone who might be interested.

 

[hogateb]

OK I have tried three different recipes so far and wanted to post my findings & observations.

Carmel Chew
20 grams Burley
3 TBS Carmel Syrup (Not Sugar Free)
1 Tsp Sugar
1/8 tsp. Baking Soda
Heated non tobacco ingredients until boiling
Added Tobacco and cooked for 3-4 minutes
Outcome was very sweet & gritty (due to baking soda I think) will re-try without extra sugar
Big nicotine hit, I think due to baking soda, or could be the variety used too

Chocolate Chew
30 grams Burley
2 oz. Water
1 Tsp. Coco Powder
2 Tbs. Sugar
1/8 Tsp. Salt
2 Drops of Vanilla
Cooked non tobacco ingredients until boiling and somewhat syrup consistency
Added burley and cooked for 4 minutes
Came out gritty and not too sweet
Not my favorite. Try with more sugar

Pepsi Chew
25 grams burley
1 Can Pepsi
1 Tbs. Sugar
Cooked non tobacco ingredients until syrup consistency
Add burley stir and cook for 4-5 minutes
Came out OK. Not too sweet. My favorite so far.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Try omitting the salt and see what you think!

 

[dkh2]

Pepsi Chew
25 grams burley
1 Can Pepsi
1 Tbs. Sugar
Cooked non tobacco ingredients until syrup consistency
Add burley stir and cook for 4-5 minutes
Came out OK. Not too sweet. My favorite so far.

A whole can of Pepsi ? Thats 12 ounces

 

[BigBonner]

A whole can of pepsie , But he cooked it down . It makes some sense . Pepsie has High fructose corn syrup in it

 

[dkh2]

A whole can of pepsie , But he cooked it down . It makes some sense . Pepsie has High fructose corn syrup in it

Maybe I'll check it out with your Burley
I wonder how many leaves it would take to get 25 grams

 

[dkh2]

How do you prepare the tobacco ?
Is it shredded ?

 

[FmGrowit]

Maybe I'll check it out with your Burley
I wonder how many leaves it would take to get 25 grams

2 to 4

 

[Chicken]

i just pressed shariza, burley,and big-gem sprayed with water,

and give a 3'' piece to a friend that is a avid baccy chewer,

he said it was o.k. just strong,,,,

i had no flavoring at all in it,,,,

im gonna try and do a smaller pressed brick,,, flavored,,,,with less burley and more shariza,,,

and see how he rates it,,,

im gonna use the chocalate recipe,,, perhaps blended with a touch of vanilla extract, and some cinnamon,,,

this may be this weekends project,,, i just emptied the press of a brick ive had on for 5 days,,,

pipe smoking mix{hopefully} i flavored it with , hazel-nut, caramel, bavarian chocalate,,,> strains involved> shariza, burley, big-gem. FLUE CURED SHARIZA,,, SWEATED, BIG-GEM, sun cured shariza,,,,

it was a super-moist brick,,,, it weighed 12 ounces wet,,,, about 1 inch thick,

 

[BigBonner]

dkh2

2 to 4 is about right . In burley some plants will have 3 ft long cured leaves some will be 12 to 14 inches long . so the weight will vary as to the leaf size . The chew tobacco may be different in weight with the midrib removed .

I am going to try some with honey , water and locally grown fresh sorgum . Im planning on mixing it up and putting it in a air tight box then adding air pressure to see what happens .
Who know what will work .

 

[hogateb]

Sorry everyone. Dropped off for a while. Had some family issues that have prevented me from getting on here and doing much of anything chew related the past 4 months.

Yes, it was a full 12 oz can but cooked down to about 2-3 oz of liquid.

Leaves were torn by hand to anywhere from quarter (coin) size to as large as 2-3 inches long. Took about 3-4eaves to make up the weight referenced.

Hope to get back at it and make something tasty.

 

[hogateb]

Anyone ever give any thought to putting leaves and liquid together in a vacuum seal bag and infusing everything that way? Wonder if that may get better flavor infusion.