smoke food at home

How to smoke food at home? Not only is it possible to smoke both fish and meat, but the results are surprising and delicious. Let's see how to do it.

What is smoking

Food smoking is a food treatment technique that originated, like many others, for food preservation. It consists of exposing the food to a stream of smoke that is usually generated by the partial combustion of wood chips .

Smoking was once done not only because it imparts flavour and aroma , but also because it partially dries the surface of the food and helps preserve it better. In addition, many substances present in smoke are preservatives.

Now, thanks to refrigerators, we don't need to smoke strictly for the sake of preservation, but because the flavour that smoking gives is unique and wonderful . Because we like it, in short.

Types of smoking

There are two smoking techniques depending on the temperature used:

• Cold smoking : the food is exposed to a stream of smoke at a temperature of no more than 30°C for 24 to 48 hours . This is the technique used to prepare the commercially smoked salmon that we are all familiar with . The food undergoes changes in this warm stream of smoke, but is not cooked in the traditional sense of the term (denaturation and coagulation of proteins) ; its consistency remains somewhat similar to that of raw food. The long period of exposure to smoke allows the smoke to penetrate the entire food, giving it its full flavour.
• Hot smoking : as with cold smoking, the food is kept in a stream of smoke, but at a temperature of over 60ºC, so the food is cooked , but it also acquires a delicious smoky aroma. As smoking is done at a higher temperature, the process is much shorter than cold smoking and the aromatization of the piece is more superficial.

Cold smokers

They consist of a chamber where the wood chips are burned , connected to another chamber where the food is placed . The latter is far enough away from the first so that the smoke cools on the way to the right temperature for cold smoking.

We do not currently have any cold smoker models in our shop, but if you are interested you can contact us and we can order one. De Buyer has a fantastic cold smoker for both professionals and home cooks who want to explore this technique.

De Buyer cold smoker

Hot Smokers

Since there is not a lot of space required between the combustion chamber and the food, the most common hot smokers are shaped like a pot with a lid, with an inner grid where the food is placed and a bottom where we put the wood chips and some liquid, if necessary.

There are excellent smokers that allow you to smoke on the stovetop. The Zwilling smoker , made entirely of stainless steel, is a versatile and durable utensil that will last a lifetime, suitable for induction, and has the advantage that the base pan can be used independently, even for roasting in the oven. The Nordic Ware smoker , although simpler, has a thermometer to monitor the internal temperature.

Nordic Ware Smoker and Zwilling Stainless Steel Smoker

Also, all barbecues with a lid, such as Weber barbecues, are suitable for smoking . In addition, Weber offers an accessory for conveniently placing wood chips (essential for gas barbecues and convenient for charcoal barbecues) and turning any barbecue into an excellent smoker.

If you are truly passionate about smoking at home, the Weber brand also offers the Smoky Mountain , a device exclusively for smoking. If you are interested, you can request a quote from us.

What foods are suitable for smoking at home?

There are many foods that can be smoked beyond the classic smoked salmon (which is very tasty, we have nothing against it), which is perhaps the most popular smoked food in our country, but it is possible to smoke:

• Meats and sausages
• All types of fish
• Seasonings such as salt

Smoked duck breast recipe

On the blog we have two wonderful recipes for hot-smoked duck breast and hot-smoked salmon using the Nordic Ware smoker, or the delicious recipe for smoked pork loin that you will find here . In all of them you can consult the instructions on how to hot smoke ; you will see that it is not difficult at all.

As for flavoring, you can play with the use of shavings from different woods , which provide different nuances, as well as with marinades or previous curing of the food to introduce additional flavors with various spices and condiments.

In short, smoking is another technique that we can add to our cooking skills, which can be practiced with uncomplicated utensils, which is not difficult and which adds variety and interest to our daily cooking. And to our diet, of course.