Smoked Foods

I’ve had a few little smoke ups in FrankenSmoker and I’m starting to get the hang of it. There is a few things to get on top of:

• What wood words with what food
• What Brine/Cure works with what food

There is a lot of information on the net about smoking, particularly from the US as smoking is a national pastime (they call it a BBQ). So initially it’s a process of simply trying everything out and finding what works best (balancing it with what is safe!). I should  mention that commercially cured/brined means such as corned beef and pickled pork are a great time saver as they can go straight into the smoker. only problem is you have no control over the brine.

Here is one of my recent smoke ups, at the back we have Kangaroo fillets cured in a popular Salt/Sugar/Vinegar/Nitrite Brine. Salmon Cured in a Salt/Sugar/Lemon brine and Pork cured in a commercial pickle (Salt/Nitrite).

The Kangaroo turned out surprisingly good. like a cross between Ham and roast beef.

The Wood used was Oak which was very strong – probably too strong. In the past I have used Beech which was a bit mild (worked very well with seafood though). So next time I’ll try a 50/50 Oak/Beech Blend.