Has anyone built a (cold) smoker?

[isuzurover]

I am quite keen to build one so we can make our own smoked goodies. If anyone has pics/plans that would be cool. Doesn't need to be portable.

[d@rk51d3]

x2

Sounds like a great idea. :cool:

[Tank]

I am quite keen to build one so we can make our own smoked goodies. If anyone has pics/plans that would be cool. Doesn't need to be portable.
What's a cold smoker?
I have a mate who is from Soviet republic and he is going to build a "smoker" for all the fish he catches, apparently they were very popular in his homeland, but I don't know whether he is building a "cold smoker", if you give me some details, I'll show him and if it's the same I will send you details of how it's built, Regards Frank.

[isuzurover]

What's a cold smoker?
I have a mate who is from Soviet republic and he is going to build a "smoker" for all the fish he catches, apparently they were very popular in his homeland, but I don't know whether he is building a "cold smoker", if you give me some details, I'll show him and if it's the same I will send you details of how it's built, Regards Frank.

Thanks Frank.

Smokers are usually called "hot" or "cold" based on the temperature of the chamber in which the smoking takes place. Hot smokers cook the meat while it is being smoked, and are usually used for fish and poultry.

From wikipedia:

* "Hot smoking" exposes the foods to smoke and heat in a controlled environment. Although foods that have been hot smoked are often reheated or cooked, they are typically safe to eat without further cooking. Hams and ham hocks are fully cooked once they are properly smoked. Hot smoking occurs within the range of 165°F/74°C to 185°F/85°C. Within this temperature range, foods are fully cooked, moist, and flavorful. If the smoker is allowed to get hotter than 185°F, the foods will shrink excessively, buckle, or even split. Smoking at high temperatures also reduces yield, as both moisture and fat are "cooked" away.

* "Smoke-roasting" refers to any process that has the attributes of both roasting and smoking. This smoking method is sometimes referred to as "barbecuing" or "pit-roasting". It may be done in a smoke-roaster, closed wood-fired oven or barbecue pit, any smoker that can reach above 250 °F (121 °C), or in a conventional oven by placing a pan filled with hardwood chips on the floor of the oven so the chips smolder and produce a smokebath. However, this should only be done in a well-ventilated area to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.

* "Cold smoking" can be used as a flavor enhancer for items such as pork chops, beef steaks, chicken breasts, salmon and scallops. The item can be cold-smoked for a short period, just long enough to give a touch of flavor. Such foods are ready to be finished to order by such cooking methods as grilling, sauteing, baking, and roasting, or they may be hot smoked to the appropriate doneness for an even deeper smoked flavor. Smokehouse temperatures for cold smoking should be maintained below 100 °F (38 °C). In this temperature range, foods take on a rich, smokey flavor, develop a deep mahogany color, and tend to retain a relatively moist texture. They are not cooked as a result of the smoking process, however.

[Pedro_The_Swift]

wouldnt hot smoking delete one step in the process?
(what goodies???:o)

[markb]

I have Bradely smoker which can smoke hot or cold. They are made in Canada and do a great job. Only problem is they are a bit expensive to buy and run as you have to use the Bradely bisquettes. There details can be found at Meat Smokers, BBQ Smokers, Digital Smokers, Electric Smokers, Propane Smokers and Meat Smoking Books, Recipes and Accessories | BradleySmoker.com (http://www.bradleysmoker.com) There is also a forum with all sorts of people who smoke everything and anything. I have only had mine for a couple months so I don't have much experience yet but now that winter is here I think it is time to make some bacon.

[Bigbjorn]

I have long thought that hot smoking was a cooking process and hot smoked goods have to be refrigerated for keeping, and cold smoking was a preservation process whereby joints properly cold smoked are preserved and can be stored without refrigeration. When I was a young feller, sides of bacon and hams used to come out to Winton in the guards van of the trains. You used to see a side of bacon just hanging up in the shop in a covering of cheese cloth and the counter jumpers would just cut off the quantity the customer required. My grandparents would buy a side from the works in Brisbane and have it sent out on the train and just hang it up in a screened meat house.

Nowadays bacon and hams have to be refrigerated or frozen to keep. I suppose the process has been changed to make it quicker and/or cheaper. Can anyone with the necessary knowledge expand on this?

[isuzurover]

wouldnt hot smoking delete one step in the process?
(what goodies???:o)

Not necessarily. Cold smoked meat products are eaten "raw" as often as not. E.g. the prosciutto/panchetta type hams are salt cured, then either cold smoked or not smoked, and usually eaten raw.
As for what goodies... Ham, sausages, chicken, etc... We made a mutton ham in a jerry-rigged smoker the other day (halfway between a cold and hot smoker). Tasted great! But I would like a better controlled process for the next one. The main use will be to make our own pork, beef and mutton hams using corned joints (save us pumping the brine in).



I have long thought that hot smoking was a cooking process and hot smoked goods have to be refrigerated for keeping,

...

Nowadays bacon and hams have to be refrigerated or frozen to keep. I suppose the process has been changed to make it quicker and/or cheaper. Can anyone with the necessary knowledge expand on this?

This is correct as far as I understand the process. Cold smoked meats are much better preserved than hot smoked. I am not sure if the process of making ham and bacon has changed, more the concerns over any possible food contamination. Go back far enough and there were no fridges, yet people still ate (and stored) raw uncooked/unsmoked meat.

[snowy3]

You can but hickory woodchips in a shop but they are a RIP OFF. If you get your own wood use fruit trees, I heap apple trees are pretty good. DO NOT use gum tree wood - all the resin in the wood will make your meat taste horribly bitter. Try scavenging wood from an apple orchard - they prune back branches once a year I believe.

[isuzurover]

You can but hickory woodchips in a shop but they are a RIP OFF. If you get your own wood use fruit trees, I heap apple trees are pretty good. DO NOT use gum tree wood - all the resin in the wood will make your meat taste horribly bitter. Try scavenging wood from an apple orchard - they prune back branches once a year I believe.

I have seen the tiny bags of various wood shavings the camping and BBQ places sell...

What about citrus??? We have plenty of that.

All the things we have made so far have been "tea smoked" - since we started out by making an asian recipe - "tea-smoked chicken". Tea smoking is quite easy and can be done in a wok. Line the bottom of the wok with alfoil (so you don't destroy it) and place a mixture of your choice of tea (green/black etc) and sugar in the bottom. Place a wire rack in the wok, and the piece of meat to be smoked on the rack. Put the wok on the stove (or a BBQ) with the lid on.

We prefer using green tea.

[steveG]

Years ago (about 1990 I think) I built a great cold smoker out of an old electric oven - the old stand-alone type).

From memory I just removed the elements and inserted a tube approx 2" in diameter in the back at the top.

The oven already had racks for the fish. You salted the fish quite heavily and sprinkled on a bit of brown sugar, then spread medium sawdust about 15mm thick on the bottom of the oven, lit it in one corner so it started to smolder, and threw the fish in on the racks.

It would smolder away for about 6 hours and when you took the fish out it was absolutely melt in your mouth delicious :)

The trick was to get the vent hole just the right size so that the sawdust got enough oxygen to keep smoldering, but not enough so that it started to burn.
Thinking about it I may have ended up with one tube at the top of the oven and one at the bottom to induce some airflow.

Years before that at school we made the hot smokers that look like a metal box with a lid that you put sawdust into and put a dish of metho underneath.
Only takes about 20-30 mins.

Completely different taste/textures. The cold smoker fish was very smoky and soft, whereas the hot smoked fish was more steamed with slight smoke flavour.

SteveG

[Rob Bruce]

Yes, My family do hot and cold smoking for a living, I have adapted one oven and made another two.
Some tips for cold smoking, keep the temp below 28 deg C.
Curing the meat is best {salt and curing salts}
Cold smoked meats need refrigeration to keep well because if you use the amount of salts to not need refrigeration as they did in the old days it tasts awful .

Cheers
Rob

[Bushwanderer]

Hi Rob,
Yes, I think you are right about the "old" ways.

IIRC, Mum used to boil the bacon (to remove excess salts) before frying.

Best Wishes,
Peter

[slug_burner]

My FIL was a greater fisherman/hunter, loved the thought of living, catching and killing only what you needed, no trophy hunting etc. Plenty of hot and cold smoked fish and rabbits, also used the pickle and brine mix sold at sports stores (the type of sports store that provides for the hunter fisher folk) I remember the mix was placed in a tub, added some salt and sugar as well as hot water to help dissolve/mix the solution, when we caught lots of fish they would be soaked in this solution before freezing freezing to provide some variety. At times we tried the pickling stuff used by the butcher to make corned beef. Much of my wifes diet as she grew up was different to most. Where others may have had fish on Fridays, at her place it was most days of the week. Getting fish from the fish and chip shop was not the done thing although the chips (patato) often were.

Cold smoker. Take one refridgerator which has passed its serviceable life, this provides a large cavity in which you can place your meats either on the racks or hanging from the racks. Strip motor and frezeer compartment. (old fridges where frezeer was internal were good for that) Raise the fridge to allow access to the underside, cut hole to insert pipe (metal down pipe from house guttering) into bottom of fridge. Place one metal tin (large) under fridge to hold/burn wood chips or saw dust connect metal tin to fridge via down pipe. Need to organise appropriate seal and small door on tin via which to place wood inside and set fire to start smoke production, old kero tins were used when kero tins were about. Cut exit hole for more down pipe or flue pipe towards top of refridgerator cabinet. One cold smoker. Can be located outside or inside garage as long as you have means by which to provide exit for flue pipe.

Sorry no pictures FIL passed away a number of years ago and I miss my fish and rabbits.

[snowy3]

What about citrus??? We have plenty of that.

I've never tried citrus but try a test batch with any wood you try.

I made a smoker out of a 44 gallon drum and a buried drainpipe when I was 14. The pipe was about 1.5m long and buried about 20cm deep, one end poked up into the bottom of the old drum and the other end went to a small pit (about half a metre cubed) with a fire in it. I'd get a fire going in the pit and then lay a piece of sheet metal over the top to choke off the oxygen supply. Left a small gap, just enough air to keep the wood smouldering but not enough for flames. Drilled holes in the side of the drum (with a .22!) to poke hanging rods through the middle of the drum and another loose piece of tin on top for a lid.

It looked very crude but it worked a treat, I could hang up dozens of fish in that and put enough wood in to go overnight. I used mango wood because that's what we farmed. I even shot the odd roo and made smoked jerky, it was good stuff. Well, the first batches were horrible (used eucalypt wood) but later on I found a good mix of salt, spices, time, heat and the right wood. Unfortunately that was over a decade ago and I've forgotten the ratios.