Has Anyone Made A Smoker?

[manticle]

Cheers Katie, i'm smoking an aussie salmon tomorrow and was going to ask what to flavour it with!

Any one or small appropriate combination of the following:

Dill
Basil
Star anise (be subtle)
Capers
Coriander seed (again subtle)
Fennel
Lemon zest

If you're talking about smoking it then use something very dry like tea leaves and add any other wetter substances at a slightly later point so as to avoid smothering the smoke. things like star anis and dried coriander seed don't have to wait until the end.

 

[gibbocore]

You can smoke using an oven tray, cake cooling rack, alfoil and a stovetop to begin, oven for finishing.

Get a good size oven tray. Heat on stovetop. Add whatever dried smoking paraphenalia you like (tea leaves are perfect and you can add dried herbs, woodchips etc). Get some smoke happening. Salt whatever foodstuff you intend to smoke.

Place cake cooling rack inside tray. Place foodstuff on cooling tray. When smoke really gets going, cover with alfoil and place in oven. When foodstuff is nearly cooked to taste, remove from oven and allow to sit away from heat but still covered.

Recommended foodstuffs: Tomatoes (roma, cherry etc)
Kangaroo
Chicken
Duck
Capsicum
Venison

mate, my missus would kill me if i smoked anything inside the house.

 

[manticle]

mate, my missus would kill me if i smoked anything inside the house.

We have no overhead fan nor flue and my lady gets athsma. She gets very upset when I cook in the oven, let alone smoke tomatoes.

However when she tastes the results all is forgiven.

The alternative is to do the same as above but the first step (smoking on a stove top) is done outside on a barbecue or weber. I don't like to use weber bricks as I think they make food taste godawful so I simply use the weber (gift of my brother) as a regular barbecue).

Cover with foil, then place in oven. The smoke in the oven should be no more than your average roast.

 

[sijani]

I'm thinking of building a new and improved smoker just for chipotles. Similar design to my first one but with a smaller smoke chamber made from hardwood. I want to air dry chillies then cold smoke them. Not strictly the authentic chipotle method, but should still be tasty.

I'm thinking that after years of use it will become like a well seasoned wok. All those delicious smoke aromas and chilli oils infused into the wood and the wood giving back earthy notes.

...I wonder what Bhut Jolokia will taste like dried and smoked

 

[BillyBushCook]

Some good ideas there
here's one too.
You can use a Camp Oven for hot smoking as well, just throw your wood shavings in the bottom instead of oil, place your food on the trivet, whack the lid on & put some heat on the top & bottom as usual.

Iv'e been slowly working on a cold smoker made from an industrial dish washer for a while now for doing Salami's & such, but have stalled for now.

Cheers, Mick.

 

[Katherine]

Yum that fish looks great.... we smoked three whiting (that my daughter caught) last weekend but they were no bigger then a gold fish... lol!

When you get that cold smoker up and running.... try smoking some hops! :icon_cheers:

 

[sijani]

Last weekend I cold smoked 1/2 C salt and about 15 birdseye chillies for about 7 hours

I'm using 1 tsp of the salt in a slow cooked Greek style lamb dish tonight. Lemon juice, black pepper, rosemary, bay, garlic, lemon zest and smoked salt marinade :icon_drool2:

The chillies are dry now and just 1 is enough to add warmth and an amazing smoky bacon/salami flavour and aroma to any dish.

I don't think birdseye's are the right chilli to smoke. Smoked bacon doesn't suit Asian flavours at all.

Might try cold smoking some Jalepenos instead.

Crikey, that photo makes my smoker look a bit grotty. Gonna have to bust out the salt and wire brush :huh:
Nah, too busy :chug:
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[manticle]

billy - that fish looks good and so does the smoker but unless it gets a lid or the foil is discarded (and probably in that case you'll need to oil the fish or the grill), the optimum level of smoke flavour won't influence the flavour of the fish (just the heat).


eg -
1. score fish (obviously done from photos)
2. season fish
3. oil fish/grill lightly
4. smoke fish (turn if necessary)
5. cover fish from top and lower heat
6. allow to cook
7. rest
8. yum

 

[sijani]

Just built this last night. $130 supplies from bunnings. Took about 2 1/2 hours to build (or 5 beers long ).

Fired it up and cooked italian sausages. Lightly smoked they tasted like kabana but 1000 time better!

Kept it running and cooked some bacon and 3 eggs. Bacon was a bit dry and I cooked the eggs too long (want runny yolks) but the flavour was great. Next time lower heat and more smoke.

Going to fire it up today for a chicken. Going to brine a second chicken for 2 days and then smoke it. On some BBQ sites they brine before smoking and they all say the flavour is better. With the first chicken I'm going to smoke some jalpenos to make a adobe sauce for the second chicken.

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Thought this was great value at $17! I saw a smoker box by itself for $22!
Wood chips in the pack are Manuka and Kanuka (NZ woods)
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First run. Still some air flow things to sort out.

Will post some pics of the chicken when it's finished.
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[barfridge]

Are you using a water tray under the food? That makes a huge difference in stopping things drying out.

 

[sijani]

New mods to the smoker: Bigger holes in the charcoal pit, holes under the pit in the smoker body, holes in the lid, lid for pit with bolts facing 1/2 inch up, evap pan for beer or water on top of pit lid.

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[olde]

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/index.php
Came across this site a few days ago. Anyone with an interest in smoking food will find a lot of reading that interests them there. Especially the UDS thread, which is an absolute goldmine of info.
PS, you'll want a comfy chair and plenty of refreshments if you start reading that thread.

 

[Rustyc30]

It's a great forum and if you post a few time on there you get access to their recipe data base which is really worth while