Hot smoking: temperature, time, food selection, cooking tips, smoking technology and expert advice

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Smoking has long been considered the most favorite way for many people to cook fish and meat. And today it is one of the safest ways. How often do we choose smoked products on store shelves? And how often are people hospitalized with severe poisoning?

When buying smoked meat or fish in the store, we do not know what condition the meat was in before it got into the smokehouse.

In the article, we will consider several home methods and what temperature of hot smoking should be in order to get a tasty and high-quality dish at the exit. Cooking for ourselves and our family at home, we will always try to make delicious and quality products.

Compliance with the temperature during hot smoking is one of the main criteria that must be followed to make a delicacy.

Basic parameters forsmoking, which affect the taste and quality of the product

What are they?

1. It is important to follow the cooking technology.
2. The state of the raw materials initially.
3. S alting recipe.
4. Smoking and product preparation time.
5. It is very important to maintain the right level of humidity inside the smoker itself.
6. The raw materials used to set fire to the smokehouse are wood, coals.
7. Compliance with the temperature regime.

But one of the most important criteria is the temperature during hot smoking. After all, the taste of the dish depends on it. For smoking meat, fish and vegetables, it has its own. But the minimum mode for all products remains the same - 80 ° C. If it is not observed, the mandatory processes necessary for smoking will not occur - the release of fat with juice, protein denaturation. Also, the desired smoke particles inside the product itself will not work.

The temperature in the hot smoked smokehouse

When changing the temperature in the smoking chamber, you can get different ways of smoking - hot, semi-hot and cold.

Minimum heat exposure level to get a hot smoked product is below.

1. For red fish, the minimum regime is 25 °С. It is with him that the protein begins to fold.
2. For the rest of the fish, the minimum temperature is equal to 38 ° C.
3. Meat minimum 42°C.

Anything below these temperatures is smoke treatment only.

How to correctly determine the temperature regime

Average temperature in the processsmoking in home smokehouses is 90 ° C.

The easiest way to determine the temperature is to sprinkle the body of the smoker with water. If you have reached the correct setting, the water will simply evaporate without splashing or hissing.

When setting the temperature, it is important to consider the level and size of the smoker itself. If it has an elongated shape, the heating will be uneven. Temperatures below will be significantly higher than above.

In order to avoid such situations, it is better to purchase a thermometer. Although if we are talking about a home-made smokehouse at home, maintaining the correct temperature during hot smoking is achieved by a long experiment.

Subject to the regime, an error of 10 ° C is allowed in one direction or another. As already stated above, the temperature during hot smoking for different products may vary. More on this below.

Hot smoking: temperature and time for different raw materials

How to perform the procedure correctly?

1. Meat. In order to get delicious smoked meat cooked at home, the temperature must be kept within 80-100 ° C throughout the entire smoking time. But this is subject to the use of a raw product. If the meat was previously subjected to heat treatment, such as boiling or stewing, during smoking, the temperature is reduced to 42-60 ° C. You can store such meat in a cool place for no more than three weeks.



2. Fish. For each type of fish, the temperature and time of smoking may differ, since the level of protein coagulation is different. But in general, the smoking time is from one to three hours. The temperature level at the same time ranges from 60 to 140 °C. Considering that any fish is a perishable product, it can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days.



3. Game or poultry. The procedure for smoking it differs little from pork or beef, but still has its own nuances. In order for the bird to acquire a crispy crust, it is necessary to start smoking from high temperatures - 100 ° C. But if an already boiled bird gets into the smokehouse, then the smoking temperature drops to 60 ° C. Also, the temperature regime of poultry smoking depends on the size of the carcass. It can be smoked whole or in parts. Smoked game can be stored refrigerated for up to three weeks.
4. Homemade sausage. The technology for preparing smoked homemade sausage is significantly different from those discussed above. It is necessary to smoke the product, observing the temperature regime in the range of 60–120 ° С. After the sausage is sent to a cool place, but not raw, and kept for about three weeks. Only if you follow this cooking technology, you can get a real smoked homemade sausage.

Choose the right raw materials for the smokehouse

For a product with a pleasant aroma, use raw firewood. Toss in cherry leaves or juniper buds for a pleasant scent. Better to use as firewoodbranches of fruit trees. The needles will not work because of the abundant release of resin. In the case of using birch logs, first remove the bark from them. Otherwise, the product may taste bitter.

Also, the color of the finished product is affected by the choice of wood that is formed during combustion. To make the meat brown, use redwoods. For a light crust, alder or oak is perfect.

Advice from the masters

What do experts advise?

1. It is best to use obsolete old garden trees. Cut large firewood as small as possible. In order to maintain a constant smoking temperature, sawdust must be constantly thrown into the smoker pan.
2. In order for the product to have a pleasant smoke after smoking, cover the hole in the lid during the procedure after the formation of coals. This will ensure efficient smoldering of sawdust.
3. It is best to smoke small pieces of meat or fish. This will ensure complete and high-quality cooking of the product.
4. It is worth considering the fact that when the lid is constantly opened, air enters the smoker, and this increases the smoking time and lowers its temperature.
5. It is important not to overexpose the product in the smokehouse. Better let it be raw. Then you can always bring it to the desired condition. If you overdry meat or fish, nothing will be fixed.

Having considered the technology of cooking products, and at what temperature to smoke hot smoked, you can safely at homebuild a homemade smokehouse and experiment, surprising your family and friends.