In this section we are going to cover Cold Smoking and Curing, more specifically using the ProQ™ Cold Smoke Generator. Once thought to be the domain of commercial smokehouses and steeped in mystery, cured/ cold smoked products can be easily produced at home, given the right equipment, knowledge and common sense. Please take a look at the Cold Smoke Generator instruction manual HERE.
As the title suggests, this process cures, rather than cooks the food, so some foods that have been cured and cold smoked will need to be cooked, either in the oven, on the BBQ or Hot Smoked, before it can be consumed. Some items such as cheese, Salmon, cods roe and some cuts of beef are best eaten raw, after being cured and cold smoked. While we are certainly not experts on the subject, we do have some experience and tips that should be useful to even the most knowledgeable cold smoking enthusiast. All the information mentioned here is intended for use as a guide, we strongly recommend that you purchase a book on the subject (a list of some we like can be found at the bottom of the page), also experiment with different ingredients to formulate just the right end product to suit your taste.
Some important points to remember:
Before meat can be cold smoked, it needs to be cured. This is achieved by either:
Dry curing - Meat is completely covered in dry salt for a set period of time. The advantage of this method is that as the salt attracts the moisture from within the product, the resultant weight loss, means shorter drying and smoking times. This is the favoured method used by commercial operations. Other ingredients, such as sugar and spices may be added to the salt to enhance flavours. Only use non iodised salt for your dry cure, plain table salt is quite acceptable.
Basic Dry Cure Recipe
3 parts Salt
1 part demerra sugar
Other herbs/ spices, such as dill or pepper to tase.
or by...
Brining - being soaked in a brine solution (salt dissolved in water).
Basic Brine Recipe
265g salt
1 litre of water
Other herbs/ spices, such as dill or pepper to tase.
Heat up the water and add the salt (warm water will absorb the salt easier than cold water. Allow the brine soultion to cool, before placing it in a suitable container and adding the meat/ fish.
Don't have a smoker, use a cardboard box... see how to HERE
Please read-up on cold smoking and curing methods, below is a list of books, we recommend, that cover the subject...
Home Smoking and Curing by Keith Erlandson ISBN- 0091927609
Cold-smoking and Salt-curing Meat, Fish and Game by A.D. Livingston - ISBN- 1558214224
Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking and Curing by M Ruhlman - ISBN-0393058298
Mastering the Craft of Smoking Food by Warren R. Anderson - ISBN- 1846890454
