The Smoking Process

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FOOD PREPARATION Whatever you are intending to smoke, good preparation will give you a better finished product. If smoking fish make sure it is completely cleaned and free from scales and slime. Removing scales prior to salting and smoking allows both the salt and smoke to penetrate more effectively. You can either butterfly your fish with bone in and head on or off or fillet it. With very large fish filleting is recommended. If smoking meat trim away any dangling or loose flesh and remove any visible blood vessels, sinew and cartilage. SALTING, BRINING AND CURING Salting or Brining is an essential step in the smoking process. Salt retards unwanted bacterial growth, seasons and enhances flavor plus removes excess the moisture that bacteria need to multiply. BRINES The strength and duration of salting or brining depends on the size and type of food you are intending to smoke. Fish is generally brined in an 80% solution this is a fairly strong brine however due to the high water content in fish it is required to remove sufficient quantity for smoking. This strength of brine also creates a good sticky surface called a (pellicle) once dry, which the smoke will readily stick to. To calculate the amount of salt required for your desired strength of brine use the following calculation. A 10% brine solution uses 26g of salt in 1litre of water. Therefore to calculate the quantity of salt required for an 80% solution, simply multiply 26 by 8 = 208g of salt per 1 liter of water. 1 liter of brine is sufficient for about 1.5kg of fish. Brining times will differ for hot and cold smoking, plus weight and thickness of the product to be smoked. Hot smoke brining is used more for moisture removal and flavor than a preservative. Cold smoking on the other hand requires a larger salt content to stabilize the meat for storage. A basic guide using an 80% brine solution is ……………….. CURES As a rule of thumb if you intend to smoke it you should use a nitrite cure. The use of Nitrite cures in