PROQSMOKERS.COM
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Cold Smoking
Traditionally, food was cold smoked to aid in the curing and preservation process
(this was before we had refrigerators), nowadays smoke is predominantly used to
add flavour. Cold smoking is usually used for foods such as cheese, fish, sausages,
vegetables and many more things. Some foods will need to be cooked after the
cold smoking process before they can be eaten such as bacon, so please follow
recipes or instructions carefully when curing or smoking.
Cold smoking is a process that not only adds flavour, but also aids in curing
certain foods. Cold smoking is usually done at temperatures below 86°F (30°C),
but preferably lower than 10°C, this means that you must keep an eye on the
temperature in your smoking chamber and the ambient temperature (we suggest
using a digital thermometer for this). If it rises above 86°F (30°C), this may cause
bacteria in the food to multiply rapidly, making the food unsafe to eat. Don’t try
to cold smoke on a hot summer’s day, but rather try to smoke overnight when the
ambient temperature drops.
Cold smoking is a little harder to master as it requires a bit more research and
knowledge into the method of curing and smoking. We would suggest buying a
book that deals specifically with the methods used e.g. Smoking Food at Home
with Smoky Jo.
Cold smoking is easy to achieve using the
ProQ® Cold Smoke Generator
which can
be purchased separately from your dealer.
