How To Smoke Meat – A Brief Guide To A Traditional Feast

We have already seen how to build a smokehouse, the first step to be covered to a lavish feast. So we start prom the premise you already have the proper infrastructure, plus the meat, sausages and whatever else you want to turn into a tasty food and you only need the know-how to finalize the process and enjoy some traditional recipes which go very well with the cold weather outside. So here are some details about how to smoke meat, an ancient food ritual that is so actual these days.

The popular tradition registers wood as the main source of fire, easy to guess. What experienced people recommend is the beech wood because it gives meat an excellent taste, besides an appealing reddish color. You can also use other types of wood, such as cherry, sour cherry, apple tree or even vine wood, each of them giving meat a special peculiar aroma. Hickory, oak and even wine barrel staves can also be burnt. Do not use gas/gasoline to light the fire, but only wood splinters.

Prepare the meat for the smoking process, cutting it in slices and storing in a barrel in a cold room. Add coarse salt abundantly because this helps meat preserve better, maintaining its taste and qualities, while preventing various types of bacteria to grow. After kept for 24 hours in a cool environment, take the meat out of the barrel and remove the coarse salt. Hang the meat loaves or sausages on wooden rods and tie them using hemp rope. Do not use metal rods because they can heat and then burn the rope and even the meat.

The classic and traditional smoking method is the so called cold smoking, over a smoldering fire, over a long series of days, at temperatures not exceeding 23 degrees. Light the fire and keep it smoldering. To get the necessary smoke and avoid a sudden combustion, mix dry wood with wet logs or cover the fire partially to prevent oxygen from flowing in. The smoking process can last as much as you and your taste like, but it is recommended to smoke meat and ham for 4 to 14 days, sausages for 2 to 6 days, for about 2-3 hours per day. You can check the taste in the meantime, by cutting thin slices. After you wrap up the smoking process, store sausages and meat in cool rooms.