FOOD

PRESERVATION:
SMOKING

SMOKING
Slow cooking of food indirectly over a fi re
Natural method: exposing food to wood smoke which
causes the deposition of pyroligneous acid on the
foods surface which acts as preservative and
fl avoring agent
Pyroligneous acid/wood vinegar: a red-brown liquid
formed in distillation of wood which contains acetic
acid, methanol, acetone, wood oils and tars
It is produced through the natural act of
carbonization during charcoal/biochar production this occurs when wood/biomass is heated in an
oxygen starved environment
Artifi cial method: incorporating artifi cial smoke fl avor
in the pumping pickle for ham and bacon at the rate
of 1 tsp/L

EXAMPLES OF SMOKED FOOD

INTERNAL TEMPERATURES FOR

SMOKE COOKING OF FOODS

MECHANISM
1. Heat - kills bacteria & other microorganisms
(depending on smoking time & temperature)
2. Chemical - antimicrobial eff ect of chemical
compounds from smoke, but they are insuffi cient in
themselves to preserve food
3. Surface dehydration - outer surface of food dries,
reducing moisture available for bacteria to grow

PURPOSE
To preserve and increase shelf life of food
To impart desired and distinctive sensory
characteristics (fl avor and aroma)

SMOKING PROCESS (FISH)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Product preparation
Salting or brining
Equilibration and drying
Smoking and cooking (hot or cold smoke)
Product packaging and storage

PRODUCT PREPARATION
Rinsing and cleaning (fresh meat or fi sh)
Thawing (frozen)
Cutting into desired size, deboning
Many fi sh contain tapeworms and nematodes that can
survive low-salt brining and low-temperature smoking
methods and may cause serious health problems.
These parasites can be destroyed by freezing the raw
product at a temperature of 0F for two weeks or
longer, before salting and smoking.

SALTING
H ig h levels of salt inhib it b acterial grow th
For mod ern low er s alt method s, salt red uces bacteria b ut, it
contr ib utes d esirab le texture and fl av or characteristics
ca n b e accomplished us ing either a s trong salt solution (b rine)
or d ry s alt
b rining g ives a more uniform salting and is eas ier to prep are
a nd us e
d ry sa lting req uires cons id erab le exp erience for c onsistent
res ults
B rines prep aration: d is solv e salt in fresh w ater. U se pure s alts
like kosher, vacuum-d ried , d airy, pickling or c anning sa lt only,
not rock, sea and iodized salt which contain imp urities &
a dd itive s that can c ause b itternes s and off fl avors . Curing
sa lts should also b e av oid ed s ince they c ontain nitrites . I t is
d iffi cult to g et an even distrib ution of nitrite throughout the
fi s h unde r home c ond itions (for small s cale).

DRYING
Fish is usually dried before smoking. Drying
accomplishes two things: (1) it allows the salt to
penetrate and to become evenly distributed
throughout the fl esh of the fi sh (equilibration), and
(2) the surface of the fi sh dries to form a pellicle or
tough shiny coat. The pellicle seals in moisture and
makes the appearance of the fi nished product much
better.
Refrigerate the fi sh during equilibration

SMOKING: 2 TYPES
C old -S mok in g
mo s t ofte n u s e d for s a lted
p ro d u cts
d on e ov e r a lo n ge r pe rio d of
tim e (ex. 12-24 h ou r s ) ov e r a
s mo ld er in g fi re
S in ce foo ds are h e ld in low er
te mp er atu res , rap id microbia l
g ro wth co uld o ccu r. Th e refo re ,
on ly th os e m e at pro du cts th at
h av e b ee n ferm e nte d, s a lte d, o r
cu re d , s h o ul d be co ld-s mo ke d.
me at: fl e s h tem pe ra tu re s o f u p
to 30 C
fi s h : b elo w 30 C
u s u ally e m pl oy e d for n on -fatty
fi s h (ex . gr ay lin g, h a libu t)

Hot-Smoking
primarily used for fresh or
frozen foods
done in the smokehouse or
more modern electric kilns
over a short period of time,
just until the meat/fi sh is
cooked over a burning fi re
or electric elements of a
kiln
meat: fl esh temperatures
up to 90C
fi sh: greater than 80C
Usually employed for fatty
fi s

PRODUCT STORAGE
Most smoked products have no preservation step
since there is not enough salt, smoke or heat to
preserve the product. The potential for bacterial
spoilage and botulism exists.
After the fi sh has been smoked, it is allowed to cool
to room temperature to prevent condensation
formation.
Followed by fi sh being wrapped with plastic/aluminum
foil, may be vacuum-wrapped, and refrigerated or
frozen until consumed.
Lightly salted and smoked products can last for 10 to
14 days in the refrigerator.

REFERENCES
http://extension.usu.edu/foodpreservation/htm/curesmoke-foods
Industrial Chemical Processes: Food Industries by
Cecilia V. Bayqueen, Ph.D.
http://www.uaf.edu/fi les/ces/publicationsdb/catalog/hec/FNH-00325.pdf