Quote:
Originally Posted by BigAsh
Always wanted to try to do this.....How to? Inquiring minds (i.e. me) want to know!!  |
Sure. This is method is still kind of new to me, but here's what I've got...
Easy. All you need is a tin can and a new soldering iron.
This page basically covers how to build it:
http://www.smoker-cooking.com/build-a-cold-smoker.html
You could also use a heavy ceramic coffee cup and fill it with chips and just jam the soldering iron down in it.
Couple of "construction" notes:
1) Obviously, you don't have to use smoke pellets. Wood chips are fine, as are dried twigs from whatever smoke wood trees you have around. Since they don't pack as compactly, should fill the can a bit more for twigs and chips, like 2/3.
2) You can do this in basically any grill or smoker. The smoke can doesn't have to be below the food it can be next to it, it really doesn't matter as with all the vents closed, the whole chamber will fill with smoke. If the can is below the food, don't put any food directly in the path of the rising smoke, at it will end up coated with a nasty, bitter, tar type substance.
3) Super cheap wound resistor soldering irons won't hold up here. Wound resistor irons are the ones with the ventilated barrels. Avoid them. One of the solid barrel Wellers which uses a ceramic resistor should hold up fine. I'm using a
Weller SP23L. $10-$15 depending on if it comes singly or in a kit with some extra tips and crap. Keep the receipt and packaging handy for the first few runs in case you burn the iron up.
4) If your soldering iron has a removable tip, remove it and check for high-temp anti-seize grease. If you buy a Weller SP23L or SP40L you can count on it being in there. Clean it out as best as you can (a few q-tips work well here, just screw them into the hole and then back out, wipe the threads off on the screw in tip). After cleaning and reassembling the tip, set your iron up someplace safe, plug it in and let it run for 15-20 minutes to burn off any crap you missed.
Smoking notes:
1) It takes about 15 minutes for the smoke to get going. I've done whole 8 oz blocks of cheese for 1 hour total smoking time and last night I was smoking deli sliced cheese, so I only had the iron going for 30 minutes at a time (kind of a SWAG).
2) While the smoked flavors are more intense in the home smoked stuff, don't expect to see the heavy coloration you see in commercially available smoked cheeses.
3) After you smoke the cheese, pull it off and vacuum seal it for a week or two (or longer) to allow it to mellow and blend. Mr. B and I were talking about this earlier in the thread and if you don't have a vacuum sealer, we suppose that a few layers of really tight saran wrap would work too.
4) No need to stop at cheese. I've put a foil tray of pimento stuffed green olives in there and smoked them, a tray of roasted almonds, etc. You could make your own lox or other cured meats, you could put a tray of salt in there and so on, it's whatever you can imagine.
If you do olives, I would not put them back in the brine. Just serve right away or into a clean jar for storage.
(sheez, this post is longer than the whole process... just go do it. It's sooooo easy)