The selection of sawdust for tasty and flavorful smoking is no less important than the correct purchase of fresh and suitable food products for this process. Indeed, in these small slivers lies the strength that can give a refined, spicy accompaniment to any, sometimes even the most ordinary raw materials.
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Instruction manual
1
It is traditionally believed that a sliver of the following plant species — juniper and alder — is best suited for proper and flavorful smoking; the following tree species, such as aromatic hazel, birch, maple and apple tree, ash, oak, pear, plum, and other fruit, are slightly less popular. culture. Moreover, it is believed that here preference should be given to branches obtained by pruning trees in the spring. Smoke mixtures will be appropriate in this case. Combinations of apple, pear and plum, as well as hazel and oak are generally considered the best, but there are no strict rules, so you can navigate by coordinating only with your own tastes.
2
If you do not trust chips, just like to cook yourself or have the necessary material that you want to use for home smoking, you need to follow some important rules. For example, it is the wood that needs to be used, not the bark of the wood, since the first one is able to give smoked meats that stunning aroma. Even more, the bark of some types of trees can harm the cooked product. So birch "skin" will give smoked meats completely unnecessary bitterness.
3
It is highly recommended not to use conifers for smoking. They will give all their flavor to the air, but only that unnecessary bitterness will go into the product. By the way, in France, where cooking is not just a hobby of housewives, but a real art, only chestnut, willow and fruit trees are used for smoking. But there are minor exceptions, for example, in the French region of Savoy, for the preparation of local traditional sausages, only a mixture of conifer needles and spruce cones is considered suitable. So that bitterness is not transmitted to smoked meats, they are wrapped in a very dense layer of gauze, which absorbs everything unnecessary.
4
The appearance of wood and slivers affects not only the taste and aroma of the product, but also the color of smoked meats. For example, mahogany can give a golden color to the product, while alder and oak give a brownish color. In turn, beech, maple and linden, which are often used for smoking fish, give it a very appetizing golden hue. Hornbeam chips also give a very unusual color.
Useful advice
After choosing wood, it must be chopped. The optimal size of slivers is about 1.5-2 centimeters. This parameter provides the wood with optimal minimum burning, and then smoldering.