Anybody out there......SMOKIN'!!!

I know I'm leaving myself wide open here but I'm talking meat and fish not leaves!!!
I've been smoking meat and fish (garlic and peppers) for over 20 years now, and for the first few years was 'winging it'. Now my chief taster (missus) say's 'wow' and ' don't mess with it ' I think I've cracked it...
However I'm alway's open to try new things and give hints and tips to anyone interested
Got some nice photo's but don't know how to transfer them onto here.....
Wishing everone festive greetings and great things for 2017
Cheers John

 

I smoke fish. Nothing elaborate, just using an old hub cap and damp oak chippings

Just press the upload a file button and that should open your photo album, then select the pic and press full image

 

View attachment 75470View attachment 75471View attachment 75470View attachment 75471

 

OK, Don't know how I did the photo thing but it worked!!!!

 

Nice one

You got a vacuum packer too?

 

Hi Zigs, Thanks for the heads up on posting photos.
Yes I have a vac pac, invaluable they are too..had him 6 years and can't do without it now

 

No worries :santa clap:

I might look into one of those then

 

They're not a bad price, got some reasonable reviews too,

https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Vacuum-S...596053&sr=8-2&keywords=vacuum+packer+for+food

Take it they work on mains voltage?

 

Don't know about the one from Andrew James, I've got an Eifell and my mucker has a Solis.
Everthing I have from Andrew James does what it say's so go for it....Tip, don
't get plain vac bags, they don't work. You need the structured bags/rolls!
Yes they work on mains

 

Far be it for me wishing to pour cold water on your enthusiasm for vac packing, please just be aware that good husbandry is still very important/more so when vaccuming a product which is then not going to be heated to a high temperature post being vacuumed packed and pre consumption as in the likes of hams and smoked fish. Unfortunately a vacuum enviroment is excellent for the growth of botulism which in a vacuum is pretty much undetectable. IE without the vacuum the product would be pretty rancid and green if infected and our sense would tell us to avoid!. The vacuum enviroment fools our senses into thinking the product is fine when it is not.
I used to run a business selling smoked Scottish Salmon all over the world, for years it was deemed too risky to sell it vacuum packed as it was obviously going to be consumed 99 odd % of the time without it being cooked, however, vacuuming and husbandry improved to a point where it was deemed an acceptable risk these days.
@Zigs Being a very annoying little red headed person I wouldn't like to think of you going down with a good going doze of food poisioning so if you intend to go down the vacuuming route which has many many advantages please maybe do a bit of homework on the subject.

 

Gordon Bennet your'e a bag of fun!

 

Oh yes when it comes to bugs and a doze of the trots I'm your man (woman!). I used to work for a branch of Unilever and I saw things about food and packaging which made Pysico look tame!

 

I'm 5 foot 11