Page 75 - The Lost Ways

-By John Paicu-

“Smoke me a kipper, I’ll be back for breakfast”

– Ace Rimmer, Red Dwarf

Once upon a time, every house had a smokehouse. Households would make their

own smokehouses from hardwood and brick, and then they would use it to prepare all
kinds of meats. Preserved in cool, dry places, the smoked products would last up to one
year. Even though very few people nowadays still use traditional smokehouses, those that
care about eating healthy, delicious meat should know that building a smokehouse in your

own backyard is easier than it may look.

Smoking is one of the best, tastiest, and healthiest way to prepare meat, fish, and even
cheese, and the pioneers have been doing it for centuries. But back then they didn’t do it
to improve the taste of the meat. The main purpose of a smokehouse was to preserve the
meat. Preservation was done by sustained smoking (often for more than two weeks using
cold smoke) and salt curing. The pioneers would leave the products in the smoker for
extended periods of time (sometimes up to two years) because they didn’t have any

refrigeration systems.

Because we live in the world of the processed food industry—where nothing we buy from
supermarkets is healthy anymore—it’s only natural to want to reassess our options and
find a better way to cook our meat. Smoking is one of those methods that helps you
prepare meat the natural way, with no preservatives. It lasts longer, and it tastes
delicious. To get started, all you need to do is build the smokehouse, buy the meat, light
the fire, and allow the smoke to work its magic.

There are different types of smokehouses that you can build, although the easiest and
safest model is made of hardwood. Commonly referred to as a “slow cooking oven,” the
temperature in a smokehouse shouldn’t exceed 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

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