What could be nicer than a holiday together? suburban area, in the circle of close and dear people? In the fresh air, you always want to treat yourself to something tasty and unusual. If you are the owner of a private house or cottage, why not make a smokehouse cold smoked with your own hands? This does not require special skills or knowledge. In this article, we will look at how to design a smokehouse from improvised materials in order to diversify your table with delicious and fragrant dishes.
Cold smoking is a process in which food is smoked and cooked under the influence of smoke. Cooking time varies from 3 to 4 days, depending on the size of the product. Subsequently, moisture is completely removed from the food, the product becomes dense and elastic, and the surface acquires a golden crust. Smoke temperature is 20 - 23 degrees.
Do-it-yourself cold-smoked smoker, photo
Cold smoking implies a stable effect of cold smoke, which must flow smoothly and without interruption. That is why the cold smoked smokehouse has a peculiar structure, slightly different from the hot smoked container. Since the temperature of the smoke should not be higher than 23 degrees, it is important to make sure that the smoke cools down when it reaches the product. This can be achieved by dividing the smokehouse into two parts, where one will be a firebox and the other a container. The firebox from the tank should be at a certain distance - at least 1.5 m. Two tanks are connected using a pipe through which the smoke will move.
The smokehouse device includes the following elements:
Smoke construction.
Firebox.
Pipes.
The principle of operation of a cold smoked smokehouse consists of the following actions:
1. Chips are poured into the furnace, which, smoldering, will form smoke.
2. A special hole forms a draft, thanks to which the smoke is pulled through the chimney.
3. Reaching the food container, the smoke has time to cool down.
The main role should be given to the chimney, since it is he who creates a constant flow of smoke into the smokehouse. What sawdust can be used for smoking? Experts do not recommend the use of pine wood chips, as the emitted resins adversely affect palatability product. The best option - sawdust fruit trees such as apple, pear or plum. If you can’t find any at hand, you can use oak or willow sawdust.
How to make a smokehouse with your own hands?
To make a smokehouse without outside help, you first need to find or create a structure in which coal will directly smolder. For this, it can work like old barrel, and a large enamel pot. The only caveat is to come up with a lid that tightly closes the container so that smoke does not come out. So, the process of creating a smokehouse with your own hands is as follows:
1. In the container where the product will be smoked, it is necessary to install an additional grate on which burlap or filter cloth is laid. This will protect against tar or soot.
2. You need to think about the fasteners on which food will be hung. It can be either metal or wooden hook.
3. A small hole is made in the lid, where the chimney is inserted.
4. It is recommended to bury the pipe itself and cover it with a sheet of metal or slate. This is to ensure that there is no smoke leakage.
5. The firebox in which the coals smolder should also be equipped in a suitable way: a sheet of metal is placed on the bottom, which will allow the coals to smolder evenly.
As you can see, to make a cold-smoked smokehouse with your own hands does not require a lot of knowledge and skills. It is enough just to follow the instructions and have a desire to please yourself and your loved ones with unusual dishes.
Cold smoked smokehouse should give out cold smoke to the area of located products. The incoming smoke should be as even and stable as possible throughout the smoking period. Products are smoked with warm smoke for a long period, sometimes up to 7 days, it depends on the size of the semi-finished products.
The temperature of the smoke should not exceed 25 degrees C. To obtain such a chilled smoke, the cold smoked smokehouse must be divided into two parts.
The first part is a firebox, and the second is a container where the products will be located, and they need to be placed at a distance of 1.5 - 2 meters from each other, connecting with a chimney.
1 - firebox; 2 - burning firewood; 3 - chimney; 4 - brickwork; 5 - lattice (metal sieve); 6 - a wooden or metal box (barrel) without a bottom; 7 - suspended meat semi-finished products; 8 - metal rods with hooks; 9 - burlap cover; 10 - furnace door.
This the simplest smokehouse cold smoked with a firebox and a chimney located in the ground and a container for laying products above the ground.
A sheet of iron should be placed at the bottom of the firebox.
How to make a homemade smokehouse with your own hands
Heated iron will give a more even smoldering of sawdust, wood chips and twigs. The firebox can be lined with brick, but not necessarily.
The chimney is dug approximately as deep as the bayonet of a shovel and as wide as the width of a shovel, then it is simply covered with a sheet of iron or flat or wave slate, and the edges of the canvas are sprinkled with earth, so that the smoke does not break through without reaching the smokehouse.
A strong mesh or grate is attached to the bottom of the barrel, on which a filter can be placed.
This filter will protect the products from the soot and tar contained in the smoke. As a filter, you can use a wet serpyanka, a rare burlap, or a rarely decomposed moistened straw. Also, a mesh or grate prevents products from falling into the chimney when the suspension breaks.
Up cold smoked smokers fix metal rods or pipes on which meat products will be hung.
It is better to make hooks from a stainless steel rod with a diameter of 10 mm so that the meat does not break through, or hang it with twine folded into a thick rope. From above, the smoking chamber is covered with an iron sheet, wooden shield, sickle or burlap.
There is another way to make a cold smoked smokehouse. All you need is to pick up the necessary box or any other container for smoking and attach to it the Cold Smoke Generator for cold smoking.
You will get a portable cold-smoked smokehouse, which, if necessary, can be removed to a convenient secluded place.
Learn about simple ways make a smokehouse in the country or in the apartment. Read what you need to build a cold or hot smoker how to make a smokehouse from improvised materials and surprise friends and acquaintances.
Fish or meat own smoking- not only excellent taste, but also confidence in the naturalness and quality of the resulting product. With the help of your own smokehouse, it becomes possible to prepare food for the future or come up with an unusual treat for friends.
Types of smokehouses for summer cottages
There are several technologies for making a smokehouse - from elementary devices from improvised materials to more complex stationary structures (see photo).
Do-it-yourself cold smoked smokehouse - drawings, dimensions and construction instructions
It all depends on culinary preferences, the method of cooking meat or fish (hot, cold smoked), frequency of use.
For cold smoking
A cold smoking smokehouse consists of a foundation (support), a smoking chamber with a drip tray, a chimney and a combustion chamber.
Smoke temperature should be +30…+50ºС. In order to provide heating, arrange the hearth at a distance of 2–2.5 m from the smoking chamber. Processing takes from 6 hours to 3 days. The duration of smoking depends on the size of the pieces: the larger, the more time it will take.
Subject to technology harmful substances from the smoke and water condensate precipitate in the chimney.
The product is juicy, with a delicate taste, harmless to health. In a cool, dry cellar, such smoked meats are stored for up to six months - the taste will remain the same, except that the product will eventually lose some of its moisture and dry out.
When stored in the refrigerator, the terms are sharply reduced: it interferes high humidity, due to which smoked meat begins to sag and deteriorate.
For hot smoking
The principle of the device of a hot smokehouse is different - the product and fuel for smoking are located in the same chamber.
On the one hand, this ensures compactness, and on the other hand, it requires careful observance of the smoking rules. The main components of a classic hot smokehouse:
- smoke casing with blower;
- chamber for products with a solid bottom and holes in the walls;
- hooks or grate for products;
- drip tray for fat;
- thermometer.
Heating is carried out outside. There are many options here: a fire, gas-burner, electric stove etc. The main thing is to be able to adjust the degree of heating inside the chamber. Too high a temperature will spoil the product, and too low will prevent the meat from smoking.
Use special wood chips or sawdust for smoking as fuel.
You can't pile them up. Air will not penetrate into the inner layers, as a result, pyrolysis gases are formed and the meat will be saturated with carcinogens.
Single-tier and multi-tier smokehouse
A single-tier smokehouse allows you to smoke large (compared to the size of the smokehouse) pieces. It is single-tier structures that are used for smoking whole hams or large fish.
In a multi-tiered smokehouse, you can smoke a large batch of small pieces - ideal for smoking medium-sized fish, pork ribs, chicken.
Horizontal and vertical smoker
These species got their names according to the way the products are arranged. In a horizontal smokehouse, meat or fish is placed on a grate. In the vertical - hung on hooks.
When arranging a smokehouse with your own hands, make sure that the design provides for the possibility and vertical arrangement, and horizontal laying.
To do this, install stops for the grate in the walls, and rods for hooks in the upper part.
Yulia Petrichenko, expert
The horizontal smoker is suitable for processing small to medium-sized pieces of uniform thickness.
In a vertical smokehouse, you can aim to smoke a whole ham - the design will ensure uniform impregnation of the entire surface with smoke.
How to make a stationary smokehouse with your own hands
Consider a simple and low-cost way to build a stationary cold smokehouse in the country.
Since not only functionality is important, but also aesthetics, we will make a smoking chamber from boards.
Materials and tools
What you need to make a smokehouse:
- bricks for the foundation and firebox;
- building mixture;
- boards;
- door hinges;
- oven cast-iron door for the firebox;
- wooden slats (the maximum length is equal to the diameter of the barrel);
- stainless steel hooks;
- shovel;
- hammer and nails.
Step by step instructions - how to build a smokehouse
How to make a smokehouse from improvised materials
In the network there are smokehouses made from old refrigerators. Do not repeat other people's mistakes: plastic and warm smoke are incompatible things.
There are other, more acceptable ways to arrange a structure for smoking fish.
Smokehouse from a bucket
The described type of smokehouse is intended for semi-hot smoking.
The shelf life of products is a maximum of a week in a cool place. However, a smokehouse from a bucket is useful not only in the country, but also on a hike or on long-term fishing.
- Place two bricks 20 cm apart. There will be a small fire between them. Place a bucket on the bricks. Put a handful of smoking sawdust in the bottom of the bucket. Attention! Sawdust should not lie in a heap or cover the bottom with a thick layer!
- Take a broken grate or something similar, a couple of centimeters larger than the diameter of the bottom of the bucket.
Lattice right size should stop a quarter of the height before reaching the walls.
- The grid will become a support small pallet for fat.
The latter should not block the free access of smoke to the upper, "smoke" part.
- At a distance of about 15 cm from the edge of the bucket, we install another grate. Products are laid out on it. Put a couple of slats on top of the bucket and cover with damp burlap on top.
The smokehouse is ready!
How to make a smokehouse for an apartment
For the most easy way you will need a stove, dishes with a thick bottom (duckling or cauldron), sawdust for smoking, foil, a wire rack with legs.
Wrap the lid of the roaster with foil for a snug fit. Lay some sawdust or wood chips on the bottom. Install the grate. Turn on the stove to maximum and wait until the container warms up.
Put food on the rack. The distance between the pieces and between the walls must be at least 2 cm. Cover with a lid and set the minimum heating of the burner.
Secrets of smoking meat and fish products
- Don't neglect the fat tray. The fact is that the flowing fat, falling on smoldering sawdust, begins to burn and release carcinogens and bad smell. Smoked meat will be harmful and tasteless.
- Wet sacking, thrown over the smoking chamber, absorbs the remnants of smoke with all harmful substances.
Wet the burlap as it dries, otherwise the process will go in the opposite direction.
- Sawdust is very important. Do not use sawdust conifers trees. You can - oak, juniper, apple, plum, pear.
Smoking is a real science. Having mastered it, you can always pamper yourself tasty meat or fish, to surprise guests and acquaintances with fragrant home-made products.
Do you have your own fish smoking secrets?
Yulia Petrichenko
Amateur gardener, 18 years of experience
About Me: I will share the secrets of a rich harvest, I will teach you how to create garden compositions.
Smokehouse in the country: for fish, meat, how to do it yourself print version
The cold smoked electric smokehouse is very popular due to its compact dimensions. It, unlike the traditional installation, allows you to smoke meat and fish not only on suburban area but also in the house. You can cook smoked delicacies both in the factory and in a home-made electrical installation.
Both electrical appliances perfectly cope with the task of preparing smoked products.
The difference lies in appearance and cost. Besides, makeshift installations Not recommended for apartments.
How to make a cold smoked smokehouse
For this purpose, it is better to purchase a factory version.
Factory and homemade electric smokehouses
Factory-made electrical installations for cold smoking are more powerful than home-made ones. This is reflected in the speed of cooking, which is higher than in a do-it-yourself smokehouse. Such devices differ in a more aesthetic appearance.
They are produced rectangular and cylindrical, and, instead of sawdust, they can work on special briquettes.
The cost of the most simple models is about 2,000 rubles, and more powerful and functional in the region of 10,000 rubles and more. Therefore, really good setup for cold smoking has a pretty decent price.
Homemade electric smokehouses are assembled from improvised means, which makes the installation cost minimal. This was the reason that many home craftsmen prefer such units to factory ones. It is enough to spend one day at work to always have cold smoked products on your table.
No special skills are required.
It is only necessary to have at your disposal some materials and tools, to understand how the installation functions, to correctly perform a certain sequence of work.
The principle of operation of an electric cold smoked smokehouse
Products located in the smoking chamber are processed with hot smoke.
It is formed as a result of smoldering sawdust, chips or braces. The thermal effect of smoke leads to the fact that the liquid from meat preparations evaporates, and the product acquires a bright taste and excellent aroma.
Cold smoking, unlike hot smoking, is carried out at a low smoke temperature of about 20-25 degrees.
Meat products reach the state of readiness from ten hours to several days. Fish smokes the fastest, and pork, on the contrary, lasts longer.
The long cooking process is compensated by the high quality of the resulting product. This is reflected both in taste characteristics and in more long term storage, which is sometimes much higher than many store-bought smoked delicacies.
What materials are suitable for making an electric smokehouse?
The basis of the installation is capacity.
It must be made of heat-resistant material, have a volume that allows you to cook required amount fish or meat. You need to rely on the fact that smoking can take from ten hours to several days, and the chamber of the future smokehouse should be quite roomy.
A homemade smokehouse can be made from:
- barrels of 200 liters;
- old refrigerator;
- steel sheet.
There is no preferred option.
The choice is determined by the availability of a particular material. Not everyone has a refrigerator that has worked its time, and you have to work with a steel sheet almost from scratch, but the advantage is that you can calculate the dimensions yourself. A barrel and a refrigerator are the best options.
Cold smoked electric barrel smoker
The container is taken from durable and heat-resistant metal.
Chemicals and explosives are stored in such barrels. If this is not on the farm, it can be purchased. The cost will not be high.
The main thing is that it has a lid.
Along with the barrel, you will need the following materials:
- Four wheels. This element is optional, but allows you to easily move the smoker. Suitable for any piece of furniture.
- Heating element and electrical cable. Without these components, the installation will not work from the mains.
- Thermostat. The best option there will be a device with adjustment ranging from 20 to 90 degrees, even if only cold smoking is assumed.
- Thermometer. Without this device, the use of the smokehouse will not be absolutely safe, it will become impossible to control the smoking process.
Of the tools, you only need a drill for metal, which makes creating an electric smokehouse as simple as possible.
Two pallets are required. One container will serve for fuel, the other - for collecting flowing fat. You can place blanks on a grid or a system of hooks. For convenience, both options can be combined.
Barrel preparation
The container is thoroughly washed.
It is especially necessary to carefully clean the barrels that were not used for their own needs, but were purchased from the hands. Inside lay and burn firewood or an armful of brushwood. This is done in order to get rid of any oily precipitation and calcination of the walls.
When the tree is completely burned, the inner walls of the barrel are cleaned wire brush to remove any remaining carbon deposits.
In total, it is necessary to make from 5 to 8 holes with a circle diameter of 10 millimeters.
Heating element placement
You can dismantle the old and already unnecessary potbelly stove in the house. If it is not possible to remove the heating element on your own, or there is simply no old electric stove, you can purchase a heating element on the market or in a specialized store.
You need to take a heating element open type.
It will be placed in the center of the barrel. It should be completely dry by now. Fasten the element with bolts. In the immediate vicinity of it, there is a thermostat connected in series with a copper wire with a cross section of 2.5 mm2.
It is necessary to place the device in a convenient place.
Arrangement of the upper part
A small hole is made through which the thermometer is attached. A tray or baking sheet is placed in the center of the barrel. This dish is necessary to collect fat flowing down from meat (fish) during cooking. A hole-chimney with a diameter of 50 mm is made in the lid, which is equipped with a damper that closes at the beginning of cold smoking.
The fuel pan can be made mesh or from an old regular pan.
The volume of this container determines the smoldering time of sawdust (chips). A five-liter tray is enough for 10 hours of smoking at a temperature of 20 degrees. Therefore, when planning to cook pork, you need to either increase the volume of the container, or make several bookmarks of chips.
Installation testing
If all the work was carried out correctly, you will get a smoking installation at the bottom of which there is an electric stove, and on top there is a zone for placing blanks.
There must be ventilation, a drip tray for dripping fat, a container for sawdust, a chimney hole in the top cover.
When the assembly of the electric smokehouse is completed, it is not recommended to start smoking immediately. First you need to lighten the barrel a little. The first warm-up should last from 10 to 20 minutes. After it, you can already lay the meat (fish).
Cold smoked electric smoker from the refrigerator
If old refrigerator out of order, it will become an excellent basis for an electric smokehouse.
The sequence of work in the arrangement of such an installation is as follows:
- The cooling system and insulating elements are removed from the refrigerator.
- A heating element (heater) or an electric stove is installed at the bottom of the unit.
- The terminal block is led into the niche where the compressor used to be located. It is connected to a switch.
- heat resistant metal baking sheet put directly above the heating element.
The sawdust container is placed on a heating element or electric stove.
The convenience of such an installation lies in the fact that the old grills that are in the refrigerator can be used to place meat and fish preparations.
Too big unit should not be taken.
Firstly, there may be difficulties with its location, and secondly, the efficiency will decrease.
The amount of fuel burned determines the duration of sawdust (chips) smoldering.
Five kilograms, as in the case of a barrel, is enough to ensure a smoking time of 10-12 hours.
Summarizing
An electric home-made smokehouse is perfect for installation in a suburban and summer cottage. It is not recommended to stir such an installation in the house. Some home craftsmen put such units on loggias and balconies, but this is not entirely safe.
For an apartment it is better to buy factory model. It will differ in the most compact size, excellent insulation.
An electric smokehouse attracts with the fact that you do not need to look for firewood to make a fire. Most of its modifications create smoke by heating the smoke chips with a heating element. There is also an option that allows you to get smoke for cold smoking due to the force of friction. Any of these electric smokehouses can be made with your own hands.
materials
They are:
- 1 board with dimensions 960x220 mm;
- 2 boards with dimensions 260x235 mm;
- 2 boards with dimensions 340x425 mm.;
- 1 board with dimensions 425x220 mm. All boards must be 15 mm thick;
- 1 plywood. Dimensions 425x220 mm. Thickness 5mm;
- 1 plywood with dimensions 260x220 mm;
- 1 piece of plywood with dimensions 235x220 mm;
- 1 piece of plywood. Dimensions 340x220 mm.;
- electric single phase motor(power 0.53 kW.);
- magneto;
- 2 capacitors with a capacity of 2200 pF;
- neon light bulb MN-6;
- constant resistance 180 kOhm;
- metal box with lid. Length 220 mm.;
- screw;
- spring;
- wooden block;
- metal mesh 23x21 cm;
- asbestos;
- a pulley, for the manufacture of which the manufacturer used a textolite core (it must have inclined holes);
- steel clip (should be such that it tightly besieges the pulley);
- bolts with nuts;
- nails or screws.
Tools
You will need:
- drill;
- hammer;
- screwdriver;
- open-end wrenches;
- welding;
- saw.
Wireframe creation
He will represent two cameras mounted on a long board. The first chamber will measure 26x24x22 cm. It will contain a motor pulley and a wooden block. There will be smoke here. The dimensions of the second chamber will be 34x43x22 cm. Cold smoking of homemade meat preparations will take place in it.
The manufacture of a smokehouse frame for a home includes the following steps:
- Cutting in a board with dimensions of 425x220 mm. holes, which in height and width should be 22 and 20 cm, respectively. It should be at one end of the board. It is cut out, departing from the edge of 1 cm.
- Making a chamber for cold smoking. To do this, they take with their own hands a board with a cut out hole, plywood with such dimensions and 2 boards with a length and height of 34 and 42.5 cm, respectively. These elements are fastened with nails. Better to use screws. Metal rods are fixed at the top of the chamber. Meat will be hung on them.
- Fixation on the hole of a fine metal mesh.
- Fixing the manufactured chamber for cold smoking on a long board. This camera should be on the edge of the board. The cut hole in one side of the chamber should "look" into the middle of the base.
- Making a smoke chamber. To do this, in the middle of the bottom edge of plywood with dimensions of 23.5x22 cm, cut out a hole for the engine rotor. In the front wall (a board with a width and height of 26x23.5 cm), a rectangular hole is cut out for a metal box. The dimensions of the hole are made the same as the dimensions of the box. This element must be placed opposite the pulley. Next knock down the smoke chamber. However, it is not fixed on the base, but put aside with your own hands.
Read also: Homemade smokehouse
Engine mounting
To fix it, several holes are drilled on the base. Next, with the help of bolts, fasten Electrical engine to the base.
After that perform the following actions:
- Connect the magneto to the motor.
- Perform a series connection of capacitors, constant resistance and a neon light bulb.
- Include the above elements between the magneto leads.
- Do-it-yourself connect the negative terminal of the magneto to the metal grid.
- Connect the positive terminal of the magneto to the metal bars of the cold smoking chamber.
- A pulley with a steel cage is mounted on the axis of the electric motor.
Then it remains to cut one end of the metal box and drill a hole in the other end. A nut is welded onto the formed hole. A long screw should be spinning in it. There will be a spring at the end of the screw in the box.
The prepared box is fixed with your own hands on the basis of a home smokehouse. Next, a chamber is nailed to this base in which smoke will be created.
The final process of manufacturing an electric smokehouse for a summer residence or at home is the imposition of the walls of all chambers with asbestos. Any other refractory material can be used instead.
It should be added that in the absence electrical network the electric motor can be replaced by a gasoline one.
How does an electric motor design work?
The engine starts and starts turning the pulley. A wooden block is pressed against it (it is fed through a metal box).
It is desirable that the bar be made of sheet wood. Friction produces smoke. In this case, the intensity of smoke emission can be controlled. To do this, increase or decrease the pressure on the wooden block by tightening or unscrewing the screw. Tightening the screw causes the spring to compress. She “wants” to return to her original position and therefore creates additional pressure on the bar.
During cold smoking, it is worth remembering that the pulley of the electric engine gradually erases the bar. Therefore, from time to time you need to unscrew the screw, throw away the rest of the bar and put in new material.
The generated smoke gradually exits into the cold smoking chamber. However, its movement is too slow. To speed up the movement of smoke through the smoking chamber, change the charge of its particles. Passing through the metal mesh, the particles acquire a negative charge. Since metal bars and meat hooks are positively charged, negatively charged smoke particles immediately move towards them. Moreover, this movement is faster than without the use of electricity.
Read also: Brazier smokehouse made of bricks
As a result, the duration of cold smoking is reduced. The product turns out to be of higher quality, and the number of used bars is less than the number of burnt in a conventional home smokehouse firewood. Therefore, such a smokehouse for the home can be safely called professional.
Components with electric stove
To make such an electric smokehouse for summer cottages and at home, you need to find:
- barrel with a lid 200 liters;
- furniture wheels;
- electric stove;
- electric thermostat (it must regulate the temperature in the range + 20 ... + 90 ° С);
- electric cable;
- mechanical thermometer;
- metal mesh or rod;
- a container for wood chips (a tin can with a wide bottom is suitable, however, it must be cut so that the height is 5-6 cm);
- drip pan into which the fat will drain.
The pallet can be made by hand. For this they take sheet metal 0.5-1 mm thick. and fold over the edges. The height of the side should be 1-2 cm. All joints of the sides need to be welded.
You will also have to prepare a barrel lying near the house with your own hands. The easiest way is to take the barrel in which there were some oils or chemical substances. Of course, particles of these substances always remain on the walls. Therefore, they must be disposed of by thorough washing.
If there was engine oil in the barrel, then you can put dry firewood on its bottom and set it on fire. Along with them, the remaining oil will also burn. After - you need to wash the container. To do this, you can use the means used to wash dishes or the floor at home.
Construction assembly
This process begins immediately after the barrel is completely dry. His perform in the following order: 
- Furniture wheels are fixed at the bottom of the barrel. To do this, you will have to apply the wheels to the bottom, mark the places where you need to make holes, drill holes and fix the base of the wheels with bolts. In general, you need to attach four small wheels with your own hands. The wheels may not be attached, however, the convenience of moving an electric smokehouse around the house will be inconvenient.
- Drilling at the bottom of the barrel 5-8 holes. It will be good if the diameter of the holes is 10 mm. They should be at a height of 5-10 cm from the bottom of the barrel.
- Preparation electric tiles. It consists in removing the cover and removing all internal elements. An exception is the heating element and two wires connected to it. The result of such manipulations will be a case with a heating element. This body is placed in the center of the bottom of the barrel and screwed to the bottom with two bolts. Of course, before fixing, holes are drilled in the body and bottom of the barrel.
- Thermostat installation. This element is placed near what is left of the electric stove. To install it, a hole is made at the bottom of the barrel. The furnace is connected to the fixed thermostat. For connection, it is better to use a wire with a cross section greater than 2.5 mm². Of course, all connections are securely insulated. The thermostat sensor must be placed in the area in which there will be meat.
- Connecting a small light bulb. This is done in parallel with the stove. It will turn on at the same time as the heating element is turned on. Thanks to this, it will be possible to carry out visual control of the operation of the heating element.
- Installation of a mechanical thermometer. To do this, a hole is made at the top of the barrel, not far from the placement of the mesh with meat. Next, fix the thermometer.
- Making a mount for a baking sheet. It involves the use of long bolts. First drill 4 holes. Then insert the bolts and tighten the nuts.
- Creating a similar mount for a meat grill. The grill is better to find in the store. You can do it yourself. For this, a stainless steel wire is taken. Diameter 5 mm. It is bent in the shape of a circle and the ends are welded. A wire with a diameter of 3 mm is welded on top. Its segments should be placed in parallel. Step - 3-4 cm.
- Chimney manufacturing. If there is a lid from the barrel, then a hole with a diameter of 5 cm is made in it. In the absence of a lid, wooden rods and burlap will have to be placed on top of the barrel. The latter must be constantly moistened during smoking.
Smokehouse - equipment for cooking meat, lard, fish, sausages by processing hot or cold smoke. Usually, the process is delayed from 4 hours to several days (depending on the method) and it can be reduced only when choosing a unit powered by current. An electric smokehouse cooks semi-finished products 2-3 times faster, the products in it acquire an equal golden color and juiciness.
Device, purpose and use of an electric smokehouse
The device of the electric smoker for heat treatment of the product with smoke is a metal container with a hermetically sealed lid. A sliver is placed at the bottom, which, when heated, smolders and produces smoke. Inside the container, grates for semi-finished products are arranged, as well as a tray for collecting fat. Small models are produced for the apartment, which do not take up much space on working surface kitchen table. They process few products. Also, a household smokehouse is made independently, using improvised means.
Purpose of smoking equipment - fast cooking fish and meat products with the preservation of useful microelements and proteins, especially with the cold processing method.
Units are used at home and in production. The professional model has huge advantages, expressed in wide functionality and automatic control process.
Features and Benefits
For a smokehouse with a heating element, certain operating conditions are not created. A home electric container for processing a product with smoke is appreciated by culinary enthusiasts for its simplicity and ease of use on a balcony, loggia or plot. The main condition is free access to a 220 V outlet.
The advantages of a do-it-yourself electric smokehouse include:
- Durability. household models made of stainless steel that resists corrosion;
- Compact and light weight (up to 5 kg). Having built a small unit or bought it in a store, he can easily fit in a car and prepare fragrant delicacies at their summer cottage;
- Safety. Using a ceramic electric heater and reliably isolating the wires, the unit is safe to operate;
- Cooking low-calorie food. Since the products are prepared without adding fat and, on the contrary, they are freed from it when smoked, the food is low-calorie, healthy and tasty;
- Possibility to be absent during the preparation of the product. Set up your device and go about your business!
By purchasing household appliances in the store, the lover of smoked meats gets more advantages, since they have automatic or semi-automatic control modes, as well as the option of temperature control. For those who can install the thermostat and thermometer on their own, do-it-yourself smokehouses are no worse than store-bought models.
Types of electric smokers and a brief description of cold and hot cooking devices
Electric smokehouses are divided into devices with an open heating element and a closed one.
Units with a closed heating element are multifunctional. The wide heating surface allows you to smoke semi-finished products using any raw material, while it is used in smaller quantities than with an open heating element. The price of such equipment is 1.5–2 times higher than its counterpart. Make your own electric smoker only a professional can do it with his own hands, but also an ordinary layman with basic knowledge of electrics.
According to the method of cooking smokehouses differ:
- cold cooking;
- hot.
The difference is the type of processing. The hot smoked electric smokehouse (45 to 120 ⁰С) cooks products thermally processed, when, with the cold method, the food is dehydrated due to a long stay in the smoke at a temperature of 20–45 ⁰С. Do-it-yourself stationary or mobile cold-smoked installation increases the shelf life of delicacies up to 2 weeks.
The cooking time also differs: for the hot method - 2-4 hours, for the cold one - 1-2 days.
Some purchased models can combine 2 modes, and can also be used as an oven.
Do-it-yourself electric smokehouse - simple and fast
Almost anyone can build an electric smokehouse. For example, consider a device for cooking smoke and electric stoves:
Before operating an electric smokehouse, it is recommended that you first check it: determine the quality of the heating element, the concentration of smoke, the absence of ignition of sawdust and the location of the grates relative to the products.
The video below shows an electric smokehouse made from a gas cylinder
Features of cooking meat, fish and sausages
Any product is smoked in an electrical device, but before that, the product must be trained.
- Fish. It is soaked gutted, in weak brine (for 4 kg of fish - 250 g of salt). Mackerel or horse mackerel is rubbed with salt each separately, wrapped in cling film, pressed with a lid and aged for 1-2 days. Further, the fish is dried for 1–2 hours, cooled, laid out on grates and smoked for 1–3 hours (depending on the size of the fish).
- Meat. Requires pre-salting. Large pieces are best boiled first, and then smoked. Do the same with homemade sausage. Simmering meat in an electric smoker takes 2-6 hours. You can shorten the time by rubbing pieces of fresh meat with salt.
The product must be kept until fully cooked, since re-smoking is unacceptable. Meat or fish are turned into inedible food.
There are 3 ways to salt products before smoking:
- Dry;
- Wet;
- Mixed.
The first extends the shelf life of the delicacy up to 2 weeks, even with a hot heat treatment method. For lovers of tender and juicy meat, it is recommended to use the second or third method.
The cold smoked electric smokehouse is very popular due to its compact dimensions. It, unlike the traditional installation, allows you to smoke meat and fish not only in the suburban area, but also in the house. You can cook smoked delicacies both in the factory and in a home-made electrical installation.
Both electrical appliances perfectly cope with the task of preparing smoked products. The difference lies in the appearance and cost. In addition, home-made installations are not recommended to be placed in apartments. For this purpose, it is better to purchase a factory version.
Factory and homemade electric smokehouses
Factory-made electrical installations for cold smoking are more powerful than home-made ones. This is reflected in the speed of cooking, which is higher than in a do-it-yourself smokehouse. Such devices differ in a more aesthetic appearance.
They are produced rectangular and cylindrical, and, instead of sawdust, they can work on special briquettes. The cost of the simplest models is about 2,000 rubles, and more powerful and functional ones are in the region of 10,000 rubles and more. Therefore, a really good cold smoker comes with a pretty decent price.
Homemade electric smokehouses are assembled from improvised means, which makes the installation cost minimal. This was the reason that many home craftsmen prefer such units to factory ones. It is enough to spend one day at work to always have cold smoked products on your table.
No special skills are required. It is only necessary to have at your disposal some materials and tools, to understand how the installation functions, to correctly perform a certain sequence of work.
The principle of operation of an electric cold smoked smokehouse
Products located in the smoking chamber are processed with hot smoke. It is formed as a result of smoldering sawdust, chips or braces. The thermal effect of smoke leads to the fact that the liquid from meat preparations evaporates, and the product acquires a bright taste and excellent aroma.
Cold smoking, unlike hot smoking, is carried out at a low smoke temperature of about 20-25 degrees. Meat products reach the state of readiness from ten hours to several days. Fish smokes the fastest, and pork, on the contrary, lasts longer.
The long cooking process is compensated by the high quality of the resulting product. This is reflected both in taste characteristics and in a longer shelf life, which is sometimes much higher than many store-bought smoked delicacies.
What materials are suitable for making an electric smokehouse?
The basis of the installation is capacity. It should be made of heat-resistant material, have a volume that allows you to cook the required amount of fish or meat. You need to rely on the fact that smoking can take from ten hours to several days, and the chamber of the future smokehouse should be quite roomy.
A homemade smokehouse can be made from:
- barrels of 200 liters;
- old refrigerator;
- steel sheet.
There is no preferred option. The choice is determined by the availability of a particular material. Not everyone has a refrigerator that has worked its time, and you have to work with a steel sheet almost from scratch, but the advantage is that you can calculate the dimensions yourself. A barrel and a refrigerator are the best options.
Cold smoked electric barrel smoker
The container is taken from durable and heat-resistant metal. Chemicals and explosives are stored in such barrels. If this is not on the farm, it can be purchased. The cost will not be high. The main thing is that it has a lid.
Along with the barrel, you will need the following materials:
- Four wheels. This element is optional, but allows you to easily move the smoker. Suitable for any piece of furniture.
- Heating element and electrical cable. Without these components, the installation will not work from the mains.
- Thermostat. The best option would be a device with adjustment ranging from 20 to 90 degrees, even if only cold smoking is assumed.
- Thermometer. Without this device, the use of the smokehouse will not be absolutely safe, it will become impossible to control the smoking process.
Of the tools, you only need a drill for metal, which makes creating an electric smokehouse as simple as possible.
Two pallets are required. One container will serve for fuel, the other - for collecting flowing fat. You can place blanks on a grid or a system of hooks. For convenience, both options can be combined.
Barrel preparation
The container is thoroughly washed. It is especially necessary to carefully clean the barrels that were not used for their own needs, but were purchased from the hands. Inside lay and burn firewood or an armful of brushwood. This is done in order to get rid of any oily precipitation and calcination of the walls.
When the tree is completely burnt, the inner walls of the barrel are cleaned with a metal brush to remove the remnants of soot. Further, the container must be rinsed with water with the addition of detergent. household remedy.
As soon as the container dries, install the wheels, drill holes for ventilation in the lower part. In total, it is necessary to make from 5 to 8 holes with a circle diameter of 10 millimeters.
Heating element placement
You can dismantle the old and already unnecessary potbelly stove in the house. If it is not possible to remove the heating element on your own, or there is simply no old electric stove, you can purchase a heating element on the market or in a specialized store.
You need to take a heating element of an open type. It will be placed in the center of the barrel. It should be completely dry by now. Fasten the element with bolts. In the immediate vicinity of it, there is a thermostat connected in series with a copper wire with a cross section of 2.5 mm2. It is necessary to place the device in a convenient place.
Arrangement of the upper part
A small hole is made through which the thermometer is attached. A tray or baking sheet is placed in the center of the barrel. This dish is necessary to collect fat flowing down from meat (fish) during cooking. A hole-chimney with a diameter of 50 mm is made in the lid, which is equipped with a damper that closes at the beginning of cold smoking.
The fuel pan can be made mesh or from an old regular pan. The volume of this container determines the smoldering time of sawdust (chips). A five-liter tray is enough for 10 hours of smoking at a temperature of 20 degrees. Therefore, when planning to cook pork, you need to either increase the volume of the container, or make several bookmarks of chips.
Installation testing
If all the work was carried out correctly, you will get a smoking installation at the bottom of which there is an electric stove, and on top there is a zone for placing blanks. There must be ventilation, a drip tray for dripping fat, a container for sawdust, a chimney hole in the top cover.
When the assembly of the electric smokehouse is completed, it is not recommended to start smoking immediately. First you need to lighten the barrel a little. The first warm-up should last from 10 to 20 minutes. After it, you can already lay the meat (fish).
Cold smoked electric smoker from the refrigerator
If the old refrigerator is out of order, it will be an excellent basis for an electric smokehouse. The sequence of work in the arrangement of such an installation is as follows:
- The cooling system and insulating elements are removed from the refrigerator.
- A heating element (heater) or an electric stove is installed at the bottom of the unit.
- The terminal block is led into the niche where the compressor used to be located. It is connected to a switch.
- A heat-resistant metal baking sheet is placed directly above the heating element. The sawdust container is placed on a heating element or electric stove.
The convenience of such an installation lies in the fact that the old grills that are in the refrigerator can be used to place meat and fish preparations.
Too big unit should not be taken. Firstly, there may be difficulties with its location, and secondly, the efficiency will decrease.
The amount of fuel burned determines the duration of sawdust (chips) smoldering. Five kilograms, as in the case of a barrel, is enough to ensure a smoking time of 10-12 hours.
Summarizing
An electric home-made smokehouse is perfect for installation in a suburban and summer cottage. It is not recommended to stir such an installation in the house. Some home craftsmen put such units on loggias and balconies, but this is not entirely safe. For an apartment, it is better to purchase a factory model. It will differ in the most compact size, excellent insulation.
Lovers of delicious food will not resist the temptation to try a fragrant piece of smoked meat or fish in a smokehouse. Often such smoking devices are made for home use on one's own.
Features and Benefits
The electric smokehouse is suitable for cooking meat products, fish, sausages and bacon. Such designs are used both for home use and for the preparation of smoked products in production. When choosing an electric smokehouse, you should consider for what purposes it will be intended. If it is not planned to take for smoking a large number of products, then a small electric smokehouse is quite suitable, into which you can load up to three kilograms of products. Advanced models are suitable for cooking up to 15 kg of meat, fish, lard or sausages in them. Such designs are often used in small workshops or restaurants. For industrial use, choose models that are designed even for 500 kg of products.
When choosing a smokehouse, you should consider its power, since the cooking time of the product will depend on this. For home use, an electronic smokehouse with a potential of 500–600 watts is more suitable. When choosing a large design, it should be borne in mind that more products can be cooked in it, but such models are not mobile, it is difficult to carry them with you on a picnic. If the smokehouse has a heating element, then it does not require the creation of certain operating conditions. When installing this design, the main thing is that there is access to a 220 V outlet. These designs are very convenient for home use.
An electric smokehouse has the following advantages:
- long service life;
- compactness - the structures are not very heavy (about 5 kg). Such a unit, small in size and weight, can be easily transported with you in a car for going out into the countryside in order to cook aromatic dishes in it;
- complete security;
- using such designs, you can get a less high-calorie product, cooking is carried out without adding fat;
- during cooking, there is no need to be near the smokehouse. After setting up the device, you can go about your business.
Kinds
When choosing a smokehouse, you should find out which models are suitable for hot smoking and what is the peculiarity of cold smoking. It is necessary to decide which model is suitable for cooking sausages or for bacon in an apartment or private house. When smoking in a hot way, the temperature can be up to + 120-150 degrees, the cooking time is up to several hours. For cold smoking, the cooking process will be much longer. To prepare a dish, it will take not one, but several days. Products are smoked when not high temperatures up to +25 degrees. Mini-designs are more suitable for the home, they can cook up to 3 kg of fragrant smoky dishes.
Hot smoking
It is worth considering the benefits of smoking meat or fish in a hot way. With this method, the dishes are more juicy, since moisture is retained in the products during the smoking process. But having prepared the dish in this way, it should not be stored for a long time. Without the use of preservatives or stabilizers, hot smoked dishes do not keep for a long time, it is worth eating these products within a few days. Products are smoked at temperatures from +35 to +150 degrees, more often they choose the optimal temperature for cooking +90 degrees. Up to 5 kg are placed in the unit for home smoking at a time at a power of 500–600 watts. If the products are loaded a little, the cooking time is reduced and can be several minutes, and at the maximum load it is worth waiting longer - up to about half an hour.
Cold smoking
With this method of preparation of dishes, their shelf life can be much longer. Cold-smoked dishes can be stored for up to several months. During cooking, the meat is fumigated at low temperatures up to +25 degrees for several hours, for fish it is necessary to increase the processing temperature to +40 degrees. Before fumigating products, they must be well salted. Cold smoked models are usually more complex. They must be connected to the outlet. Cold smoking units are most often non-mobile, but can be equipped with additional features type of liquid smoke generator.
The combined design can be called successful. This model allows you to cook food both hot and cold. You can find models that have a removable power unit. You can take it with you on picnics and cook food on a fire. The two-level model is divided inside by grates on which food is laid out, which allows you to simultaneously cook, for example, meat and vegetables or use other recipes.
Overview of finished products
When choosing a smokehouse, you should look at what models exist, read consumer reviews and choose a more convenient and suitable option specific to each customer. Judging by what buyers say, universal stainless steel models are more suitable for home use, with their help you can cook a variety of dishes with different temperature. When choosing a model, you should pay direct attention to its volume, how tightly the lid fits the case, and ventilation.
The Hanhi smokehouse received good reviews. The Finnish Hanhi smokehouse is available in 10, 20 and 30 liters. The 20 liter model is equipped with an electric heating element. The material for this model is stainless steel with a thickness of 2 mm, all products have a special tray where fat will be collected. On the cover of the structure there is a thermometer that allows you to adjust the temperature during the operation of the unit. Using a special chimney, you can not be afraid of the smell of smoked meats in the room during the operation of the unit. Although judging by the reviews, the smell of haze in the room is still a little present. Products are smoked in the Finnish Hanhi smokehouse for an hour.
For cold and hot smoking, you can choose the Idyll electric smokehouse. The product looks like a cabinet on which the control panel is installed. The unit stands upright, which allows it to take up little space, no less than a medium-sized refrigerator would take up. The unit works from the network, for this you just need to connect it. The smokehouse has dimensions of 500x600x1300 mm, the weight of the device is 9 kg. At the same time, products weighing 25 kg can be loaded into the unit, up to ten loads can be made in one day. It will take up to 3 hours to cook hot smoked dishes. Using the cold smoking method, it will take 2-3 hours to cook meat products and up to 90 minutes for fish products.
Which is better?
Using an electric smoker at home is easy. Such simple design allows you to cook smoked dishes at home. You can cook food both in a finished smokehouse and in a do-it-yourself device.
To make the device last much longer, you should follow the following rules:
- regularly clean the smokehouse from the remnants of fat, burning and dirt. In this way, you can get rid of extraneous odors and eliminate their spontaneous combustion;
- it is worth installing the device far from possible sources of ignition, in a place protected from the wind;
- for sawdust, fruit and deciduous trees, such as cherry or alder, are more suitable. Do not use softwood sawdust, as the smell of resin can spoil the taste of the dish.
How to make yourself?
Making your own smokehouse is not as difficult as it might seem. On the electric smoker you can cook delicious dishes pretty fast. For fatty foods, the cold smoking method is more suitable, while during the cooking process, the products are fumigated with smoke, and excess smoke flows down. Fish, chicken wings and vegetables are best cooked by hot smoking. At high temperatures, a crust will form on the products, and inside they will remain more juicy.
Although electric smokers are not very expensive, the general interest in them has served to cause their prices to rise. Therefore, it is worth trying to build a smokehouse with your own hands. Often, a refrigerator or electric stove is taken for the base. If there are non-working appliances at home, you can make the device yourself. In order to make a smokehouse from a stove or refrigerator, it is worth drawing a drawing.
Detailed scheme designs will help the novice master to make a homemade device.
To make a device with your own hands, you need the following:
- remove the device of the cooling system, remove the casing;
- a hole should be drilled on top of the housing in order to install a chimney pipe. You can connect a chimney to the pipe, then bring it closer to the hood. If you do everything right, you can smoke food indoors without the smell of smoke;
- an electric stove is placed at the bottom of the case, a pallet is placed on it, where sawdust will slowly smolder;
- a sheet is installed above the pallet with sawdust, where fat from the products will drain;
- in order to put or hang food for cooking, you should install a grid or hang hooks.
Homemade design consists of two functional parts: a heating element and a housing. The heating element receives electricity directly from the network and heats up the container where the sawdust, it is from them that heat and smoke will come. Outside the structure, it is worth attaching a thermometer, which will allow you to monitor the temperature during the smoking process.
How to use?
Before placing the products in the smoking unit, it is worth preparing them. If fish is taken for smoking, it should be gutted and soaked in brine, for which they take a glass of salt per 4 kg of fish. Rub horse mackerel or mackerel with salt and wrap with cling film, press the lid on top and soak for two days. Then the fish is dried for two hours, cooled and laid out on a smoking grate. Fish are smoked from one to three hours, depending on its size.
To cook delicious juicy meat, you should pre-salt the product. If the pieces of meat are large, they should be pre-boiled and then placed in the device. The same method is used when smoking homemade sausages. The meat in the device languishes for 2-6 hours. To reduce the cooking time of meat, it can be rubbed fresh with salt. Any product should be simmered until it is fully cooked, as when re-smoked, the products become inedible.
