What does a smoke infuser do? 💨
Let's start at the beginning, what exactly is a smoke infuser? A smoke infuser imparts a smoky flavor and aroma to ingredients, preparations, or dishes through the combustion of wood chips or herbs. It adds an extra touch to prepared foods like meat, fish, or vegetables, but it also enhances the flavor of sauces, desserts, and cheese.
A smoke infuser is not intended for cooking food; you smoke cold, up to a maximum of 30 degrees Celsius. The smoke cools in the aluminum housing and is then expelled cold. Using the flexible rubber hose, you can easily inject the smoke into a sealable bag or glass cloche to intensify the flavors.
Meat, fish, vegetables, desserts, sauces, ice cream, salads, salt, cheese, and nuts. Almost anything can be smoked!
The smoke infuser is compact and light enough to be used with one hand. Additionally, the device is battery-operated, so you can use it wherever you want.
How to use a smoke infuser?
Hopefully, it's clear now what a smoke infuser is and what you can use it for. But then the next logical question follows: how do you do it? We'll explain that in four simple steps.
1. Good preparation is half the battle
Before we start using our smoke infuser, you first need to make sure your ingredients for smoking are ready. To prevent the smoke from escaping, it's important to pack your products in aluminum foil or an airtight container. Do you like to impress? Then you can also choose to present your dish under a glass cloche.
2. Time for the smoke infuser
Now it's time for the real work. Cover the filter screen of the smoke infuser with a thin, even layer of wood chips or smoking dust. You can also use tea or herbs for various aromatic flavors; feel free to experiment!
3. Where there's smoke, there's fire
Turn on your smoke infuser and then use a match or lighter to ignite the wood chips. For the best results, ensure the burning area is evenly distributed or centered.
4. That tastes smoky
As soon as smoke comes out of the hose, direct it at your ingredients. Fill the entire space with smoke, remove the hose, and seal the space. If some smoke escapes, you can turn on the smoke infuser again for a moment. The longer you smoke the products, the stronger the flavors will become. After a few minutes of smoking, most dishes are ready to be served to your guests!
Smoking is the new cooking
You can pretty much smoke anything you can imagine: meat, fish, vegetables, desserts, sauces, ice cream, salads, salt, cheese, and nuts. Almost anything is possible. To give you a concrete idea, we're sharing the following recipes for a well-stocked charcuterie board and an old-fashioned smoky cocktail.
Charcuterie board ingredients:- Aged cheese
- Slices of ham
- Slices of chicken breast
- Nuts
- Cherry tomatoes
- Salmon
- 240 ml bourbon whiskey
- 40 ml simple syrup
- Angostura bitters
- Ice cubes
- 1 lemon
- Cut the cheese into cubes and roll up the ham and chicken breast slices. Arrange this along with the other products on a nice charcuterie board. Then cover your board with a glass cloche.
- For the smoky cocktail, divide the ice cubes, whiskey, and simple syrup among four glasses. Cut the lemon into slices and add 2 drops of Angostura bitters to each glass, then stir well. Then cover the glasses with aluminum foil or place them under a cloche.
- Prepare the smoke infuser with a bit of oak or beech smoking dust and start with the cocktails. Smoke them for 10 minutes, then top the glasses with a lemon slice. Now fill the cloche of the charcuterie board with smoke and present this dish spectacularly by lifting the cloche in front of your guests.
Feel like lighting up a smoke infuser yourself? We totally get it! It's the ideal tool to (easily) give your dish an intense flavor sensation. And admit it... making a bit of an impression on your guests with a smoke infuser is also quite nice. 👀
