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Smoking
Appears in
By James Viles
Published 2016
The smoking of food dates back to the time of primitive peoples. As caves and simple shelters lacked chimneys, these dwellings could become very smoky. Our ancestors would often hang meat up to dry and keep safe, and they soon became aware that meat stored in smoky areas acquired a different flavour and was better preserved than meat that had been simply dried out.
Over time this process was combined with pre-curing in salt or brine, resulting in a remarkably effective preservation process that was developed by numerous cultures around the world. In those early days smoking was quite harsh and ‘heavy duty’ as the main goal was to preserve the food. Large quantities of salt were used in the curing process and smoking times were quite long, sometimes involving days of exposure.