A method that exposes food to smoke to add flavour and, in hot smoking, to cook it, often combined with curing to help preserve foods such as fish and meat.
A method that exposes food to smoke to add flavour and, in hot smoking, to cook it, often combined with curing to help preserve foods such as fish and meat. Smoking is a process in which food, most often fish, meat or poultry, is exposed to smoke from smouldering wood to give it flavour, colour and some preservative effect. There are two broad types. Hot smoking cooks the food at a temperature high enough to make it safe to eat, while cold smoking flavours the food at a lower temperature without cooking it, and so relies on other controls to keep it safe. Smoke also deposits compounds on the surface that can slow some spoilage. On its own, smoking, especially cold smoking, is not a reliable way to make food safe, which is why it is usually combined with curing, salting, chilling or a proper cook step. A particular concern with smoked, salted and vacuum-packed fish is Clostridium botulinum, which can grow in low-oxygen conditions if salt, temperature and time are not properly controlled. Businesses smoking food therefore need to treat it as part of a controlled process rather than a stand-alone preservation method. For an Australian business, hot smoking is used where the process cooks the food to a safe internal temperature, after which it is handled and stored like other cooked, potentially hazardous food and kept chilled. Cold-smoked products such as some smoked salmon are treated as ready-to-eat but not cooked, so salt levels, refrigeration and use-by dates become the main safety controls. Producers commonly pair smoking with curing or brining to add salt, control the process temperature and time, and store the finished product cold. Where smoked fish is vacuum-packed, the botulism risk means refrigeration and date control are critical. These steps should sit within the food safety program, with records of temperatures and, where relevant, salt levels, so the business can show the process was under control. A smokehouse hot-smokes trout in a controlled smoker until the fish reaches a safe internal temperature, then chills it quickly and stores it in the cool room with a use-by date. For its cold-smoked salmon, the producer first cures the fillets in salt, cold-smokes them at a low temperature, then keeps them refrigerated and vacuum-packed with a short use-by date.
Frequently asked questions
What is smoking in food processing?
Exposing food such as fish or meat to smoke from smouldering wood to add flavour, colour and some preservative effect, either by hot smoking, which cooks it, or cold smoking, which does not.
What is the difference between hot and cold smoking?
Hot smoking cooks the food at a temperature high enough to make it safe, while cold smoking only flavours it at a lower temperature and relies on other controls to keep it safe.
Does smoking make food safe on its own?
No. Especially with cold smoking, smoking is usually combined with curing, salting, chilling or a proper cook step, because smoke alone is not a reliable safety control.
Why is smoked fish a botulism risk?
Smoked, salted and vacuum-packed fish can allow Clostridium botulinum to grow in low-oxygen conditions if salt, temperature and time are not properly controlled.
How should smoked food be stored?
Hot-smoked and cold-smoked products are generally treated as perishable and kept chilled with a use-by date, and vacuum-packed smoked fish needs strict refrigeration and date control.
