Tips & Techniques

Roasting Pan

Line a roasting pan with aluminium foil. Place 2 Tablespoons of Camerons wood chips in a roasting pan. Using larger amounts of wood chips can create a stronger flavour, but it can also make your product taste bitter. Use small amounts until you can accurately judge flavouring capabilities of the chips. You can soak the chips in water if you wish to retain moisture, this also creates more smoke, or use them right out of the container, which ever you prefer.

Place the food on a rack inside the pan and cover the pan with a lid or aluminium foil. Crimp the edge of the aluminium foil to ensure that the pan has a tight seal.

Begin the smoking process by placing the pan on a double burner, on high, for approximately 15-20 minutes. Finish the cooking process by placing the pan directly into your oven at temperature that would normally be used to fully cook that type of food.

This same method can also be used to cold smoke products - either meats, fish or vegetables. To cold smoke you would remove the pan from heat after 15-20 minutes and set it aside, at room temperature, leaving the pan sealed, to continue smoking for 30-45 minutes.

Alto Shaam® Oven

An Alto Sham oven is ideal for smoking larger items, turkeys etc., or larger quantities of food. Wood chips can be soaked in water or used dry.

A metal container packed with about one half cup of Camerons wood chips is needed to fill an average size Alto Shaam® oven with enough smoke to properly smoke-cook almost any quantity of food.
Traditional cooking times for each type of food are generally used when smoking items in an oven of this type. Cooking times will vary with the temperature setting of the oven. Quantity and size of the food items you are smoking will also effect cooking time. You can cold-smoke some food items in just ten minutes, but if you are hot-smoking a large quantity of meats it might take an hour or more.

Commercial Wok

Generally, a wok is used to cold-smoke, or partially cook and flavour the food, however, you can hot-smoke or fully cook the food (meat etc.) if it is cut into smaller pieces.

Place approximately 2 Tablespoons of wood chips directly into the bottom of the wok. Using larger amounts of wood chips can create a stronger flavour, but it can also make your product taste bitter. Use small amounts until you can accurately judge flavouring capabilities of the chips. You can soak the chips in water if you wish to retain moisture, this also creates more smoke, or use them right out of the container, which ever you prefer.

Place the grid used for steaming over the chips and arrange the food to be smoked on the grid.
Cover with the lid and begin the smoking process by placing the wok over a medium-high heat for approximately 10-15 minutes, then set aside covered, for 30-45 minutes for cold smoking. To hot smoke, either cook on high heat for 10-15 minutes, or continue cooking on medium high heat another 5-10 minutes or until the food is fully cooked. Cooking time will vary depending on the food item you are smoking.

Camerons Stovetop Smoker

Made of durable stainless steel and produced by Camerons, this smoker was created to smoke foods on your stovetop. It also doubles as a great steamer. It seals tightly so you can smoke-cook over a gas or electric flame right on your stovetop without filling the kitchen with smoke. It nests neatly inside itself for easy shelf storage, It comes with a cookbook and easy to follow instructions.

Commercial Smokers

Camerons wood chips can be used either soaked or dry in practically any commercial smoker. The amount needed is usually less than called for by the manual because Camerons chips create more smoke than traditional wood chips. Follow the directions for the unit. These units are expensive but if your establishment needs a large amount of items smoked on a regular basis, a line of smoked deli products for example, these units can smoke large amounts with very little difficulty.

Wood Chip quantities

Generally use two tablespoons of wood chips per smoking.

Timing

After placing smoker on a single burner on the stovetop, slide lid on until almost closed, wait until you see first smoke appearing out of the smoker, close lid and start timing.

Flat Top Stoves

The smoker can be used on flat top stoves (either glass top or ceramic top) but due to the design on the underside of the smoker the cooking time has to be increased by approximately 25%. We would like to suggest that if you have a glass or ceramic top that instead of using it and having the possibility of a bad result that you invest in a single coil burner from your local hardware store or Sears and use this. They cost approximately $19.00 and will give you excellent results.

Cooking Times

To help with cooking times the temperature inside the smoker is about the same as an oven at 375°F / 190°C. If the smoker rack is filled
• Fish - about 22 - 28 minutes
• Chicken - about 30 - 35 minutes
• Vegetables - 8 to 18 minutes - (depending on how full)
• Nuts - 10 minutes
• Cheese - 4 minutes after smoker is at temperature (placed in foil cups or make a foil boat. Best if cubed)
• Ribs or pork fillet - Smoke 45 minutes, bake or grill till brown
• Hamburgers - 20 minutes, then brown under broiler or on grill

"Seasoning" the pan

The bottom of the big pan will always blacken, as you are making a wood oven on the top of the stove - so will the under side of the drip tray. This is normal and the amount of "blackness" will reach a point where it does not get any better or worse.

Clean up

For easy clean up, line drip tray with foil. If not lined, when cool, wash or wipe the blackened wood ashes into the sink. Use a soft scrub or Comet powder with a green and yellow scrubby to rub over the blackened parts. The black will not come off, but the residue from the wood chips and the cooking will. All parts can go into the dishwasher. Use foldaway handles if lifting the smoker when hot. If you have other questions, please call our toll free number.

Fish: No more freezer burn - to keep fish fresh with no freezer burn, fill bag with water surrounding fish. Freeze in the bag and the fish will remain fresh with no freezer burn when defrosted. - George Koziol, Chicago

Avoiding dry results - If you are worried about food drying out in the smoker, pour half a cup of water into the drip tray, smoke as usual. This will give the food extra steam when cooking.

Left over turkey or chicken - On a cracker, spread cream cheese, a thin slice of smoked turkey or chicken, and top off with a half a teaspoon of jalapeño jelly, red or green. Perfect for a decorative snack for a Christmas party.