Hi all
There are a couple of recipes that call for Liquid Smoke. What is it . I can't find it. On one recipe I sub it and used a hot sauce. It came out good but I still want to know what it is and maybe where to get it. Thank you

Keep on Smoking

It's wood smoke condensed in water and other things.

It usually can be found on the aisle with steak sauce, mustard, etc. It's fairly potent and most brands seem to give food an off flavor IMO. You might try adding your own smoke flavoring the natural way with wood on your wsm.

Paul

Here's one link:

how liquid smoke is made

This is what I usually see around here.

Also, Alton Brown showed how to do it on Good Eats, but I didn't see a link.

quote:

It's fairly potent and most brands seem to give food an off flavor IMO

ya, I tried a few before I got a WSM and they all seem to have a 'sour' taste ... not a good sour either, more like a 'going bad' type of sour

I've used this before for making sauce. It's not bad. Very potent stuff though. You don't need much.

http://www.colgin.com/public/

To all
Thanks for clearing this up for me .
Paul K, I use wood all the time when
I smoke. So do you think just to leaf out the liquid smoke and the natural wood will take the place?
Joe Kiess thank for the link!
Thanks again to all!!!

Keep on Smoking

Some of the stuff sold at Academy in bulk containers would peel paint!

There is one brand at the grocery that is sold in small bottles - the name escapes me - that gets OK reviews but it all seems to be a poor substitute for good smoke wood in a fire.

I was shocked to see one of the recipes in Chris Lilly's new book call for it!

Pat

quote:

So do you think just to leaf out the liquid smoke and the natural wood will take the place?

Yes. Can you share the recipes to let some of us give some suggestions? You should be able to add smoke flavor naturally fairly easily.

Paul

I don't care for liquid smoke. To add smoke flavor simply use smoked paprika, chipotle (if some heat is desired), or a mix of the two, plus some of the juices from the rested meat. Very easy.

I never use the stuff. It leaves an aftertaste I can't shake. I can always tell when BBQ restaurants use liquid smoke. I have to brush my teeth 3 times that night!
Add smoke the natural way -- smoke your onions or tomatoes before cooking up the sauce, or whatever it is you're cooking.
Best,
Gary

I use it in my dehydrated beef jerky marinade but never with BBQ.

I second Kruger's suggestion, or just throw items in the smoker. Liquid smoke taste to me of how ash trays smells, can't handle it. One reason I make my own bbq sauces.

Brad W. wrote
Liquid smoke taste to me of how ash trays smells, can't handle it. One reason I make my own bbq sauces.

I agree. The stuff is like creosote and probably tastes like it too. It's something Sandra Lee would call 'Semi Q'!

Liquid Smoke. Just stop and think about it for a minute. Then you won't use it.

quote:

Originally posted by K Kruger:
I don't care for liquid smoke. To add smoke flavor simply use smoked paprika, chipotle (if some heat is desired), or a mix of the two, plus some of the juices from the rested meat. Very easy.

Same here. Used LS once about 25 years ago. That was my last.

Vinny,
As you can see, you came to a grilling/smoking forum and ask about liquid smoke. Dedicated, true BBQ'ers/smokers (PURIST) consider liquid smoke as creosote. If you use liquid smoke, why even bother cooking/smoking outside on a grill/smoker? You are adding artificial flavor to the meat.

If you MUST, find and use smoked paprika and smoked chipotles as a replacement in a recipe for Liquid smoke. Chilpotle is a smoke-dried jalapeño chili.
and/or
Put your recipe in a sauce pan and put it on the grill/smoker.

Be sure to add wood chunks along with your charcoal.

But, to answer your question:
Liquid Smoke

I'll go one step further: you should be suspicious of any recipe calling for LS as it mosat likely was not put together by a true Q'er. Odds are that the rest of the recipe should be viewed with suspicion as well.

I don't use it either. At work one day I walked behind a building and smelled liquid smoke. The smell was coming from several empty 55 gal. drums my employer had just received. It smelled great so much so that I frequently went by the empty drums just to smell them.

LIQUID SMOKE !?!?

Somebody get me a rope!......