On a menu, smoked means the food was exposed to wood smoke for flavor and color, one of the oldest ways to preserve meat and fish.[1] The word covers two different results. Barbecue brisket and pork are hot-smoked, cooked low and slow at about 200 to 250°F over indirect heat for hours.[2] Cold-smoked fish, such as thinly sliced smoked salmon, is smoked at low temperature and not cooked, while hot-smoked fish is.[3] Before you order, ask two things: hot or cold smoked, and served warm or chilled?
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What to order
- Brisket: one of the large cuts that barbecue cooks low and slow over indirect heat, roughly an hour per pound.[2] It is rich and filling; if the menu prices it by weight, ask how much a typical serving is per person.
- Pulled pork: pork butt (shoulder) is the other classic low-and-slow cut.[2] Sauce is often brushed on near the end or served on the side,[4] so ask for it on the side if you want to taste the smoke first.
- Smoked sausage, ham and bacon: in the US these are among the most common commercially smoked meats.[1] They are cured as well as smoked, so expect them to be salty; the cured page explains what the cure means.
- Smoked salmon and lox on brunch menus: lox means salmon cured in brine and only sometimes smoked,[5] while cold-smoked salmon is smoked but not cooked.[3] Ask which one you are getting and whether a hot-smoked or cooked version is available.
- Tea-smoked duck on Sichuan menus: the name tells you it is smoked. Ask whether it comes hot or as a cold starter, and how many pieces are in a portion before ordering for the table.
- For a group, mix one or two smoked meats with lighter sides such as slaw, pickles or salad rather than ordering only meat, because smoked plates are dense and salty.
88 menus
Devon & Blakely- Smoked Salmon Breakfast Sandwich$11.50
- E. Irish Smoked Salmon$12.75
American
Flour Bakery- smoked turkey14.50
- smoked chicken salad13.75
Bakery & Cafe
Loro- SMOKED BABY BACK PORK RIBS$19.75
- OAK-SMOKED BRISKET$19.95
Asian-American Smokehouse
New Holland Brewing- Smoked Pulled Pork$14
American
Saltgrass Steak House- Smoked Macaroni & Cheese$1.99
American
Albi- SMOKED TOMATO25
- MUSHROOMS LIGHTLY SMOKED25
Palestinian
Au Cheval New York- Smoked Salmon Scramble20.99
American
Bar Primi Bowery- rosemary-glazed double smoked bacon$ 11
Italian
Barclay Prime- Smoked Bone Marrow$10
Steakhouse
Bistro Jeanty- Homemade Smoked Salmon24
Traditional Cuisine
BJ's M Street Tavern & Oyster Bar- Smoked Baked Beans
American
Blue Duck Tavern- Duck, Smoked & Roasted Breast
American
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between hot and cold smoking?
Hot smoking cooks the food: USDA advises keeping smoker air between 225 and 300°F and notes that meat can take 4 to 8 hours.[6] A report prepared for FDA describes hot-smoked fish as receiving a cook, for example 145°F for 30 minutes, while cold-smoked fish is smoked at no more than about 86 to 90°F and eaten without heat treatment.[3] So hot-smoked fish is a cooked product, while cold-smoked fish is served as it is.
Why is there a pink ring in smoked meat?
That band is usually the smoke ring: nitric oxide from wood smoke binds with myoglobin, the meat's red pigment, so the layer under the surface stays pink.[7] USDA notes that smoked poultry can show a pink rim about half an inch wide even after reaching well above 165°F.[8] Color alone does not show doneness, so if something looks undercooked to you, ask the staff.
Can I eat smoked salmon if I am pregnant?
That is a question for your clinician. Cold-smoked salmon is not cooked,[3] and CDC lists refrigerated smoked fish among foods that people at higher risk from Listeria, including pregnant women, adults 65 and older and people with weakened immune systems, should avoid, suggesting smoked fish cooked into a casserole or other cooked dish instead.[9] Ask whether the kitchen can serve the fish fully cooked.
Is barbecue the same as grilled?
Not technically. Traditional barbecuing is long, low and slow over coals or wood, sometimes finished on a grill, while grilling is a hotter, faster method.[4] In Texas the main barbecue woods are hickory, oak, pecan and mesquite, largely by local availability.[2] Menus use the word loosely, so ask whether a BBQ dish was actually smoked or just grilled with sauce.
Related guides
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica. Smoking (food preservation). Accessed
- Texas A&M University, Department of Animal Science (Meat Science). Cooking and Smoking Barbecue. Accessed
- Institute of Food Technologists for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Processing Parameters Needed to Control Pathogens in Cold-Smoked Fish. Accessed
- LibreTexts (Thibodeaux and Cheramie, Culinary Foundations, Nicholls State University). 11.3: Basic Cooking Methods. Accessed
- Merriam-Webster. lox (noun, 2). Accessed
- USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. Smoking Meat and Poultry. Accessed
- LibreTexts (Welsch and Thibodeaux, Garde Manger: A Guide to the Cold Kitchen, Nicholls State University). 1.3: Curing, Brining and Smoking. Accessed
- USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service. The Color of Meat and Poultry. Accessed
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preventing Listeria Infection. Accessed