How to pickle a beaver for smoking at home: hot, cold

Hot and cold smoking of beaver is a great opportunity to cook an exquisite delicacy. The product turns out to be really tasty, fragrant and of high quality. In relation to pork, goose and turkey, beaver meat does not lose at all. It is valued for its low-calorie and dietary content, which is especially important for people who care about their figure and health. To smoke a beaver at home, you need to familiarize yourself in more detail with the intricacies of its preparation, pickling, salting, and basic recipes.

The benefits and calorie content of smoked beaver meat

Despite the small size of beavers, their bones are quite healthy meat. According to taste sensations, it can be safely compared with rabbit meat, chicken meat. These animals have a musky gland, in which many vitamins and complex compounds accumulate over the entire winter period, including:

• riboflavin;
• thiamine;
• a nicotinic acid;
• ascorbic acid;
• alanine;
• histidine;
• glycine;
• lysine;
• valine;
• protein;
• fat.

The most popular among lovers of exotic dishes are young specimens, which are distinguished by a delicate structure of meat. To taste, such carcasses are similar to goose meat. In the process of preparing beaver meat, it is important not to overexpose it on fire, otherwise a long heat treatment will provoke stiffness of the fibers, the fat will simply flow out. Unlike hot, cold smoking is more successful, the delicacy is tender.

There are 100 kcal per 146 g of beaver meat. For this amount, fat indicators are 7 g, proteins – 35 g, carbohydrates – 0 g.

Due to the content of antioxidants in beaver, the following positive changes are observed in the human body:

• there is a process of rejuvenation at the cellular level;
• aging slows down;
• oxygen delivery is normalized;
• the general condition of the skin and nails improves;
• the immune system is supported in the fight against eczema, psoriasis.

With regular consumption of beaver meat, it is possible to effectively carry out preventive measures against kidney diseases, as well as to normalize the activity of internal organs. As a result, the central nervous system, cardiovascular, optic nerves become stronger, vision clarity improves. In addition, it will be possible to normalize metabolic processes in the human body, to establish a water-salt balance.

Smoked beaver meat is a dietary and very tasty delicacy that can be cooked in a smokehouse by hot or cold smoking

It is not recommended to constantly use beaver meat for people suffering from serious chronic diseases of the heart, gastrointestinal tract, and kidneys. Protein breakdown in such ailments is extremely difficult, unnecessarily loading the body.

Given that the main diet of rodents is plant foods, their meat does not contain any pathogens. It is realistic to cook a beaver both hot and cold smoked. Thanks to the smoke, you can get rid of the peculiar smell of beaver meat, and make the fat layers more tender.

Principles and methods of smoking beaver

There are many recipes for how to smoke a beaver using hot or cold smoking. But everyone has basic principles on how to do it right, which is important to consider in order to obtain the desired result.

How long to smoke a beaver

If the meat is cooked by hot smoking, then the duration of the procedure is 2-3 hours. The optimum temperature is 100 degrees. If this is cold smoking, the first 8 hours must be cooked without interruption, during this period of time the product is preserved. If mistakes are made, the meat can deteriorate, rot. Then breaks are possible. The readiness of the delicacy is determined by the color on the cut, there should not be any bright red places. The fibers will turn brown.

How to butcher and prepare a carcass

The end result depends on how well the meat is prepared for smoking. To do this correctly, you need to know the features of cutting and preparing the carcass. The technology is as follows:

1. Cut off the animal’s head, legs and tail.

   

2. Remove the skin.

   

3. Open the belly and take out the insides.

   

4. Cut into several pieces if the beaver is large. So the meat is better marinated, saturated with spices and becomes much tastier.

   

After the carcass must be washed under running water, dried with paper towels. Without fail, it is salted, where either marinade or dry salting is used.

How to pickle beaver for smoking

Not a single marinade is complete without a set of the following spices:

• Bay leaf;
• cloves;
• garlic;
• ginger;
• pepper.

These spices go great with meat. If it is necessary to marinate the beaver tail for hot smoking, then add more:

• lemon;
• wine;
• onion peel;
• cognac.

You can marinate beaver meat for smoking according to the following, most common recipe:

1. Pour water into a suitable container.

   

2. Add, per 1 kg of net weight, garlic (4 cloves), hot pepper (5 g), mustard (20 g), sweet peas (3 pcs.), Bay leaf (2 pcs.), spices (20 g), salt ( 40 g).

   

3. Boil the marinade for 10 minutes and let cool to room temperature.

   

4. Put the pieces of meat in a container with marinade and send to the refrigerator. Keep the preparation for 3 days.

   

In order for cold-smoked beaver meat to have a soft fiber structure, it is either boiled in advance, but not until fully cooked, or vinegar is added to the marinade.

How to pickle a beaver for smoking

To preserve the originality of the taste, experienced chefs recommend keeping the beaver in salt, adhering to the following algorithm of actions:

1. Mix coarse salt and ground pepper in a deep bowl.

   

2. Dip each piece of meat into the mixture.

   

3. Wrap in parchment or put in a bag and keep in the refrigerator for 48 hours.

   

There are no specific proportions of salt and pepper here, fatty meat will absorb the amount of salt that it needs, the excess will be removed through the marinade. With the cold method of smoking, beaver must be dried, otherwise it will simply boil under the influence of elevated temperatures, or the risk of developing pathogenic microflora will increase.

How to smoke a beaver

There are different recipes for how to cook a beaver using the method of hot smoking, and cold, and semi-cold. Each of them has its own subtleties that should be taken into account so that the delicacy is a success.

How to smoke a beaver in a hot smoked smokehouse

The cooking time of beaver meat by hot smoking is only 2-3 hours, as a result, the product acquires a pronounced aroma, rich taste. The principle of smoking at home is as follows:

1. Place wood chips from fruit trees in the combustion chamber.

   

2. Install the drip tray. If this is not done, then the drops that fall on the sawdust will provoke the appearance of a bitter aftertaste.

   

3. Load the pieces of marinated meat on the grate. If they are large, then it is better to tie them with a rope.

   

4. Cover with a lid, put on fire. The optimum processing temperature is 100 °C. After the meat needs to be ventilated.

   

Cold smoked beaver

Cold-smoked beaver meat has a rich taste and sufficient elasticity. The temperature range varies between 25-30 °C. If the indicators are higher, then the product will be baked, and if it is lower, then the canning process will not take place in full.

You can also make a cold smoked smokehouse with your own hands from a 200 l barrel

Smoking in specialized devices takes place when the temperature is set in the desired range using the mode controller. If the smokehouse is homemade, then this moment can be corrected by changing the length of the chimney. Cooking time 72 hours, where the first 8 hours you can not open the smoker.

Semi-cold smoked beaver meat

This method of smoking involves the treatment of meat with smoke, the temperature of which varies between 40-60 ° C. Alder chips are loaded into the combustion chamber. The product cooks much faster, the meat is very soft, juicy.

The cooking time of the beaver by the method of semi-cold smoking is one day

How to smoke a beaver’s tail

In general, the process of smoking fatty tails from meat is no different. They also need to be prepared and treated with hot smoke.

Cleaning and cutting

First, the tail must be cleaned, scalded with boiling water. After dividing into 2 parts, making 2 cuts at the top and 1 at the bottom.

How to marinate beaver tail for smoking

There are several ways to pickle the tail:

1. Dry Ambassador. Using salt of medium grinding and pepper, basil, you need to process the workpiece on each side. In a bowl or bag, put onion sliced ​​​​in rings, prepared tail, and determine in a cool place for 12 hours.
2. Wet ambassador. The tail must be sprinkled with a mixture of salt and pepper, placed in a suitable container, add bay leaf, peppercorns. Prepare a brine of salt and vinegar, cool it and pour it over the workpiece. Marinating time 12 hours.

Very tasty tails are obtained if you use a marinade for smoking beaver from:

• water (200 ml);
• salt (1 tablespoon);
• dry wine (150 g);
• cognac (100 g);
• chopped lemon (1 pc.).

Top the workpiece with chopped onion rings, and leave for salting for 12 hours.

Hot smoked beaver tail

Recipe for smoking beaver tail:

1. Light a fire on the grill.

   

2. Place alder chips on the bottom of the smokehouse.

   

3. Arrange the blanks on the grate, having previously installed a drip tray to collect fat. Put the smoker on the fire.

   

4. Cooking time 20-30 minutes from the moment white smoke appears.

   

Storage Rules

In order for smoked meat to be well stored in the refrigerator, freezer, it must first be rubbed with fat, wrapped in parchment. You can also put the beaver in foil, then in polyethylene and a container. Depending on the temperature regime, the shelf life is as follows:

• 24-36 hours at +0-5 °С;
• 12-15 hours at a temperature of +5-7 °C;
• 48-72 hours at -3 to 0 °C.

It is believed that smoked meat in the refrigerator loses its taste. It is better to store it no more than 3 days.

A video on how to smoke a beaver in a cold way will help you get acquainted with all the nuances.

Conclusion

Smoking beaver in a hot way, as well as cold and semi-cold, makes it possible to enjoy an exquisite delicacy at home. The main thing is to make the marinade correctly, withstand a specific time, and not overdo it with the temperature.