You've probably seen it many times in your smoked ribs, beef, or even chicken, but never thought about what it is.
It is this ring (English smoke ring) - the pink area around the surface of the cooked meat is sought by BBQ professionals and amateurs. This is an ideal sign that your dish has been cooked at a low temperature, has acquired a lot of delicious smoke and the chef has paid a lot of attention.
If you managed to get a wide smoke ring - you can congratulate yourself and get some well-deserved bragging rights in any BBQ group around the world!
How is it formed?
Muscles contain the protein myoglobin, which is pink in color. It is what we see when we cut through a medium-cooked steak or raw meat.
When firewood (coal) burns, it emits gases - carbon and nitrogen monoxide (NO and CO). They easily penetrate the meat and a reaction occurs with myoglobin: the monoxides "fix" the pink color.
The reaction takes place on the surface of the fried (or smoked) meat and only as long as those areas are moist and heated only to 60-76 degrees (depending on what we are frying).
The smoke ring is usually 3mm wide, but with effort it can be up to 1.2cm or more
- Bake at a low temperature (low & slow).
- Choose a wet marinade.
- Spray the surface of the meat, apply juice, water or marinade.
- Place a container of water or juice on the deflector.
- Place chips or smoke blocks at the beginning of cooking, not at the end of cooking.
- Place the meat on the grill as cool as possible. The ring will be brighter, wider, but the structure of the meat will suffer a little
Worth noting
- Place soaked chips or blocks on the coals. They emit more NO than dry ones.
- Those who cook with concentrated coal (briquettes) or firewood will achieve a larger smoke ring than those who cook with regular coal. Simple coal releases less NO and CO needed for the reaction to proceed
- Trim the fat from the surface of the meat that comes in contact with the smoke. Fats contain almost no myoglobin, they do not change color and stop the penetration of smoke.
- Do not use acid (lemon juice, vinegar, etc.) in the marinade or in the liquid used to moisten the meat - it slows down the formation of the ring.
- Choose beef (especially brisket) to best see the smoke ring. It has a lot more myoglobin than pork or chicken, which is why you'll see the pink area around the surface most easily here.
