DIY - January 2010

Slow, medium and quick smoker

DIY by Mitch Mitchell

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After coming back from a good fishing trip, I realised a mate’s old diswasher could make a good smoker, so took it off his hands.

First I removed the motor, wiring and pump parts etc, leaving me with the internal components. The inside was all stainless steel, so I knew it wouldn’t rust and the outside was enamel paint so no problems there, either. I then took out the impeller, which left me with a 340mm diameter hole in the bottom.

The dishwasher was a front-loader, which meant the door pulled downwards. There was a rubber strip all around it, making it well sealed. I also found that the door had an outlet where the steam came out; this was plastic so I removed it, along with any other plastic parts, leaving me with a completely stainless steel cabinet.

After that I screwed eight stainless brackets onto the sides to hold my shelves – which I got out of an old stove – and this completed the inside.

At the bottom of the dishwasher was a 150mm panel across the front; I removed this so I could fit in a burner. With a wok placed on top and manuka added, this would be my smoke generator.

Now I just needed to find the right size wok to fit into the space – about 360mm in diameter. This was done by going to garage sales until I found the right one for the princely sum of $2.

Next I bought a single burner with four small legs and an adjustable lever to control the flame.
I connected up the 5kg gas bottle to see if it worked, put the wok into the hole (it fitted snugly), and filled it up with manuka shavings. (I make these from branches put through my thicknesser.) The gap between the burner and underneath the wok was ideal.

Although I put the fish on racks, they could have been hung, and by adjusting the amount of flame I had the options of a slow, medium or quick smoking process.

So, after lighting the burner I stood back and watched. The cabinet filled with smoke, I shut the door, and only a small amount of smoke drifted out of the steam hole. This was the ideal time to sit down and have a cold beer with the wife and mates.

Then, after about an hour or so, out came the fish – a lovely golden-brown colour, moist and delicious.
 
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