A guide to preparing food using a process which has its origins in the days when preservation of food was not as simple as just throwing it in the fridge. Smoking ensured that foods would last until the next hunting season. By using salt to draw out moisture over a period of days, or even weeks, the meat would eventually achieve a moisture content that wouldn't allow bacteria to set in. Hanging the meat in the smoke of a fire helped to draw out further moisture while also adding flavour and the smoke itself may have played a part in the preservation process. The book is a start-to-finish guide covering cold and hot smoking and includes: preparing the smoker; preparing the food; brining and different brine recipes; saltwater and freshwater fish; shellfish; chicken and birds; sausages; cheese. The book also has a variety of recipes that use smoked food.