The Second Life of a Medical Bix: How to Make a Smokehouse

The medical box is metal box, designed for sterilization and storage of dressings and linen.

It is quite possible to make a smokehouse with your own hands from an empty old box.

At the same time, cooking with the help of such a homemade device will be quite simple.

DIY smokehouse from medical box

To properly make a smokehouse from a medical box, you need to adhere to the following algorithm:

1. We make gratingsso that they fit tightly into the box.
2. We are mounting grates just above the tray, in which fat will accumulate during heat treatment.
3. To the bottom chips are poured. It is better to soak them and dry them a little before using. This way you can prevent unwanted particles from penetrating into the food being prepared.

Smoking in a similar way does not require large amount of shavings. This is explained by the fact that its excess may cause bitterness in prepared foods due to increased smoke emission.

Parts of the structure

To make such a device correctly, you must first prepare:

1. A medical box made of metal. There are lattice holes in the walls of this iron box. The sizes can be different, but if you need to make a smokehouse, it is better to use a box dimensions 390×190 mm.
2. Two grates made of stainless steel. The first is installed slightly higher, and the second lower. The difference in height will be approximately 80 cmInstead of grates, an unnecessary metal dumpling maker or a mesh with cells is used.
3. Pallet for the accumulation of fatty masses.

Without the components described, it will not be possible to achieve what you want. Namely: a well-functioning homemade smokehouse.

The right materials

The basis for a homemade smokehouse will be a medical box made of metal. Its dimensions should be equal to 390×190 mm.

As for the tray in which the fat masses will accumulate, you can use either ceramic, and metallic.

The mentioned grates should be cut to the dimensions of the container that serves as the base. If necessary, they can be adjusted, assuming that gap, remaining between them and the walls of the box should be minimalOtherwise, the gratings simply won't hold.

Without performing the listed preparatory procedures, it is impossible to create a high-quality smokehouse.

How to Make Smoker Grates

The gratings are cut out of stainless steel. Their size should correspond to the diameter of the box itself. They are tightly fixed inside the device and perform all their functions. It is worth remembering that for such a purpose you need to choose a grid whose cells are small, and the smaller it is, the betterThe fact is that it will be impossible to place products for smoking on large cells, as they will fall.

The grate must be made of stainless steel. Regular metal will quickly rust and will have to be replaced, because rust may have an impact harmful influence for products in the smokehouse.

To cut out the required shapes, you can use ordinary ones. with pliers, nippers or metal shears.

This must be done very carefully, as one wrong move can result in the grate being smaller than required and not fitting the smokehouse in size. The procedure cannot be called difficult, but it is worth showing caution during it. patience And responsibly take every step seriously.

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Installation of grilles

When installing the lattice elements of a smokehouse made from a box, it is important to remember that:

1. First The element is required to lay out products on it, such as fish, meat or lard. The grate must be mounted inside the cylinder at a height of 10 to 15 cm from the bottom.
2. Second The grate element is needed to install the finished smokehouse on the fire. The coals or firewood are located below, and the smokehouse with the products to be smoked and the grate are located above. The length of the legs of the grate should be such that the flame is located relatively close to it. 15 cm quite enough.

If the distance is violated, the smokehouse will not work as it should, and quality of prepared products will leave much to be desired.

Photo 1. You can do without a second grate if you don’t put the smokehouse on an open fire, but use a barbecue.

What difficulties might arise?

A homemade smokehouse will not work without correctly selected fuel. After everything is ready, you need to put wood shavings and sawdust on the bottom. It is better to use:

1. Fruit-bearing tree species such as apple, pear, peach or plum.
2. Branches birches or sawdust linden trees.
3. Shavings obtained from alders. It is worth soaking it first and then drying it. This way you can avoid the appearance of a sour taste in smoked food.

You can start smoking

After everything you need to prepare smoked meats has been collected, you need to light a fire and wait until smoke starts coming out of the side holes. When this happens, you can conclude that the smoking process has begun. If we are talking about fish, smoke it no more than 30 minutes, meat will reach readiness in hour, just like salo.

Useful video

The video shows how to turn a medical smoker into a great lightweight smoker.