Friday, June 3, 2011

Smoke: A Theme

First, I needed black tea and I noticed a canister at the market stand labeled "Russian Caravan tea."  Turns out, it's smoked black tea.  It's fabulous.


Then I re-read a favorite book, Diddakoi by Rumer Godden.  All about a little gypsy girl who lives in a caravan. . .

". . .She spoiled the look of the school, 'And those clothes smell,' said Prudence, wrinkling up her pretty white nose.  They did, but not of dirt.  Gran washed them often, hanging them along the hedge, while Kizzy wrapped herself in a blanket; they smelled of the open air, of wood-smoke, and a little of the old horse, Joe, because she often hugged him." 


And finally, I have to confess that I have a penchant for liquid smoke.  I love smoked and grilled food, but in a pinch sometimes a few drops of liquid smoke will do.  Is liquid smoke toxic?  Well, I just don't know and my research turns up nothing conclusive, so I use it lightly and (if I am not too braggy) successfully.  Do you use/like liquid smoke?

10 comments:

Siobhan said...

Hi, I have never heard of liquid smoke before, is it like smoked paprika? The scent I adore is basil, I find it so uplifting and I grow it all the time in the kitchen window. Sorry, I know this does not answer your question

Margo said...

Liquid smoke is apparently caught from real smoke by sending smoke through water. It is a little bottle of liquid and a few drops are potent.

BLD in MT said...

While I do enjoy a smoked flavor, for the most part I do not enjoy liquid smoke, but perhaps because it is frequently not used sparingly enough. Something you sound like you've got a handle on.

Smoked Tea? I shall have to keep an eye out for that. I am a bit of a tea-junkie and I've never heard of such a thing.

I get a kick out of those sort of coincidences...caravan smoke tea...caravan story with smell of smoke... I don't know why. I just find it neat. I feel I am in the right place at the right time in this universe, just as I am meant to be.

Polly said...

Smoked tea?! I'm tea-obsessed (it's genetic) & I've never heard of that. Does it actually have a smoky flavor?

We have liquid smoke but I don't recall using it....maybe I should pull the bottle out and throw a few drops on something this weekend! How do you usually use it?

Kay S said...

I have wondered about the safety of liquid smoke myself. That said, I can barely cook meat in the crockpot without it! I always use it with brisket and with chicken thighs which become pulled BBQ chicken.
I will have to look up this book. I have a lovely Christmas book by the same author called "The Story of Holly and Ivy".

Rebecca said...

I find it hard to believe that the tiny little drops you use of Liquid Smoke could be seriously harmful. But I don't know....

I have an ancient bottle that I bought in my early married days just to make Rosa's Cheeseball. It is a fabulous concoction of "cheese product" and liquid smoke.

Margo said...

BLD, I love those coincidences of the universe, too! Connections, really. . .sometimes I wonder how many little webs of connections I don't see.

Polly, yes, smoky-flavored tea. I put lots of cream and sugar in it :)

I usually put liquid smoke in beefy, hearty things with barbeque-y flavors. . .baked beans. . .oven barbeque. huh. Drawing a blank on other things - let me know if you use it and what you think!

Kay, I haven't read that book by Rumer Godden, but I do love her books in general, and "Diddakoi" in particular. I'm going to look up the one you mentioned.

Anonymous said...

I use it in hamburgers, pulled pork and while making BBQ sauce. Oh and in some marinades.

TessaDiane

Beth said...

Interesting! Smoky tea. I've not heard of it. I'm into white tea these days...a real treat...the kind BB got me has jasmine flowers in it...smells like honeysuckle!

The story sounds delightful.

Deanna Beth said...

I like liquid smoke and I use it whenever I make ribs, because I don't actually use the grill.

I should use it with the crock pot, like Kay!