Processed
Hickory Smoke
S tier
Hickory smoke flavour is the American barbecue condensate: sweet, bacon-ward, and a little medicinal if you pour. It is the default liquid smoke in a US grocery and the note behind many "hickory" crisps and beans. Good grades are amber and clean, not tarry. A few drops season a pot of beans; a tablespoon makes an ashtray. It is not a substitute for time on a pit, but it is an honest shortcut for a midweek ribs glaze. Pair it with paprika, brown sugar, and mustard rather than with delicate fish.
Track this ingredient
Characteristics
Preparations
Traits
History
Early commercial liquid smokes in the US leaned on hickory as the familiar barbecue wood.
Hickory liquid smoke became the grocery bottle for home barbecue sauce.
Snack seasonings standardised hickory smoke flavour for "barbecue" crisps.
Plant-based bacons almost all started with a hickory smoke condensate.