Woods used in smoking in Central Europe

[HotSun]

Hey pitmasters, I need a little help. I am trying to identify woods that are common in smoking in central Europe, such as Germany and Poland. It is distinct from a lot of the woods common in the U.S. that a lot of use. I am thinking of German speck and a recent find, this Polish smoked pork loin I bought a couple weeks ago:



I can only describe the smokiness as having a 'bite' or 'pungent', in a good way, but I don't get that from smoked foods from the U.S.. (side note: this pork loin was very tasty, but way too salty, over smoked, and with a layer of membrane that should have been removed before smoking.

Maybe Elton's BBQ or Henrik have an idea. Any thoughts on this are greatly appreciated!

[MBMorgan]

I've seen references to meat in Poland being smoked using beech and/or alder. Other than that, it's possible that their brining/curing methods differ a bit from ours. Try searching for things like "smoked meat in Poland" or "in Germany" and you'll get lots of hits ... and perhaps one will lead you to what you're looking for. Good luck.

[HotSun]

MBMorgan , thanks for the response. Beech sounds like a good candidate, as I've sourced beech wood flooring from Poland and used alder from there as well. The interwebs didn't offer much, but I did find some interesting things suggesting spruce and pine (from Germany, not in the U.S.), which are softwoods that would not be recommended for smoking.

[HotSun]

Okay, I was able to dig this up:

https://tasteofartisan.com/speck/

This person indicates juniper, ash, and beechwood, but used oak and cherry because that is what they have available. I might have to try this....

[Henrik]

It all depends. Number one rule is (as always): what's available? Beech, ash, alderwood, applewood, juniper is readily available. I don't like beech at all myself, that smoke flavor is not something I would recommend. Ash, alderwood and apple are all three really good, with mild smoke flavor (think oak). Juniper is great, very characteristic, but go easy, just like with hickory it can easily overpower the food flavor.