A hot smoker is a method of cooking food, particularly fish, in a mixture of steam and wood chip or sawdust smoke. This article tells you how to make a very cheap home-made smoker from standard kitchen components, as well as telling you how to cook with it.

Fusion cooking is the blending of ingredients and cooking techniques from different areas of the globe. Though most people thing of Asian-influenced dishes as being typically 'Fusion' modern Fusion cuisines can represent dishes influenced by the foods of any region of the world. Though South-east Asian, African, Middle Eastern and Indian influences tend to predominate. Here you will learn a little more about fusion cookery and will be presented with a classic Australian fusion dish.

The main course is the most important part of any formal meal, with preceding courses leading up to it. Here you will learn a little more about main courses as well as how they developed in Ancient Rome. In additional a recipe for a classic Roman main course is provided.

Lamb is one of the sweetest an most versatile of the red meats. Typically it is very tender and lends itself to a whole range of cooking methods. Here you are presented with two classic lamb-based recipes.

Barbecuing, or cooking meat directly above a flame, is a very traditional cooking method and probably represents humanity's oldest cooking technique. There is nothing like a summer outdoor barbecue and here you will find recipes for a classic kebab and sticky ribs both designed to make the most out of barbecuing.

Game is one of the oldest meat types that humans have ever used. However, game animals tend to be very lean and need to be cooked carefully. This article provides some information about game animals and a recipe for cooking venison by braising slowly in dark beer.

Fruit have been a crucial part of the human diet for half a million years and more. Here you will learn a little about why fruit are so important and why certain foods are called 'fruit'. You will also learn a little about superfoods, what they are and what the next superfoods will be.

Brewing is a process of making drinks with a pedigree that stretches back thousands of years. But of all the brewing methods perhaps the simplest is that for making a country-style or hedgerow beer. All you need is a flavoured infusion of water, a bucket to ferment in, sugar and yeast. This article takes you through the brewing process and gives you a simple recipe for nettle beer.

Fish is the staple protein source for much of the human population. Fish is an important high-quality protein source that much of the Western diet is deficient in. In this article you will learn a little about fish as well as gaining two classic fish recipes.

The egg is one of nature's finest storage foods, packed with protein and fats. Chickens have been domesticated several times throughout human history and they are mankind's commonest domesticated animal, raised for meat and eggs. Here you will learn a little about eggs, why they are important in cookery and how they have been used throughout the ages.

When you examine the history of drinks, what you see is the attempt by human civilizations to render drinking water safe. This article gives an introduction to the ways various civilizations have chosen to make water safe to drink as well as providing two recipes for a fruit juice drink and a spice infusion of lemongrass.

The Romans were the first peoples to formally add a dessert course at the end of a meal. Here you will learn a little about why we like sweet desserts and why they all, in one way or another, echo the fruit our ancestors used to eat. You will also see two recipes for classic fruit-based desserts.

Chillies (chili, chilé, ají) is an amazing spice that originates in Central and Northern South America. It was unknown in the Old World until the early 1500 but by 1549 had made its way across the world from Europe through Africa, the Near East and had reached China and Japan. Learn about the history of the spread of chillies and why this is such an amazing spice.

Humans have been making cheeses as long as they have been farming and cheeses represent a versatile and useful storage food available in a staggering array of variants. Learn a little about cheese and discover two classic cheese-based recipes.

Chocolate is a spice processed from the seeds of the cocao tree. It was first used and cultivated almost 3000 years ago and is a mainstay of modern snacks and sweet dishes. But chocolate is a much more versatile ingredient than this and can be used in a whloe range of sweet and savoury dishes. Here you will find recipes for a classic chocolate cake as well as a Mexican stew with chocolate.

A curry in a South Asian or Southeast Asian dish of meat or vegetables cooked in a spiced gravy. The traditions of classic curries lie in India (and the name derives from there) but these days curries have become a truly international dish. Here a classic spice blend and classic curry made from it is presented.

Chicken is perhaps one of the most versatile meats available to the cook. Partly because chickens grow quickly but also because chicken meat, if cooked properly, remains tender and succulent during the cooking process. Chicken also lends itself to a vast array of cooking methods from stewing to roasting. Here you will learn a little about chickens and chicken meats along with two classic chicken recipes.

Beef is a very flavoursome meat, as long as it is well matured, but it does have the cachet of being expensive and to be used only as a treat. Partly this is due to the history of beef as a high-status ingredient. Partly it's due to the cost of the better cuts. But you have a whole animal to consider and this article takes you through the history of beef eating and gives you a recipe for both the best and one of the poorer cuts of meat.

Beans are a classic storage food and have been a staple of the human diet for millennia. In recent decades, however, we have forgotten just how useful and versatile beans are. Here is a brief description of the importance of beans, with two classic bean recipes for you to try.

Hazelnuts are an important part of the Autumn's bounty and humans have been collecting and harvesting them for many thousands of years. Today, however, we tend to use them only as nuts and do not cook with them. To re-dress the balance, here is an introduction to hazelnuts along with some hazelnut-based recipes for you to try at home.