Don't be thinking of a big, black smoker barrel out in the backyard and hours of cooking time. We're talking here of an inexpensive stovetop arrangement and a few minutes of work.

Hanney's mac and cheese is not the gloppy stuff of Mom's making, but an unctuous yet relatively firm-textured dish. The cheese is a like a thin, glistening skin on the pasta, flecked with breadcrumbs. And there's something about the flavor, some elusive thing that causes people to pause, chew and look thoughtful. "A lot of people think it has bacon in it," Hanney said with a diffident smile. Close, but no macaroni. The taste they're detecting comes from smoking the Parmesan and Pecorino cheeses. Just a half-hour in the smoker Hanney rigged from an old catering cart and the character of the cheese is subtly but completely altered.

For the kim chee steak, the smoke is in the simple relish that accompanies it — smoked red bell peppers and onions, julienned, sauteed in lots of olive oil until soft, then finished with salt, pepper and a splash of balsamic vinegar. You could make the relish without smoking the vegetables, and it would be delicious. But the brief exposure to hickory smoke takes it, as Emeril Lagasse would say, to the next level.

Indeed, the TV chef megastar is a proponent of smoking, singing the praises of Camerons Stovetop Smoker. (Lagasse will demonstrate smoking again in shows beginning July 18; check daily TV listings for the schedule.) The Camerons smoker an attractive-looking appliance composed of a metal tray, a drip pan, a rack and a slide-on cover, all in heavy-duty stainless steel. The sets sell for $30 to $40 for the small size, or $50 to $70 for the larger, depending on where you buy, and include complete instructions and even recipes. They're available on O'ahu at Compleat Kitchen, and Executive Chef and can be purchased online, as well.

But another popular TV chef, Martin Yan, doesn't think you need to spend even that much. When he makes tea-smoked duck, he improvises by using a wok, some foil and a round cake rack.

Five-step smoking

• Put a pile of chips on the bottom of the smoker. (Hanney gets chips at City Mill; they're available anywhere grilling equipment is sold.)

• Suspend a drip tray over the chips, if you're using one. A drip tray comes as standard equipment with the Camerons Smoker or can be as simple as a metal cake pan perched on a ring of wadded-up foil (be sure it doesn't smother the fire). You only need a drip tray for juicy foods. Foods that are likely to melt during smoking, such as creamy cheeses, should be placed on or in something heat-proof.

• Suspend a rack over the chips 1y´ to 2 inches above the smoking material. Partly cover the smoker.

• Place the smoker on the burner. Turn the heat to medium and wait for the chips to give off a whiff of smoke.

• Place the food on the rack, cover the smoker and start timing.

What can you smoke? Whatever you like, as you can see when you page through "Camerons Recipe Collection," a recipe book the manufacturer devised.

• Vegetables such as mushrooms, peppers, onions, tomatoes, potatoes, corn and asparagus.

• For those who are transitioning away from eating meat, tofu smokes beautifully and the flavor gives it a meaty effect.

• Meats and fish of all kinds, as well as shellfish and sausages.

• Cheese, nuts, olives and even eggs (soft-boil eggs, coat with a little oil and smoke 7 minutes — use for deviled-egg sandwiches).

Slow, quick methods

There are two degrees of stovetop smoking: slow smoking until the food is fully cooked, or quick smoking meant to lend flavor to the food, which is then finished in the oven, on the grill or on top of the stove.

Many chefs have found that a full course of smoke cooking can dry out meats, particularly today's ultra-lean cuts, and overwhelm the flavor of the food. Hanney and others prefer to give meats a light layer of smoking, then finish them by braising or grilling. "Nothing really needs more than an hour, and most things are in the smoker less than 30 minutes," said Hanney.

Hanney said one way to assure moistness in smoked meats is to brine them first. For his boneless short ribs, he uses a light brine of one-half cup salt to 1 gallon water. For duck breast, he substitutes apple juice for the water, to create yet another layer of flavor. The meats are brined overnight, drained and placed in the smoker; after smoking, the short ribs are braised, the duck grilled.

Add pinch of rosemary

While the chips or sawdust used in smokers lend a particular flavor to smoked foods, they're not the only option. Hanney likes to throw a handful of fresh rosemary on top of the chips when he's smoking pork; you can add handfuls as the herbs burn away. Chinese use tea, spices and rice in smoking duck and other foods.

Foods that can be eaten raw — vegetables, cheeses, nuts and such — need mere minutes in the smoker and then are ready to eat or incorporate into other dishes.

Hanney always has smoked onions and tomatoes on hand. A simple tomato coulis (thick paste) made with smoked tomatoes can seem like a complex sauce.