Oh man that is one of those awful articles which gives little information and is just there to throw pop ups and make you scroll past floating ads. Awful website.  Any time I see websites like that I know the content is not original.  They just pull it from somewhere else to surround it by advertising.

But I read it... I do agree that the stuff is awful (once you know what real smoked food tastes like).  I'd much rather have no smoke flavoring than liquid smoke flavoring.

The one thing I'll agree with in that incredibly brief article is that SMOKED PAPRIKA is a really nice add-in to food. It tastes natural and gives a subtle flavor.  A nice Chipolte powder does the same thing.  I like both of them from Penzey's, for what its worth.

I'll occasionally use liquid smoke. Kind of useful when making kalua pork in the crockpot. Use it when making a salmon/cheese ball. Use a few drops when making mac & cheese when I don't have any smoked cheese on hand.

There is a HUGE difference between good liquid smoke and some of the flavored, colored, crappy brands on market shelves.

The stuff I like and have used for almost a decade was made by Cedar House but alas, they seem to have disappeared from the marketplace in the last year or so. Fortunately, I still have two unopened bottles so I'm good for a few more years.