Salmon newbie


 
M

Matt Goretzki

New member
I just got to fillets of salmon from a friend and really want to throw it on the smoker. I have done a little reading on different recipes seems fairly simple but was just wondering what everyone thinks is the best way to smoke it. Never have smoked any fish before, what tastes the best any opinions would be helpful. Thanks in advance!
 
I smoke at around 225 using whatever fruit wood I have on hand for smoke flavor.
I smoke until cooked thoroughly (160 internal) but you can always shot for medium if ya like. (140 internal)
 
I brine them overnight in a simple brine of salt, brown sugar, and soy sauce I think. I don't have the recipe at hand right now but can dig it up if you need. After brining, air dry it in the fridge. Smoke temp around 185 is better
 
It depends. Do you want smoke cooked for a meal or just smoked for the appetizer type. For the appetizer type, I brine overnight and just pat dry on paper towels. No rinsing or drying. It saves time and the results are the same to me. Keep the cooker at 150-175 and I use hickory. Most people like alder with salmon, but I like hickory better. Fruit woods with salmon in my opinion don't give the best flavor. Although sometimes I will mix some apple or cherry with hickory. Surprisingly oak tase really good as well. Some even like mesquite, it's what they use in Mexico. Pull when it's at 145-150 and chill in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Goes great with cheese and crackers. I say 145 because usually the therm. is in the thickest part which means the tail section is probably done. It should be just a little flakey. If you see the white fat oozing out your fire is too hot. Remove the salmon and slow the fire down. Good luck and please post the results.

By the way, Jeff's brine recipe is good and basically what I use. The soy has plenty enough salt already.
 
I tried the "appetizer style" recipe for salmon under the cooking topics and it came out great. It seemed a little salty right off the smoker but once I chilled it to serve as an appetizer the saltiness seemed to go away.
 
I prefer cold smoked salmon. IMHO no hot smoked recipe can match a filet of cold smoked salmon.

Add 3% of salt, 1% of sugar, brine for three days or so, rinse, dry, and smoke for 5-8 hours, never let temps go over 77 degrees F. There are several techniques to achieve such low temperatures.
 
Sweet, I think I am going to try the appetizer type. If everything goes right I am going to try to smoke it this weekend. Thanks for all the advice.
 
I've tried several different kinds of wood and find that Cherry is particularly good with Salmon. (That's smoking at about 225° F, not cold smoking.)
 
How long will the cold smoked salmon keep? Say if you put it in a food saver would you have to refrigerate it?
 
I think since it is salt cured you can keep it a while but I'd be more concerned about finger contamination etc.

I portion my cold smoked salmon into approximately 4" lengths of the filet and freeze them. I slice them after thawing for about 30 minutes. works perfectly for me.
 
If you have a food saver, and vacuum your cold smoked salmon, it will be OK in the fridge for about a month. YOu can keep it longer in the freezer, but since it is a very fat fish, use it before six months. It is wise to freeze cold smoked salmon, as it is raw, and it will kill Listeria monocytogenes.
There is little or no flavor or structure damage on the frozen fish. In fact, I think the flavor from the smoke develops if you freeze the fish for a week or two. When you cold smoke your salmon at home, the smoke flavor can be a bit bitter and overwhelming when it is fresh. The smoke taste mellows and develops during the storage.

Do not store cold smoked salmon outside of the fridge. Cold smoked salmon, not vacuumed, can be stored for about a week in the fridge.

As an example, unsmoked salmon can be stored for 18 days at 0 degrees C, but just 9 days at 5 degrees C. Fish is very temperature sensitive.
 
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