Smoked Salmon - When is it Done?


 
K

KToliver

TVWBB Fan
So I made my second attempt at smoking salmon yesterday...and messed it up.

My first time it came out great, but this time I made the mistake of over curing it; I ended up with it in the fridge for 2 days, and that pretty much gave me salmon jerky.

Anyway, once I get it on the WSM I run a serpentine method with some apple sticks on top which keeps my temp in the 140-160 range. I smoked it about 4 hours and called it done the last time out.

But what method do you folks use to determine when it has had enough time? Touch? Temp? Color?
 
You should remove when the center is opaque. It’s the same problem with Jerkey. once it is cooled down, it’s over done. I smoke mine till it is just opaque. Pull, 2 day in the fridge and it’s good to go.

I keep mine in the fridge so I do not have to over dry it.
 
I have smoked salmon and trout several times. I start by dividing the salmon fillet into sections that are similar in thickness to give me the ability to remove sections when they are done rather than dealing with the entire fillet. I find that the sections take in the range of 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours at 160-180 degrees depending on their thickness. Besides judging based appearance like Mark suggested I use the fork and flake test. I stick a fork in it and give a little twist. If it flakes easily it is done. This method has resulted in my wife loving the results and she is very picky about it not being done.
 
Mark Foreman said:
You should remove when the center is opaque. It’s the same problem with Jerkey. once it is cooled down, it’s over done. I smoke mine till it is just opaque. Pull, 2 day in the fridge and it’s good to go.

I keep mine in the fridge so I do not have to over dry it.
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I cannot imagine being able to leave it alone in the fridge for 2 days...I'm more for getting right at it! :p

Do you find that leaving it in the fridge changes the end result? For cheese, it definitely makes a difference; I seal it in baggies with a paper towel for 2 weeks before vacuum sealing it and the smoke taste really mellows during this period.

Are you trying to achieve the same? Do you seal the fish in a baggie or plastic tub?
 
Mike Freel said:
I have smoked salmon and trout several times. I start by dividing the salmon fillet into sections that are similar in thickness to give me the ability to remove sections when they are done rather than dealing with the entire fillet. I find that the sections take in the range of 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours at 160-180 degrees depending on their thickness. Besides judging based appearance like Mark suggested I use the fork and flake test. I stick a fork in it and give a little twist. If it flakes easily it is done. This method has resulted in my wife loving the results and she is very picky about it not being done.
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Thanks for that input. I really prefer a temp indication, so I plan to try out a 145 degree target today. I started slow around 100 and let it ramp up to 160 over the first 2 hours. Checked it then and it was at 107. I'll check it again at 3 hours then every 30 minutes after. Trying to stay no higher than 160 so I don't get any breaks in my pellicle.
 
KToliver said:
I cannot imagine being able to leave it alone in the fridge for 2 days...I'm more for getting right at it! :p

Do you find that leaving it in the fridge changes the end result? For cheese, it definitely makes a difference; I seal it in baggies with a paper towel for 2 weeks before vacuum sealing it and the smoke taste really mellows during this period.

Are you trying to achieve the same? Do you seal the fish in a baggie or plastic tub?
Click to expand...
I think it gives the smoke a chance to permeate the fish. Kinda like smoked cheese. My opinion however.....
 
Nice looking cook, Mark. I ran it lower and slower and pulled it at 135f internal temp. That was at 5 1/2 hours.

It was perfect this time; moist and tender. Didn't even get a photo of it before it was half devoured!
 
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