# Lets talk Smoked Salmon



## troller (Jun 27, 2013)

(This is not mine) 

Smoked Salmon Step by Step
It is best to always freeze your salmon before smoking as the 
freezing process breaks down the muscle tissue allowing the fish to 
brine better.

After the salmon is thawed get your ingredients lined up and ready to 
go. 
Next make your brine, combine all these ingredients in a large bowl. 
Remember this is a dry brine there is no liquid involved here.
2 cups brown sugar
1/3 cup salt
1 tbsp onion salt
1 tbsp garlic salt
1 tbsp celery salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp white pepper
1 tbsp dried hot mustard
1 tbsp dried lemon peel
1 tbsp dill weed
Combine all the ingredients and mix well. 

You will need a large container to stack the fish. First you want to make a layer of brine on 
the bottom of your container, next place a layer of fish, then a layer 
of brine... continue stacking. I like to pack the brine as I go. 

Stack your fish meat to meat with packed brine inbetween. 
Place in the fridge for at least 24 hours. If you leave the fish in 
the brine longer they will turn into fish candy! I have left in brine 
up to 36 hours, it is best to try different lengths of time to see 
what you like best. In 12 hours or so the brine will turn to a liquid 
so make sure you baste and/or rotate your pieces of fish so they all 
get the same soaking time.
Your dry brine will soon turn to liquid. 
When you are done soaking remove the fish from the brine and place on 
your smoking racks... DO NOT RINSE! Let stand for an hour or so until 
the fish becomes tacky. Place in the smoker and smoke.

Fish is ready to remove from the smoker... 
Take your fish out before you normally do and place on cookie sheets. 
It is a good idea to coat the cookie sheets with some kind of non-
stick spray before hand. Now generously coat the fish with honey... 
goop it on real thick! 

Try honey, maple suryp or japeleno jelly for a coating. 
Place fish in a 325 oven until the edges of 
the fish start turning dark. 
Take fish out and try not to eat it all when it is warm. I have to 
tell you it is the very best smoked salmon you will ever eat in your 
life and it is 100% better warm!


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## Meesh (Jan 26, 2010)

Looks like a great recipe! Will be trying with some of my remaining reds still in the freezer.


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## 30-06-hunter (Sep 22, 2013)

Reading that makes me hungry!


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## Packfish (Oct 30, 2007)

I go a bit simpler- brine- is just garlic/salt and brown sugar- but the brown sugar with REAL maple syrup basted on it is great- I take all my salmon out- let them cool- lay them on a folded paper towel and then over them - top and bottom and slide the pieces into gallon zip lock baggies and then into the fridge for the night- I like that much better than the hot salmon right out of the smoker- the paper towels absorb a lot of the moisture coming out of the fish- good firm fillets after they cool- super bowl food


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## Daisy (Jan 4, 2010)

Packfish said:


> I go a bit simpler- brine- is just garlic/salt and brown sugar- but the brown sugar with REAL maple syrup basted on it is great- I take all my salmon out- let them cool- lay them on a folded paper towel and then over them - top and bottom and slide the pieces into gallon zip lock baggies and then into the fridge for the night- I like that much better than the hot salmon right out of the smoker- the paper towels absorb a lot of the moisture coming out of the fish- good firm fillets after they cool- super bowl food


Add some pureed ginger root to your brine and that is my go to recipe.


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## Gumbo (Sep 22, 2007)

Some people like their smoked salmon dry to eat with cheese and crackers. My preference is a hot-smoked salmon. I have a brine I use that's similar to that above, rinse, then I hot smoke so it's still soft, tender, and juicy with a caramelized crust, and eat it as the protein for my dinner. Hard to beat!

That's the beauty of cooking--everyone gets to do it the way they like.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

I'm trying that this weekend! I have a ton of salmon. I tried smoking some in August and it turned out great but this sounds like a better recipe. I'll post some pictures.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

Just to test your recipe, I grabbed three Cohos, a Chum, two Blacktail steaks, some halibut and I had some spare octopus laying around so I lopped off one of it's tentacles. :shock: If the octopus doesn't turn out I still have seven more tries to get it right 










I followed the recipe exactly except I didn't have any dried lemon peels. The only container I had that was big enough was a small tote.










It wouldn't fit in my refrigerator so I set it on my porch next to my lucky whale bone for tonight. I'll rotate the meat in the morning.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

It's happening right now! Six more hours to go.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

So here's an update Troller. The Coho turned out awesome! The Chum....well, not so much. It's a Chum. The Halibut was very good but next time I'll bake it. The deer meat was excellent. I was sorely disappointed with the octopus. It didn't retain it's rubbery, chewy quality that is inherent to octopus. It was kinda mushy or maybe even a little gooey. I gave some to my little yappin' mutts and they looked at me like "WTH Chuck?". But, all in all, that was an excellent recipe. I'll definitely use it again! Thank you sir.


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## Dunkem (May 8, 2012)

Thats to bad on the octopus,I thought it might turn out a little like smoked eel.


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

I know Dunkem, I had high hopes for my octopus but dang.... I did find a chunk of jerky in the bottom of my smoker that fell through the racks from the last time I smoked some deer. It was hard but pretty tasty. Bonus!


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

That octopus is just too cool.

.


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## willfish4food (Jul 14, 2009)

LB - Is that a whale vertebra by your green tote?


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

willfish4food said:


> LB - Is that a whale vertebra by your green tote?


Yes. Back when the Russians were still whaling in Izhut bay they would kill them and tow there up into our bay and leave them on the beach at high tide. When the tide went down they would quickly butcher it. This whale was killed in the '50s. I have a rib bone from it too.


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## Packfish (Oct 30, 2007)

Adding a bit of Kolstika lickcoooooooer to the maple syrup and brown sugar was a very good addition- to get the paste correct it took a little experimentation - kinda of like that SNL spoof of Julia Child and drinking a little of the wine as she went.


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

In the brine last night...headed to smoke this afternoon....


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

gdog, let us know how it turns out.


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

longbow said:


> gdog, let us know how it turns out.


Pretty good! Could have used a bit more time in the smoker. Had to cut smoking time short, due to having to coach HS playoff hockey game.

Smoked fish taco's for lunch today...


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

Hey...tis' the season...get smokin.

Steelhead filets in the brine....


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

My smoker is running right now, not salmon (was supposed to go today for kokes but got delayed for a few days), just smoking trout we caught a few days ago... still smells Soooooooo good!


-DallanC


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

gdog said:


> Hey...tis' the season...get smokin.
> 
> Steelhead filets in the brine....


Funny you should say that. Lisa and I got 10 Pinks yesterday and two halibut (30lbs and 15lbs). We vacuum packed the halibut and 7 Pinks and I put three Pinks in brine to smoke this afternoon.


















Tonight we both got our limit of 10 Sockeyes. They had beautiful orange filets.









Tomorrow Lisa's headed off to Utah with a couple meat boxes full of salmon, cod and halibut filets. That ought to make some folks happy!


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

Are those salt water pinks? If so, close to the river?


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

johnnycake said:


> Are those salt water pinks? If so, close to the river?


Well, kinda both. I caught some in the creek and Lisa stayed in the boat and fished.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

Cool. It always makes me laugh to talk to some of the Alaskans up here and how they trash pinks but still love and eat trout!


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

gdog said:


> Uh....what does she drive and what route is she taking into SLC:mrgreen:


Ha! She has an entourage with dark suits, sunglasses and radios meeting her at the airport. Their called The Salmon Conveyance Security Service. :mrgreen:


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

johnnycake said:


> Cool. It always makes me laugh to talk to some of the Alaskans up here and how they trash pinks but still love and eat trout!


True. We catch trout and dollies up in our lakes and sometimes I'd rather eat those than salmon (except Sockeyes).


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

Now a pink from the salt a month before the run hits the river, gorgeous ruby red fillets! Those are tasty, almost as good as sockeye or king---almost!


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

Those Pinkys are in the smoker as we speak.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

longbow said:


> Those Pinkys are in the smoker as we speak.


I am SO jealous.

.


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## gdog (Sep 13, 2007)

In process... and bumping post for a great recipe.










Done....


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