My husband and mother both love smoked salmon, and I’m trying to find a good recipe for the brine as well as any other steps in the smoking process. The two I’ve tried so far came from Google searches. The first called for only 20 minutes of brining, which seemed way too short. The one I just made and just pulled out of the smoker, according to my husband, tastes like hot dogs. :eek:
I don’t much like smoked salmon, so I’m not a good one to do the taste test. But I trust everything Dopers say - no really!! - and I would love to know how you brine and smoke salmon, or any fish, for that matter.
I come from a long line of fish smokers, and we have a couple Tried and True recipes. The first one is the “Little Chief” Smoked Salmon Deluxe recipe, which I’ve found almost impossible to beat:
Brine:
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup non-iodized regular salt
2 cups soy sauce
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper (or more, to taste)
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1 cup dry white wine
Chunk salmon into pieces of about 4" x 4" or 5" x 5". Leave skin on. Brine for 8 hours or thereabouts. At least 6.
Remove fish from brine, rinse in cool water, pat dry with paper towel and allow to air dry until the “pellicle” forms, about an hour. The fish will turn glossy on the surface.
Smoke in your smoker with 2-3 pans full of wood chips of your choice. (I prefer Hickory or Alderwood, and just 2 pans full.) Allow to cure slowly. May take up to 12 hours depending on the thickness of the fish, but I start checking mine after about 6. The skin is easily removed after smoking.
This recipe works well on Steelhead and other large trout as well as salmon.
We have another old family recipe for brining made with Mogen David wine and regular Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, but those ingredients are harder to source these days, so I tend to stick with the above recipe.
I probably should have mentioned that I have an electric smoker, but I can adjust timing for that. The brine was my biggest interest.
I find it interesting that you mentioned Hickory - one recipe I saw said to stick to fruit wood - apple, cherry, or even pecan - and to avoid hickory. I guess it’s all a matter of taste.
Mine’s an electric smoker, too. But you add the wood smoke by placing a pan of wet chips on top of the electric heating unit. Not sure how your smoker differs from mine, but thought I’d point that out.
Re choice of wood, as you say, it’s all a matter of personal preference. I tend toward Alder wood, but I’ve enjoyed good results with cherry and apple wood, too.
Sure thing! Also makes a good base for flavor experiments but I can’t remember any. Been too long since the smoker died and have yet to get a replacement.