Smoked Salmon..well ok I can try that..right?

[basuraman]

So my mom and dad have a big old News Years Day shindig every year. I was already going to do two porkbutts so people could have some pulled pork to munch on. Then out of the blue my dad calls and says "I bought to much Salmon for my gravlox can you smoke the rest." then um..well I have never done smoked Salmon. So I get of the phone and start me search..um on here of course. I come up with..

http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogs...-trout-or.html

So at 8:00 am this morning my dad shows up with the fish. Well here goes nothing. My concerns are..

1. Can I use my maverick ET-732 in fish? Or go with this almost instant read.
2. Should I put it in a throw away roasting pan so the WSM won't smell fishy.
3. What if it is really good and I don't want to give it back to dad?
4. Since I have little time to prepare and only a Home Depot to get some wood. Should I go with Cherry or Apple?

Thanks.

Dan

[basuraman]

Also should I cut the fish into chunks?

[Groundhog66]

Don't cut the fish up, keep it whole. I'd go light on the smoke. I wouldn't worry about using a probe on it, you can typically tell if fish is done just by looking at it. See if you can locate any cedar planks or the like, they work well for salmon. And yes, definitely catch the drippings somehow.

[deguerre]

Originally Posted by basuraman

So my mom and dad have a big old News Years Day shindig every year. I was already going to do two porkbutts so people could have some pulled pork to munch on. Then out of the blue my dad calls and says "I bought to much Salmon for my gravlox can you smoke the rest." then um..well I have never done smoked Salmon. So I get of the phone and start me search..um on here of course. I come up with..

http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogs...-trout-or.html

So at 8:00 am this morning my dad shows up with the fish. Well here goes nothing. My concerns are..

1. Can I use my maverick ET-732 in fish? Or go with this almost instant read.
2. Should I put it in a throw away roasting pan so the WSM won't smell fishy.
3. What if it is really good and I don't want to give it back to dad?
4. Since I have little time to prepare and only a Home Depot to get some wood. Should I go with Cherry or Apple?

Thanks.

Dan

1. Yes. Place in the most fleshy part of one through the side in the middle.
2. I've never had a problem with a fishy smell in my kettle or GOSM.
3. Tell him you totally farked up and chew on some breath mints.
4. I'd use apple personally, but that's just me.

[Phrasty]

Hey Brother.. Keep the fish whole. Cure it as you h ave there then I'd smoke it with the apple on a low heat smoke.... like at 200 - 225. once you see the proteins start to seep out the flesh its done. I think its done anywhere around 130ish. Here's one I did a while back:

I also smoked 2 sides of salmon along with the lamb. They were seasoned with my salmon rub, which is:

kosher salt
brown sugar
my pork rub (Which I'm calling "Hog Dirt")
lemon pepper
and a very little curing salt (like 1/4 of what you would normally use).

They sat for about 12 hours in the fridge then I washed them off, patted them dry, sprinkled on some coarse red and black peppercorns and stuck them back in the fridge to dry the surface. I put them on the smoker @ 255 & smoked them with lychee until the temp reached 135. I'm sorry I didn't get any pics of this plated up but I just broke it up into nice big chunks and served with a home-made mustard-dill sauce! It was out of this world good!
AAAAAND on to the pics:

Fresh:




Seasoned up:





Vacu-packed and headed for the fridge:



Rinsed off, dried and coated with cracked pepper:





All done and coming off

[forrest2906]

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...d.php?t=123040

using the 732 on fish works great. I just finished some steelhead last night, i did some chinook a couple of weeks ago. look at the link above and it gives a brine idea and cooking instructions. The steelhead was about 4 lbs total. Smoked for 1.5 hrs with apple, total cooking time about 3 hrs. had the smoker to about 190-200F. Cooked till 140-145IT....

very easy, do not sweat it.

[thirdeye]

Nice link Dan, it's the one I use too. Heheheee.

1. Can I use my maverick ET-732 in fish? Or go with this almost instant read.

Go with the instant read, and the smallest tip you have.

2. Should I put it in a throw away roasting pan so the WSM won't smell fishy.

There was a thread here earlier this year about WSM's unusual ability to hold "smoked fish" smells. I didn't believe it, but there were a bunch of responses that said it's true. So I have to go with the Brethren on this one......(I still don't know why it happens with a bullet smoker and not other styles)... And to answer your question, yes, you can smoke it in a shallow pan, or just on some foil with the edges folded up. The fillets don't really leak much juice.


3. What if it is really good and I don't want to give it back to dad?

It will be very good as long as you don't overcook it. Just tell him something like "sorry it was too salty to eat, maybe next time".


4. Since I have little time to prepare and only a Home Depot to get some wood. Should I go with Cherry or Apple?

I generally start with alder and finish with cherry. You will be fine by starting with apple and finishing with cherry. BTW, when you said "little time", I hope you are not shorting yourself on the cure time or overnight rest time. they are important. I also chill mine one day before serving, it will be much moister.

[basuraman]

~thirdeye~ Thank you for the link.

My dad did all the prep work last night. It is currently sitting in my very cold "Sun room" resting. Plan on putting on the smoker in an hour or so.

[thirdeye]

Originally Posted by basuraman

~thirdeye~ Thank you for the link.

My dad did all the prep work last night. It is currently sitting in my very cold "Sun room" resting. Plan on putting on the smoker in an hour or so.

Uh oh,.... if he's seen it there is no way he's going to fall for the "too salty" story. Better tell him that the dog ate it. I made it through high school using that story about my homework.

[deguerre]

Originally Posted by thirdeye

Uh oh,.... if he's seen it there is no way he's going to fall for the "too salty" story. Better tell him that the dog ate it. I made it through high school using that story about my homework.

What if he says he tossed in some mesquite instead of alder by mistake?

[basuraman]

Originally Posted by deguerre

What if he says he tossed in some mesquite instead of alder by mistake?

When I was at Home Depot my daughters were trying to get me to buy the Mesquite..they liked the name.

[thirdeye]

Originally Posted by deguerre

What if he says he tossed in some mesquite instead of alder by mistake?

Yeah, the mesquite story might do it..... 'Sorry Dad, you know all wood looks the same".

There is a company down in Colorado that smokes salmon with hickory, it's quite good. I'd love to know more about their process. It's very moist and it gets a really light coating of oil before vacuum packing.

[sfbbqguy]

aaaaahhhh....New years "Shindig" in Sacto w/smoked salmon...I don"t live THAT far away!

[martyleach]

Well, I just smoked salmon a couple days ago..First, I brined it for about 12 hours. It was a nice half salmon filet. Then, I used my MAK pellet pooper at 170 degrees for about 4-1/2hours until the salmon was really weeping on the top. When I smoke salmon, I want the kind of stuff you put on crackers with cream cheese and capers.

This was killer! Can't wait to do it again.

[razrbakcrzy]

I smoked (2) 4lb slabs of fresh caught salmon, my uncle caught on a fishing trip to Alaska for a company chistmas table the week before Chritstmas. I used the smoked salmon thread I found here. It used salt and sugar to cure in the fridge overnight.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...ghlight=salmon

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...ghlight=salmon

I smoked at 140deg for 4hrs.

I then flaked 1/2 it and mixed it with cream cheese, cheddar cheese and chives formed it into a ball, I thin sliced the rest of it and served all of it on a platter with green, black & kalamata olives, dill & sweet pickles, carrots, hot pepper jelly & serveral different crackers and melba toast.

I was not allowed to bring any of it home, they devoured it...