MMMM.. BRISKET..
The BBQ BRETHREN FORUMS.  



Our Homepage Donation to Forum Overhead Welocme Merchandise Associations Purchase Subscription Amazon Affiliate
Go Back   The BBQ BRETHREN FORUMS. > Discussion Area > Q-talk

Notices

Q-talk *ON TOPIC ONLY* QUALITY ON TOPIC discussion of Backyard BBQ, grilling, equipment and outdoor cookin' . ** Other cooking techniques are welcomed for when your cookin' in the kitchen. Post your hints, tips, tricks & techniques, success, failures, but stay on topic and watch for that hijacking.


Reply
 
Thread Tools
Old 12-15-2011, 08:47 PM   #1
tish
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
tish's Avatar
 
Join Date: 11-13-11
Location: york, pa
Default Salmon Question

Can someone tell me the difference between smoked salmon and Nova Scotia lox? I tried Googling, and got a bunch of different and contradictory answers. They're both salmon, right? How are they different in taste? Is it just the way they're prepared? Or are they two different types of salmon? Thanks for any help.
__________________
*When all else fails, just ask yourself ?Quid faceret Gore et Landarc??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs?
Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG
Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise
Cornflower Blue Thermapen Might not be the fastest, but it sure is the prettiest!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!
tish is offline   Reply With Quote




Old 12-15-2011, 09:02 PM   #2
buccaneer
somebody shut me the fark up.
 
buccaneer's Avatar
 
Join Date: 10-23-10
Location: The Never Never.
Default

Nova -lox is brine cured and cold smoked, smoked salmon is smoked so depends on the wood, Gravadlax is dill,juniper and sugar cured with pressure.
Scottish is stronger than nova, dry cured then smoked(cold)
__________________
Hold my dang beer...
buccaneer is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 12-15-2011, 09:05 PM   #3
tish
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
tish's Avatar
 
Join Date: 11-13-11
Location: york, pa
Default

Thank you, Bucc! I knew somebody on this site could give me a definitive answer.
__________________
*When all else fails, just ask yourself ?Quid faceret Gore et Landarc??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs?
Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG
Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise
Cornflower Blue Thermapen Might not be the fastest, but it sure is the prettiest!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!
tish is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 12-15-2011, 09:14 PM   #4
thirdeye
somebody shut me the fark up.

 
thirdeye's Avatar
 
Join Date: 01-14-06
Location: At home on the range in Wyoming
Default

Lox is cured, then sliced really thin for serving. It is usually premium grade salmon (think almost sushi grade) and really, really fresh. Nova is cured and cold smoked, but still not cooked to a higher degree of doneness. I look as the generic term "smoked salmon" as a cured and hot smoked product (or salmon that has started off with cold smoke, and finished with hot smoke) And I call salmon that is not cured, but smoked with flavor wood "flavor smoked salmon".

You can get by with lower grades of salmon for "smoked salmon" and "flavor smoked salmon". In fact, I prefer Atlantic farm raised salmon for my smoked salmon due to it's higher oil content. It makes for a real moist product. Here is some of my smoked salmon.

__________________
~thirdeye~

Barbecuist ~ Charcuterist ~ KCBS Master Judge & CTC
Big Green Eggs, Big Drum Smokers, Big Chiefs, Weber Smokey Joe "Custom Tall Boy"
Oil Patch Horizontal, SnS Deluxe Kettle

Visit my Cookin' Site by clicking HERE
Barbecue is not rocket surgery
“The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it's hard to verify their authenticity” ~ Abraham Lincoln
thirdeye is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from: --->
Old 12-15-2011, 09:20 PM   #5
tish
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
tish's Avatar
 
Join Date: 11-13-11
Location: york, pa
Default

Thirdeye, that looks really good. But see, this is the same thing I got when I Googled it. Different answers. I want to be able to smoke salmon, but I also definitely would like to learn how Nova Scotia lox are made. It's the lox I've been eating with bagels and cream cheese since I was a little girl. That could be a typical Saturday morning breakfast for us back then. My parents always loved the stuff, so us kids got to love it, too. So, is the lox brined, or not? Cold smoked, or not? I think I'm back where I started from. *sigh*
__________________
*When all else fails, just ask yourself ?Quid faceret Gore et Landarc??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs?
Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG
Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise
Cornflower Blue Thermapen Might not be the fastest, but it sure is the prettiest!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!
tish is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 12-15-2011, 09:36 PM   #6
thirdeye
somebody shut me the fark up.

 
thirdeye's Avatar
 
Join Date: 01-14-06
Location: At home on the range in Wyoming
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by tish View Post
Thirdeye, that looks really good. But see, this is the same thing I got when I Googled it. Different answers. I want to be able to smoke salmon, but I also definitely would like to learn how Nova Scotia lox are made. It's the lox I've been eating with bagels and cream cheese since I was a little girl. That could be a typical Saturday morning breakfast for us back then. My parents always loved the stuff, so us kids got to love it, too. So, is the lox brined, or not? Cold smoked, or not? I think I'm back where I started from. *sigh*
All lox is cured via a brine or a dry cure. Often the dry cures have aromatics as well, like fresh dill for example. Some lox is un-smoked, and other lox varieties are cold smoked. Nova is cold smoked. I've had lox many times, and just perfer hot smoked salmon.

No need to *sigh*, I'll tell what I'll do. I know a gal in Nova Scotia and she is a barbecuist, into curing her own bacon, making sausage etc. Let me drop her a line for a recipe.
__________________
~thirdeye~

Barbecuist ~ Charcuterist ~ KCBS Master Judge & CTC
Big Green Eggs, Big Drum Smokers, Big Chiefs, Weber Smokey Joe "Custom Tall Boy"
Oil Patch Horizontal, SnS Deluxe Kettle

Visit my Cookin' Site by clicking HERE
Barbecue is not rocket surgery
“The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it's hard to verify their authenticity” ~ Abraham Lincoln
thirdeye is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from: --->
Old 12-15-2011, 09:42 PM   #7
tish
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
tish's Avatar
 
Join Date: 11-13-11
Location: york, pa
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by thirdeye View Post
All lox is cured via a brine or a dry cure. Often the dry cures have aromatics as well, like fresh dill for example. Some lox is un-smoked, and other lox varieties are cold smoked. Nova is cold smoked. I've had lox many times, and just perfer hot smoked salmon.

No need to *sigh*, I'll tell what I'll do. I know a gal in Nova Scotia and she is a barbecuist, into curing her own bacon, making sausage etc. Let me drop her a line for a recipe.
Oh, would you?? Thank you so much, thirdeye! That would be really wonderful! Won't my parents be proud of me if I can learn how to make it?!! lol Now I can't quit grinnin'!
__________________
*When all else fails, just ask yourself ?Quid faceret Gore et Landarc??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs?
Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG
Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise
Cornflower Blue Thermapen Might not be the fastest, but it sure is the prettiest!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!
tish is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 12-15-2011, 09:51 PM   #8
thirdeye
somebody shut me the fark up.

 
thirdeye's Avatar
 
Join Date: 01-14-06
Location: At home on the range in Wyoming
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by tish View Post
Oh, would you?? Thank you so much, thirdeye! That would be really wonderful! Won't my parents be proud of me if I can learn how to make it?!! lol Now I can't quit grinnin'!
Email sent. It must be midnight or later there so maybe I'll get an answer tomorrow. I'll post it here for everyone to check out. You need to promise to post pictures when you make a batch.... and I would bet you'll have to sharpen your knife to get the thin slices.
__________________
~thirdeye~

Barbecuist ~ Charcuterist ~ KCBS Master Judge & CTC
Big Green Eggs, Big Drum Smokers, Big Chiefs, Weber Smokey Joe "Custom Tall Boy"
Oil Patch Horizontal, SnS Deluxe Kettle

Visit my Cookin' Site by clicking HERE
Barbecue is not rocket surgery
“The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it's hard to verify their authenticity” ~ Abraham Lincoln
thirdeye is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 12-15-2011, 09:52 PM   #9
buccaneer
somebody shut me the fark up.
 
buccaneer's Avatar
 
Join Date: 10-23-10
Location: The Never Never.
Default

tish I don't know if this will help or confuse matters further, but my understanding differs slightly to thirdeye's.
Lox= wet brined. Only. Very salty brine.From Scandinavia and quite a fishy product, fell out of favour so linguistically nowadays it is a term commonly used when describing almost any type of cured or smoked salmon. Cold smoked
BTW it is commonly sliced thin to serve but it doesn't have to be, it is still lox if it is served another way.
Nova describes a wet brined salmon much lighter in salts, used to refer to the nova Scotia salmon but that species got fished to extinction, the term still applies to that method of curing. cold smoked too.

Scottish (Scotch) and Nordic are dry salt cured, and gravadlax is sweeter, cured with dill and sugar and juniper and spices under pressure.
I looked it up and it seems correct but language gets boxed into common patterns of understanding that may not be the original so it gets confusing.
HTH and doesn't get you shorting out a synapse!
__________________
Hold my dang beer...
buccaneer is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 12-15-2011, 09:54 PM   #10
tish
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
tish's Avatar
 
Join Date: 11-13-11
Location: york, pa
Default

Thank you, thirdeye! I'll have to take a crash course on knife sharpening. All my carving knives are reminiscent of butter knives, right now. lol But I promise, when I make my first batch of Nova Scotia lox, I will post pron.
__________________
*When all else fails, just ask yourself ?Quid faceret Gore et Landarc??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs?
Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG
Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise
Cornflower Blue Thermapen Might not be the fastest, but it sure is the prettiest!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!
tish is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 12-15-2011, 09:59 PM   #11
Gore
Phizzy

 
Gore's Avatar
 
Join Date: 10-05-08
Location: Hiding out from blood suck ghost snake gods, Nazis and scrap iron chefs trying to harvest body parts
Name/Nickname : Gore (surprise!)
Default

The general appeal of Nova salmon to lox is that the Nova salmon is not as salty. Think, shorter time on the cure or less salt. I'm afraid the answers you'll get are both regional and cultural. I generally distinguish between hard and soft cures and cold and warm smoking. I think the best thing to do is experiment. I'll be waiting on the recipe thirdeye. I lived two years in Halifax and visit every year and BBQ was a foreign concept to just about everyone I met (except for hot dogs and hamburgers). I know there are a few on this site though!
__________________
Assistant to a Mad BBQ Scientist (and a squirrel): Primo Oval XL, Small Offset, Gasser, Optigrill, UBS
"I love everything about the pig, even the way she walks." -- Spanish proverb
(\__/)
(='.'=) This is the rabbit baby. Invests him in yours signature,
(")_(") and the help rabbit baby takes over control of the world!
Hmmmm, I wonder, WWGALD? Avatar courtesy of Grillman and NorthwestBBQ

Promoted by Bigabyte to "Idiot #1" , and dubbed "Phizzy" by Sir Ron.
Gore is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 12-15-2011, 10:04 PM   #12
tish
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
tish's Avatar
 
Join Date: 11-13-11
Location: york, pa
Default

Yes, I can see that region makes a difference. And if a particular fish is all fished out, well yeah, that would throw a monkey wrench in the terminology, too. But I think I get it, for the most part. And as you say, I'll just have to experiment and see what I get. I'll start with the recipe from thirdeye's friend, and see where that takes me.
__________________
*When all else fails, just ask yourself ?Quid faceret Gore et Landarc??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs?
Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG
Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise
Cornflower Blue Thermapen Might not be the fastest, but it sure is the prettiest!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!
tish is offline   Reply With Quote


Old 12-16-2011, 04:53 AM   #13
thull
On the road to being a farker
 
Join Date: 09-10-03
Location: Atlanta, GA
Default

I did a side of farm-raised salmon a week ago. Pretty simple dry cure (5 parts sugar, I use turbinado, and 3 parts kosher salt) with cracked pepper as the only spice. I put the pepper on each side of the filet and maybe 3/4 c of the mix total. Couple tablespoons rye whiskey. All in a big zipper bag.

Then pressed and cured for 48 hr.s, turning occassionally. Next rinsed and put on a rack over sheet pan in fridge to dry and form a pellicle.

I only smoked it for 2 hours (it was in the 50's temperature wise) with pecan and a little apple, mainly b/c it was a school night and I didn't want to stay up too late. I'll do longer next time.

Back in the fridge uncovered for 24 hours to let the smoke dissipate a little, then wrapped in plastic (and partially eaten, the rest gets consumed tomorrow).

Not exactly Nova but very tasty.
thull is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from:--->
Old 12-16-2011, 09:01 AM   #14
thirdeye
somebody shut me the fark up.

 
thirdeye's Avatar
 
Join Date: 01-14-06
Location: At home on the range in Wyoming
Default

Here are the results from my overnight requests. My friend in Nova Scotia does not make it, but she will ask around and let me know what she comes up with. Lynne did however have a recipe from the UK, so it's listed below.

The next one is a method my friend from Maine uses. The version he has is cured only, but he has gone one step further and did a light smoke on it as well and likes that a little better.

So.... both of these are dry cured (and by definition we're getting some internet feedback that Nova lox is wet cured (brined)). And the new addition to this thread from thull adds yet another variety. ~thirdeye~


*******************************

I do have this recipe that friend in the UK sent me. She used trout, I have not tried thisI will still ask around for a local variety. Lynne.

Gravad Lax

2 fillets of trout from 2 to 3 lbs fish
2 bunches fresh dill weed, stalks removed and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons white peppercorns
65g sea salt
40g caster sugar
3 allspice berries
3 tablespoons vodka

Crush the peppercorns and allspice and stir into the sugar and salt. Sprinkle half the dill in a glass dish and put a fillet of trout on top, skin side down. Press half the salt mixture firmly on the flesh side of each fillet. Sprinkle over half the remaining dill and the vodka onto the fillet in the dish. Put the other fillet on top, flesh side down with its thin side on the thick side of the other. Sprinkle over the remaining dill and put a board with some weights on top. Put in fridge for 2 to 3 days turning twice a day and pouring off the brine that forms. Enjoy

***********************************

Here is one from BBQinMaineiac, he is unsure of the source other than the name “Suzanne”. BBQiM makes his home in Maine. Additional cooks notes follow Suzanne’s recipe.

Gravlox
SUBMITTED BY: Suzanne

"Gravlox is a popular item in Scandinavian Cuisine. Some, like this one, are made with vodka."

INGREDIENTS
2 pounds salmon fillet, bones removed
4 tablespoons coarse sea salt
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon pepper
1 bunch fresh dill, chopped
3 tablespoons vodka

DIRECTIONS
1. Drape plastic wrap over a glass baking dish. Cut salmon in half lengthwise, and place one half in dish, skin side down. Mix together salt, brown sugar and pepper. Sprinkle half of mixture over salmon in the dish, cover with the chopped dill, and pour the vodka over the whole mixture.
2. Sprinkle the remaining salt mixture over the remaining half of salmon. Place over the salmon in the dish, skin side up. Fold the plastic wrap snuggly over the entire salmon. Place a board over the fish and weigh it down with a heavy object.
3. Refrigerate fish for 24 to 36 hours, turning every 12 hours. To serve, separate the filets, and carefully brush off the salt, sugar and dill. Cut into very thin slices with a sharp knife.

Additional comments from BBQiM: I halved the recipe and the half Atlantic Salmon filet fit beautifully in a 1 gallon zipper bag. It has been brought to my attention that the fish should be washed and soaked for 45 minutes, then smoked. The recipes I have don't do either of these, and when I've seen it done on TV (at least 3 times) that wasn't done either, but I want to make sure folks know that it's an option. Next time, since I like the product, I plan on smoking it since that's what I buy locally. (in Maine)
Definitely try smoking it. The Gravlox isn't salty enough IMHO to require soaking before smoking though. My plan is going to be to rinse off the undissolved salt then cold smoke for maybe an hour or 2 at most. Using a sweet smoke, cherry or apple or another sweet smoke.
****************************************
__________________
~thirdeye~

Barbecuist ~ Charcuterist ~ KCBS Master Judge & CTC
Big Green Eggs, Big Drum Smokers, Big Chiefs, Weber Smokey Joe "Custom Tall Boy"
Oil Patch Horizontal, SnS Deluxe Kettle

Visit my Cookin' Site by clicking HERE
Barbecue is not rocket surgery
“The problem with quotes on the Internet is that it's hard to verify their authenticity” ~ Abraham Lincoln
thirdeye is offline   Reply With Quote


Thanks from: --->
Old 12-16-2011, 10:40 AM   #15
tish
Quintessential Chatty Farker
 
tish's Avatar
 
Join Date: 11-13-11
Location: york, pa
Default

Thank you so much for all your responses, Bucc, thirdeye, Gore, and thull. I do believe I understand this a little better now, and am anxious to try my hand at it after I get a few more cooks under my belt. You guys are the best!
__________________
*When all else fails, just ask yourself ?Quid faceret Gore et Landarc??
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a little pyro at heart! Who's got the hot dogs?
Bubba Keg, Weber Genesis E-310 NG
Mini WSM, Shhh!!! Michael's surprise
Cornflower Blue Thermapen Might not be the fastest, but it sure is the prettiest!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Proud recipient of a certifiably uncertified limited edition MOINK ball certificate!!
tish is offline   Reply With Quote


Reply

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Planked salmon question. bbqjoe Q-talk 15 07-22-2010 05:06 PM
Salmon Question? Derek Q-talk 7 03-09-2010 12:34 PM
Butt and salmon question Merlinspop Q-talk 2 09-19-2009 03:27 PM
Salmon Question gpalasz Q-talk 8 10-01-2008 12:57 PM
Salmon question KSUbbq Q-talk 5 07-10-2008 08:46 AM

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


Forum Custom Search: Enter your Search text below. GOOGLE will search ONLY the BBQ Brethren Forum.
Custom search MAY not work(no display box) in some configurations of Internet Explorer. Please use compliant version of Firefox or Chrome.







All times are GMT -5. The time now is 05:51 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
2003 -2012 © BBQ-Brethren Inc. All rights reserved. All Content and Flaming Pig Logo are registered and protected under U.S and International Copyright and Trademarks. Content Within this Website Is Property of BBQ Brethren Inc. Reproduction or alteration is strictly prohibited.
no new posts