finally - perfectly "Cold smoked" Sockeye Salmon

[GARNAAL]

it took me a while to perfect my process - but I think I'm there..

* Rub a side of Sockeye Salmon with Morton Tender Quick and then
* cover well with Dark Brown Sugar
* Cover in Saran Wrap and place in Fridge overnight on a baking dish
* Rinse with cold water and dry off with a paper towel the next day
* brush with a good shot of Calvados (and take a sip yourself too..) :^)
* dust with a thin cover of - white pepper, Lemongrass powder, Grated lemon peel.
* Place on a rack on the baking dish to dry uncovered overnight in the fridge again.
*fill the "Cold Smoking sieve with sawdust (prefer Apple or Maple- but any hard wood will do) and start on one side..
* place the waterbowl with plenty of ice in it above the smoking sawdust
* "cold smoke" on top rack for ~ 4.5 Hours - do not heat the smoker - just start the sawdust on one side..

It came out with a slightly salty/sweet smokey taste and stayed nice and moisty - not dry/flakey like the hot smoked Salmon !!

Get some bagels and cream cheese...:icon_smile_tongue:

cured, dried and dusted before going in the "cold smoke"

cold smoked and sliced

 

[Smoking Westy]

Man that looks really good.

 

[Big-Joe]

I just drooled on the keyboard! Way to go

 

[EdF]

That's beautiful. Say again what you used for equipment?

 

[legendaryhog]

Looks really nice. I've never tried lemongrass powder. I'll have to look out for it. I like lemongrass. Your cure and smoke look pretty darn even. Nice job.

 

[JDM46]

I will furnish my FEDEX account number so you can send to me for a unbiased taste test.

 

[Smoking Piney]

Killer! :thumb:

I LOVE smoked salmon.

 

[Big George's BBQ]

Very nice check out a thread by Don Marco. He has on on Cold Smoke salmon that is really good

 

[GARNAAL]

Very nice check out a thread by Don Marco. He has on on Cold Smoke salmon that is really good

DON'T THINK HE CAN BEAT MINE !! :mod:

 

[GARNAAL]

That's beautiful. Say again what you used for equipment?

Simple stuff.. my old vertical smoker (unlit and not heated)
A sieve popped up in the center to hold the Sawdust - lit on one side to go around smoldering
a water pan above the sawdust filled with plenty of ice to keep thing cool
the salmon on the highe shelf
and patience...

 

[Big George's BBQ]

DON'T THINK HE CAN BEAT MINE !! :mod:

Not saying that. He used Gent Jack and I believe used Wild cherry dust. He has cooked some pretty amazing things

 

[Stingerhook]

If I show this to Nellie she is going to be on a plane to Houston. Nice cook.

 

[m-fine]

Just a warning to others. Make sure you use commercially frozen salmon or go through the proper deep freeze yourself. I don't believe the tenderquick will do squat to the parisites that are often lurking in wild salmon.

 

[rikun]

Do you usually cure when doing cold smoked salmon? We never tend to cure it, not sure though why it's safe versus doing a cold smoke on raw meat...? Maybe because eating raw farmed salmon is safe itself?

 

[rob g]

Do you usually cure when doing cold smoked salmon? We never tend to cure it, not sure though why it's safe versus doing a cold smoke on raw meat...? Maybe because eating raw farmed salmon is safe itself?

Curing the meat first keeps the nasties from growing while the meat is smoked. As it is cold smoked the meat never gets near the 140F mark to kill the bacteria.

 

[m-fine]

There is no need to nitrate cure whole salmon filets as long as you salt cure it. The nitrates are necessary for botulism which is a big risk with sausage, but not salted or salt cured salmon where the salt on the exterior is more than sufficient to slow bacteria growth. I believe the nitrate cure is completely ineffective against the nasties that are likely to be in cold smoked salmon, so I follow the USDA guidelines and make sure it has been frozen for the proper time and temp.

 

[ShadowDriver]

Wow... that's a thing of beauty right there!

Appreciate you sharing some lessons learned and the process...

 

[chingador]

Wow. Quite awesome

 

[KpaxFAQ]

There is no need to nitrate cure whole salmon filets as long as you salt cure it. The nitrates are necessary for botulism which is a big risk with sausage, but not salted or salt cured salmon where the salt on the exterior is more than sufficient to slow bacteria growth. I believe the nitrate cure is completely ineffective against the nasties that are likely to be in cold smoked salmon, so I follow the USDA guidelines and make sure it has been frozen for the proper time and temp.

I disagree but YMMV. I also use cure #1 with Jerky that will be kept in the danger zone for hours but many don't and are still here to talk about it.

 

[Titch]

great looking Salmon mate,
I like the Sieve ideas:thumb: