MOUTH WATERING SMOKED SALMON

Last year was my first year salmon fishing in the river so I call it my year of figuring things out: how to fish, how to fillet, and how to smoke it! I'm still learning things this year such as pay $3 and have some professionals fillet the salmon for you because it takes so much time and it's a bloody mess. This time around there was some of my own blood mixed as I gave myself a nice cut not the finger.

Last season I tried out several marinade/cure recipes as well as a few different rubs and they were all good but this year I nailed it on the head with a very simple one. After again doing some reading on blogs and other web resources I came to realize there is nothing that is going to make the fish meat better tasting then 2 ingredients Kosher Salt and Light Brown Sugar. It seemed too simple at first to the point where I almost added a couple more ingredients but last minute decided to stick to the original plan. 

This is my own recipe with a couple suggestions on technique taken from other sources.

STEP ONE: Cut your salmon fillets into 2 inch pieces. Place a baking sheet and line it with plastic wrap. Place the salmon on the sheets with enough room in between for the cure mixture. 

STEP TWO: For 2 salmon fillets you will need 1/3 cup Kosher salt and -------- Brown Sugar. The ratio needs to be 2:1 salt:sugar unless you like your fish sweeter. Cover the pieces evenly with the mix. This part of the process is called the curing part. Cover up the salmon with more plastic wrap. Place into refrigerator for 4 hrs. If your pieces are more than 2 inches thick then the curing process should be 8 hrs. 

STEP THREE: Remove from the refrigerator. During the curing process some fish juice will seep out onto baking sheet. Carefully drain all the juices from the pan. Gently pat down the fish with a paper towel. And allow the fish to stand at room temperature for about 1 hr. This drying period allows for the fish to develop a dry outer coat which will absorb all the smoke. The dryer the outer surface of fillets that better the smoke will adhere to the fish.

STEP FOUR: I like to get my smoker started about 30-45 minutes prior to setting the meat inside. I make sure that the water in the basin and wood chips are all warm and ready. Ideally the smoking temperature for salmon is 155-160 degrees F. I get the smoker to at least 200 degrees F before I put the meat in because you loose a lot of heat by opening the door and then the cool fillets will also bring the temperature down as well. 

STEP FIVE: Salmon meat is a very delicate meat and therefore the temperature has to be watched every carefully. Having a meat temperature probe is the best idea. Except this time my probe broke and I couldn't get it to work. Another mistake that I made was leave the meat for 45 minutes to run an errand at the store. Normally it would take about 3-4 hrs for the inside temperature of the meat to reach 140 degrees F. Then remove from the smoker and let it sit on the baking sheet for 30 min. Then take a piece of paper towel and gently pat down the fillets from any remaining oils and moisture. Allow it to stay in room temperature for another 1-2 hrs. The dryer it will be the longer you will be able to store it. 

STEP SIX: If you make plenty of fish, don't forget to share with friends and family. But make sure you sit down and enjoy some yourself. It can stay in the refrigerator up to one week but 2 wks would be okay as well. We had only two pieces from the fish below that lasted more than 3 days. Freezing it is also an option.