A few weeks ago I went fishing on the Blackhawk II charter boat of the coast of Massachusetts and maxed out on Porgy fish. After sharing some with family and frying it the good old fashion way, I decided to try something different. Smoking fish has been on my "must do" list for awhile, so with a few extra fish in my deep freezer it was a good opportunity.
When googling the subject, I didn't find an endless list of things to do with porgy fish like I expected. Smoking porgy had even less hits. However I was able to do enough research to compile a brine recipe and get a better idea of how to smoke fish.
A recommendation from one source using a brine to properly clean the fish from the blood, slime, etc. I like the idea and it turned out well.
The fish can be prepared in several different ways. The easiest way is have it gutted and head removed, with scales on. My fish was gutted, scales and head removed. I also wanted to try just fillets for variety's sake.
BRINE 1
8 cups water
1 cup Kosher salt
BRINE 2
8 cups water
1/3 cup of Kosher salt
1/2 cup dark maple syrup
1 chopped medium onion
3 minced garlic cloves
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tsp chili powder
4 bay leaves
1 tsp coriander seeds
Bring the contents of both brine to a simmer and turn off the heat. Both brine need to be cooled prior to using, so I prepared the brine in the evening and allowed both of them to cool to room temperature over night. I also took the fish out of the freezer and allowed it to defrost until brining time the next day.
The nice thing about brining fish is that it doesn't take very long. In this case, longer is not better, but some larger fillets may need longer brining time. In this case, brine the fish in the first brine for 30 minutes. Remove from the brine, gently rinse the fish with cold water and place in the next brine. To make the brining process easier, I used freezer ziplock bags for both brines. Doubling them up is a good idea when fish still have the spines that can puncture the bags. Brine the second time for 1-2 hrs.
Remove from the brine, it on some drying racks and pat dry with a paper towel. It takes about 2 hrs in a low humidity room for the fish to form a pellicle. The drying process could be lightly expedited by using a fan. The whole house may have a lovely smell of brined fish but it goes away when quickly once removed.
Meanwhile, take this time to get the smoker and wood chips ready. This was my first time using
alder wood. The smell was amazing and the best choice for any type of fish. The alternative if you don't have alder is mesquite and apple. It's important to not over do the mesquite because it will have a bitter taste. Soak the woods chips for one hour.
With my smoker I know it takes about 45 minutes to warm up to at least 300 degrees and then the wood chips begin to smoke. Twenty minutes later I can place the food into some nice quality blue smoke.
Once in the smoker make sure the fillets and thinner fish are on the take rack, further from the heat source. This time all 4 racks weren't needed so I removed them. Less cleaning to worry about later.
Smoking temperature is critical to the outcome of a well smoked fish. Too hot and the fish might as well have been done in the oven. One way of knowing that the heat was to high is the oozing of a white sticky fluid which is the breakdown of the proteins holding the muscle fibers together.
Cold smoke can be done with the proper equipment, maintaining the temperature around 90 degrees for 6-8 hrs. I used hot smoke which is defined as maintaining temperatures between 150-175 degrees F for 2 hours. Then turning up the heat to 200 degrees and maintaining it until the internal temp is 160 degrees.
Unless it's freezing outside, it's difficult to maintain a really low temp on a propane smoker. To reach the ideal cooking temperature I had to keep the door open about 1/2 inch and keep one burner on at the lowest setting. It worked well with just a little more frequent checking.
At about 2.5 hours I placed my barbecue Redi-Chek thermometer in the largest fish I had. I was at 140 degrees but with the heat turned up to 200 degrees the internal temp rose steadily.
Once at 160 degrees internally, I reopened the door and because I had great smoke billowing out I decided to keep it going for another 30 minutes. After the smoke finished up, I like to just open the door of the smoker completely and allow the meat to gradually decrease in temperature before bringing it into the house.
I have seen and tasted the quality of professionally smoked fish a great deal over the course of my life primarily because of my Ukrainian nationality. Although this fish wasn't professional quality yet it tasted really good.
In particular, my kids and myself really enjoyed the fillets because of the stronger smokey flavor.
For dinner that evening my wife prepared delicious baked potatoes which pared well with the smoked fish.
Smoked fish can be enjoyed in many different ways. It can be sliced and placed on a cracker. I'm hoping to make a cracker spread as an appetizer while the fish lasts.
For longer storage purposes, smoked fish should be refrigerated or frozen.
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