Picked up a few fillets from the grocery store, trimmed the skin, rinsed, patted dry and laid down in a dry cure of 2C brown sugar, 1/2C salt, 1T cracked pepper overnight for about 18Hrs. Rookie mistake was cutting them into serving sizes BEFORE the cure. Turned out way too salty. Second rookie mistake was using the cold smoker on my MES because it just laid down way too much smoke. Smoked it at 200 with apple chips for 90 minutes. They were cooked fine and would have been okay had I cut them after the cure, not before. Next time I'm just going to use the regular MES tube chip tray for less smoke and cut them after the cure.
Kosher salt, brown sugar and fresh cracked pepper.
Laid them down in a bed of the cure and covered the tops. Fridge for 18Hrs.
Look at all the liquid the cure sucked out of the fish.
Rinsed them in cold water, patted dry, sprayed smoker rack with Pam and laid them out for 90 minutes on the counter for pellicle to form.
Finished product. Flavor was strong. Would have been better broken up in a salad, but we ate them as an entre and it was just too much. Next time I will leave them whole in the cure, cut them prior to smoking and put less smoke on them.
Kosher salt, brown sugar and fresh cracked pepper.
Laid them down in a bed of the cure and covered the tops. Fridge for 18Hrs.
Look at all the liquid the cure sucked out of the fish.
Rinsed them in cold water, patted dry, sprayed smoker rack with Pam and laid them out for 90 minutes on the counter for pellicle to form.
Finished product. Flavor was strong. Would have been better broken up in a salad, but we ate them as an entre and it was just too much. Next time I will leave them whole in the cure, cut them prior to smoking and put less smoke on them.