Finally taking the plunge...

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smoking4fun

Meat Mopper
Original poster
Nov 6, 2014
164
42
Solon, Ohio
I'm not a salmon fan, but the wifey is a huge fan, so I thought I'd take the plunge and give it a go.

I used a dry brine (4:1 brown sugar to kosher salt ratio) for 4 hours, pulled them out, washed and patted dry.  They are now in the fridge (hopefully) forming a pellicle while my 2 butts finish in the smoker.

My plan is to get the Amazen extendable tube going with an apple/cherry mix (can't seem to find my alder pellets), starting at 130* for first hour, 145* for second hour, then 160* until IT on one of the thicker pieces is 140*.  I had a choice between skin-on and skinless, so I got a full filet of the skinless and a half filet of skin-on.  I hope this works.  I'm also planning on putting my Maverick in one of the thicker pieces - any suggestions on how to make sure it stays in there?

Here are the pieces after the 4 hour dry brine:

 
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Reactions: disco
Sounds like a plan.

Hard to get the Mav probe in the middle, kinda gotta smoke it until it's gets flaky. Just pulls apart with a fork. Better to under cook than over cook.

Al
 
If the taste is off it may be because of the foil pan! Always use a plastic or glass  (non reactive ) pan to cure or brine!
 
Last edited:
 
If the taste is off it may be because of the foil pan! Always use a plastic or glass  (non reactive ) pan to cure or brine!
Thanks for the tip!  I was planning on using a big glass cake dish, but decided on the metal because it was more compact so it would fit in the fridge better.  I didn't eat any - but my wife (and her family) loved it.

Here's the final product (along with some of the pork butt I smoked earlier in the day):

 
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Reactions: bauchjw
Looks great! Glad it came out OK. Sometimes the aluminum trays can affect the flavor. Not sure if it could be harmful. Also be sure not to use iodized salt,I made that mistake once. Wasn't wearing my readers when I grabbed the container & it really tasted foul!
 
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