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Smoked fish without brine?

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crazykidbig58

crazykidbig58

Newbie
Original poster
May 22, 2016
17
10
Connecticut
Is it necessary to use a brine when smoking fish? Almost every recipe I've seen has called for brining the fish. Is this for flavor, or is there more to it than that? I've got about 30 lbs of striped bass from a trip we took yesterday, and I wanted to smoke everything today but I don't have time to brine.
 
If you fail to wet / dry brine and form a pellicle, on the fish, you will end up with an inferior product....
 
It is usual to brine before smoking - but this only needs to be for 30-40 minutes in an 80% brine. If you do not brine and form a pellicle then the end result will be different - but will it be inferior? I think that is very subjective and you would need to test that for yourself with these particular fish. Try brining some of them and not others and then you will know which you prefer for next time.
 
Were you planning to filet the fish before smoking or smoking them whole  If the fish have already been fileted, you could consider just cleaning, vacuum sealing and then freeze the fish for now.  Then when you have more time and have researched the many different smoking recipes, thaw a workable amount, say 8-10# and go for it.  That's what I always do with all the fish the wife and I catch.
 
crazykidbig58 said:
Is it necessary to use a brine when smoking fish? Almost every recipe I've seen has called for brining the fish. Is this for flavor, or is there more to it than that? I've got about 30 lbs of striped bass from a trip we took yesterday, and I wanted to smoke everything today but I don't have time to brine.
Click to expand...
I've used this (Below) same Brine when I smoked Striped Bass, and it was Great.

I Brine & get a Pellicle for Smoking Fish, but not for Frying Fish.

Smoked Salmon      

Smoked Brook Trout & Tilapia

Bear
 
Thanks for the replies, everyone. I saw Bear's post while searching, but I wasn't sure how it would work on striper, so, I had already found another brine online. Here's some pics from earlier today and just pulling it from the brine to let it get a nice pellicle.

The beast (45 lb striped bass):
IMG_2571.JPG

IMG_2571.JPG


Cut up and ready for brine:
IMG_2579.JPG

IMG_2579.JPG


After 8 hours in brine:
IMG_2584.JPG

IMG_2584.JPG

 
crazykidbig58 said:
Thanks for the replies, everyone. I saw Bear's post while searching, but I wasn't sure how it would work on striper, so, I had already found another brine online. Here's some pics from earlier today and just pulling it from the brine to let it get a nice pellicle


After 8 hours in brine:
IMG_2584.JPG

IMG_2584.JPG

Click to expand...
Great Start !
icon14.gif


Looks Good.

Just so you know for the future, I've used my brine on Salmon, Tuna, Stripers, Trout, Tilapia, Yellow Perch, and Crappie, and it worked Great on all those, as long as I adjust the time going by the Thickness of the pieces.

Be Back for Final Pics---

popcorn.gif


Bear
 
When brining fish in a liquid brine for more than an hour or so you need to taste the brine. If the brine tastes too salty to drink then the resulting fish is going to take on a lot of that salt taste. I have tried quite a few brining recipes posted on here over the years and I would say that most of them have either resulted in the fish being way too salty or had so much sugar to mask the salt that the resulting "candy" was unpleasant to eat. It is all a matter  of personal preference though and in the USA you seem to prefer much sweeter foods than we do here in the UK
 
I don't think I ever saw a Fish Brine that wasn't too salty to actually Drink, but that might just be me. 
th_dunno-1%5B1%5D.gif


Bear
 
Had a bit of a mishap this morning as my MES doesn't like to produce smoke at 100 degrees. So, I bumped up to 200 to get the chips lit then turned back down to 120. When turning it down the smoke died off. It was a bit of cat and mouse and I think I ended up just cooking the fish as I couldn't follow Bear's times and temps due to lack of smoke. Regardless, the fish tastes exceptionally delicious. Much better than the bluefish I smoked last year. Bear, how do you handle getting enough smoke on your MES at such a low temp?

IMG_2586.JPG

IMG_2586.JPG

 
Last edited:
crazykidbig58 said:
Had a bit of a mishap this morning as my MES doesn't like to produce smoke at 100 degrees. So, I bumped up to 200 to get the chips lit then turned back down to 120. When turning it down the smoke died off. It was a bit of cat and mouse and I think I ended up just cooking the fish as I couldn't follow Bear's times and temps due to lack of smoke. Regardless, the fish tastes exceptionally delicious. Much better than the bluefish I smoked last year. Bear, how do you handle getting enough smoke on your MES at such a low temp?

 
Click to expand...
Like Dave said---Think about getting an AMNPS---Fill it, Light one end properly, put it in the MES, and get up to 11 straight hours of perfect smoke, without bothering with it.

8 years ago, I used to shut my MES off, and open the door to get the Smoker Temp down, so I could start it up again, so the heating element would light the chips again. That's one of the reasons when I smoked fish I used to bump the heat up 10° or 20° at a time---To keep the chips smoking.

Then Todd invented the Amazing Smokers & it's been Smoker's Heaven ever since!!

Bear
 
Last edited:
I've seen the AMNPS referenced in posts, but I never really looked into it. I will look into this product, but quick question though, where do you place the AMNPS tray when your MES racks are all fully loaded?
 
I don't think 100' is the magic temp to smoke fish, so don't feel locked into it. The Big and Little Chief smokers run 165' to keep their chips going and are not adjustable. I have used them successfully with jerky and smoked fish for the last 35 years or so.  

With that said, the AMNPS does add a whole lot more flexibility, and not having to reload chips often. Its the best way to roll with an MES- especially at lower temps! Now I run 140' with my MES smoking fish and jerky and use the AMNPS. My MES does run a bit hotter, but anyway I feel I am safer running those higher temps when smoking and just a matter of time until they hit the desired dryness.

For the fish brine, I was taught by my family years ago to use 2 parts sugars to 1 part salt. These days I have learned and prefer 4:1 and I add cure. That's a dry brine mind you... no water. It makes its own brine as it pulls water out of the fish which is desirable. Rinse, pat dry, and into the smoker. I haven't bought into the whole "pellicle" thing 100%. I think that has more to do with letting it come up to room temperature at least, before you put it in the smoker than anything else.

Glad your striper turned out! My mouth is watering!
 
The AMNPS goes to the left of the chip pan, on the wire supports...   or, you can fabricate an exterior housing like the mail box mod....

The wire supports are visible to the left of the chip pan......  

DSCF2017.JPG

DSCF2017.JPG


The remote container allows for the pellets to smolder at much higher smoker temps

without burning faster from the heat...   ALSO if you get into "cold smoking", generally done below

70-90 deg. F, depending on meat, the AMNPS will not add heat to the smoker body...

I added the mail box mod when cold smoking fish and bacon...   Not to sure about my memory

but I think it upped the smoker body temp around 20ish deg. which didn't work for me....

I cold smoke bacon and fish around 70 deg. F.....

DSCF2019.JPG

DSCF2019.JPG

 
crazykidbig58 said:
 
I've seen the AMNPS referenced in posts, but I never really looked into it. I will look into this product, but quick question though, where do you place the AMNPS tray when your MES racks are all fully loaded?
Click to expand...
It depends on which generation MES you have---Places I've found to be best:

Gen #1----On the support rods in the bottom, to the left of the chip burner assembly.

Gen # 2.5---On the right end of the bottom rack, just above the Chip Dumper, so you can pull the Chip Dumper in & out to adjust incoming air flow.

Bear
 
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