any input on this salmon would be greatly appreciated.

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

jdomep

Fire Starter
Original poster
Jan 30, 2011
68
11
i am putting this in the smoker on Sunday. no skin on this its most likeluy 3/4" thick at most. curing or brining? not sure since all i see salmon has skin on one side. hot smoke or cold smoke? this is only my 4th smoke coming up so the easier the better. this is my first shot at salmon. using alder wood and i would like to throw a couple chickens and some sausage in the smoker at the same time. any issues there? thanks ahead for any help you guys give me.
icon_mrgreen.gif


2472a563_DSCN1264.jpg
 
I brine mine for 2 days.  I leave the skin on mine mostly for show and to have something I can try to get off the grates without taking much of the meat.  My salmon always sticks to the grates and I think others here have had that problem as well.  As far as your sausage, are you wanting to cook that through to done or just get a nice smokey flavor and finish it either on the grill or in a fry pan?  Also do you want to fully cook the salmon or just put a smoky flavor to a rare filet?  If your answers to these questions are the same I'd say you could do the salmon and the sausage together.  I personally would put the sausage above the salmon in the racks as the salmon will drip juices I wouldn't want on my sausage.  As far as the chicken, if the answers to the two prior questions were that you wanted both cooked through, then you probably could do these all at once with a 200-225 temp.  From a food safety standpoint, I wouldn't want the chicken above anything else.  From a flavor standpoint, I wouldn't want anything to be below the salmon either.  What I'd probably do is to take the lowest two racks.  On the right hand side of each put the chickens and on the left hand side of each put the salmon with the sausage on the upper racks.   This way the salmon will drip on salmon and the chicken will drip on chicken and you shouldn't have the flavor or contamination issues.   Good luck on this amitious project. 
 
thanks, i am having second thoughts the more i read. i may try the salmon on saturday and the rest on Sunday. i just hate to fire up the smoker for a one rack smoke. seems like such a waste of smoke and heat.
 
i am also reading it might be better to cut this salmon into strips before brining and smoking.
 
I would not smoke salmon with the other items; I've had salmon flavored cheese because I smoked the two together.
PDT_Armataz_01_04.gif
Actually, the cheese was pretty tasty on crackers, but not with other applications (LOL)!
PDT_Armataz_01_25.gif


I do not brine if I am hot smoking (cooking) my salmon.  Nothing wrong with brining here; I just don't bother with this step because I don't believe it brings a lot of flavor to the party (IMHO).  I use salt, pepper, a bit of brown sugar and some heat (red pepper flakes are the norm.).  Alder is perfect -- keep the wood smoke light.  There is no need to cut it up unless it does not fit on your grate or you have a really thin section that will cook much faster than the thicker areas.  The fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.

I ALWAYS brine for cold smoking fish.  Brining is primarily designed to kill bugs that can make you sick.  Flavor is a secondary (albeit important) consideration here.

Cheers!  You'll love that smoked salmon!!
 
I brine all my fish. True cold smoking fishing is hard to do, If you are truly cold smoking you are getting lox. Most fish smoke is actually cooking it.

I get good flavor from brineing. Check out Bear's Brine mixture it is a good one

Robert
 
adiochiro3 do you put your salt, pepper and sugar on a day ahead and then wipe off?
 
Here is a brine I picked up when I was a newbie here.  works well.  Only brine for 1-2 hours though.  remove from the brine and let the pelicle set up.  This is sort of a slightly hazy and tacky surface.  This also helps to "hold" the smoke flavor.  Then hot smoke (maybe a little brown sugar towards the end).  Good stuff.  (We usually do not leave the skin on ours either).

10 qts water
2 3/4 cups pickling salt
1 cup brown sugar
2 Tbls garlic salt


 
I get the same salmon as you do, packaged & skinned. I find it's not necessary to brine it if you are hot smoking it. I cut the thin part of the belly & the last couple of inches of the tail off to make a rectangle shaped piece that is all about the same thickness. The thin parts will be done first, so you can snack on them while you wait for the main piece to cook.I coat with olive oil, then a heavy dusting of cajun spice. Also coat the grate well with oil to keep the salmon from sticking. Good luck & let us know how it turns out.
 
I usually cut my fillets in half so I have one of the tail pieces and one of the more belly like pieces.(Not in half lengthwise) I brine mine over night in a salt & brown sugar type rub then rinse the next morning and apply a little brown sugar, garlic powder and pepper then smoke them at around 150 until the internal temp reaches 145 degrees. My family and friends go nuts over it. I have already been asked by 3 people to smoke a bunch for them again the next time I make it. My Mother in law had a whole load for me from all of her friends the last time I smoked because they had tried some of hers and wanted their own. Needless to say I smoked some more for them and got a nice big fillet out of the deal for me. Smoked salmon is some of my favorite stuff to smoke.
 
I usually cut my fillets in half so I have one of the tail pieces and one of the more belly like pieces.(Not in half lengthwise) I brine mine over night in a salt & brown sugar type rub then rinse the next morning and apply a little brown sugar, garlic powder and pepper then smoke them at around 150 until the internal temp reaches 145 degrees. My family and friends go nuts over it. I have already been asked by 3 people to smoke a bunch for them again the next time I make it. My Mother in law had a whole load for me from all of her friends the last time I smoked because they had tried some of hers and wanted their own. Needless to say I smoked some more for them and got a nice big fillet out of the deal for me. Smoked salmon is some of my favorite stuff to smoke.
Ross...add me to the list of people who want some... lol  Sounds great!

 
 
Have not smoked a salmon filet yet. Sinful here in the PNW, I know...but have done them in the oven for work. I had the pleasure of working with a chef who was a graduate of the Johnson & Wales Culinary School back East and he turned me on to his marinade for Teriyaki Salmon. I assume you could do this in a smoker at higher temps for a fast finish or go the low & slow route like Ross posted. Regardless, here's the recipe out of my file....I do know it's very tasty done in the oven. If you do try this version in your smoker I'd be interested in any input.

TERIYAKI SALMON FILETS

 

¼ cup Soy Sauce (Kikkoman preferred, or any ‘naturally brewed‘ soy)

¼ cup orange juice

1 tbl. chopped garlic

2 tbl. white wine

2 tbl. minced ginger

2 tbl. Toasted sesame oil

2 tbl. Brown sugar

2 tbl. Rice wine vinegar (unseasoned)

2 green onions (scallions), chopped

Place all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to dissolve sugar.

Place salmon filets in a large zip-lock baggie and pour marinade in.

Marinate salmon 2 hours, turning baggie occasionally so fish marinates equally.

Place salmon filets on a lightly oiled baking sheet and pour marinade over. Cover using either tinfoil ‘tent’ or another baking pan, inverted, on top. You don’t want the tinfoil touching the fish. Place in a preheated 350 degree oven for approx. 14-15 minutes. Salmon should just ’flake’ when tested with a fork.

Serve with Jasmine or ‘sticky’ rice and your veggie of choice.

Garnish with additional chopped green onions, if desired.

This marinade is enough for about 4 filets or one ‘side’ of salmon. Double recipe for a large side of salmon or big filets. You want enough marinade so the fish is covered.  
 
Last edited:
As you can see there are many ways to make salmon and I bet they are all really good. I need to actually try some of these other guys recipes so I can see what I am missing. It's just been so hard to try something different when I finally made something that I love so much.

To bad we can't have a salmon swap or something so a guy could try all of these awesome treats.
 
As you can see there are many ways to make salmon and I bet they are all really good. I need to actually try some of these other guys recipes so I can see what I am missing. It's just been so hard to try something different when I finally made something that I love so much.

To bad we can't have a salmon swap or something so a guy could try all of these awesome treats.
I plan on tryiing yours Ross...sounds good as well as fairly simple and with good reviews
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Latest posts

Hot Threads

Clicky