First time salmon help

[Solo_Falcon]

I’m looking to smoke some salmon for the first time on my oklahoma joe longhorn smoker. Have never cooked fish before so I’m looking for any tips or tricks to help me along the way. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thank you all!

 

[thirdeye]

Well, what outcome do you have in mind? Fresh salmon which is flavor smoked?


Or dry cured and hot smoked?

 

[Solo_Falcon]

Well, what outcome do you have in mind? Fresh salmon which is flavor smoked?

View attachment 454061
Or dry cured and hot smoked?
View attachment 454062

Probably the fresh salmon for now for me. Didn’t know there was two types haha

 

[thirdeye]

Probably the fresh salmon for now for me. Didn’t know there was two types haha

Oh, there are many types/styles. Flavor smoking fresh salmon is a wonderful way to explore it. I use my grill/smoker about like an oven, but with the kiss of flavor smoke. 275° pit temp. I like indirect heat as I buy skin-on and never turn. I put seasonings and aromatics on early and let them cook in. Somewhere's around 135°, pay attention because you are close to perfection. Watch for the protein to rise and that means you are really close. In my world.... don't wait for it to flake, or it will be dry.

 

[CoolbreezeBBQ]

Oh, there are many types/styles. Flavor smoking fresh salmon is a wonderful way to explore it. I use my grill/smoker about like an oven, but with the kiss of flavor smoke. 275° pit temp. I like indirect heat as I buy skin-on and never turn. I put seasonings and aromatics on early and let them cook in. Somewhere's around 135°, pay attention because you are close to perfection. Watch for the protein to rise and that means you are really close. In my world.... don't wait for it to flake, or it will be dry.

I do mine same way

 

[forktender]

Hot smoked salmon is great, just not as great as cold smoked in my opinion.
The best of both worlds is warmish/hot smoked salmon. Meaning smoked at around 110* for 3 to 8 hrs.
If you don't have an A-Maze-N smoke tube or MAZE order one you will use it way more than you think, cheese, fish, bacon, veggies and plenty of other things.



Start off with cutting the fish into equal size pieces I cut mine into strips 1'' to 2'' wide but you can cut them 4 to 6'' if you like the bigger chunks better.

Then make up a simple dry brine.

1 part kosher salt or sea salt 3 parts brown sugar depending on how much fish you are smoking you can go 1 cup salt 3 cups brn sugar......or as little as 1/4 C salt 3/4 C sugar. All you want to do is cover the fish, sprinkle a light dusting into a plastic or stainless steel container (not aluminum) then cover the fish with the rest of the dry brine.
Leave it in the dry brine in the refer for 2 to 4 hours.......no more than 4 hours or it will be salty.

I'm getting ahead of myself, some people swear by just salt and sugar...I've tried that way and it was bland as hell to me. So in my dry brine in the one cup batch I add 1 TBS Old Bay seafood seasoning, 1 TBS onion powder, 1 TBS onion powder, 1 ts All Spice, 1 TBS white pepper black pepper will do if you don't have white pepper but use the white if you have it, 4 to 6 shakes of TX Pete pepper sauce Frank's or Tabasco will do. Mix all the above into the dry brine and brine as mentioned above.

OK, now that the salmon has been brining for 2-4 hrs, take it out and rinse it really well in cold water while running your hands across it to get 100% of the brine off of it.
(don't worry if a little pepper sticks to it because you will be adding more black pepper later in the process)

Once the fish is rinsed dry it very well with paper towels then place is on drying racks.

And either place it uncovered into the refer overnight or in front of a fan or under a ceiling fan for 3 to 4 hrs.
Why do you do this you ask??? To form a pellicle layer on the fish.
What is a pellicle? The pellicle is a sticky glossy skin type of layer that forms on the fish it seals and creates a sticky surface on the fish for the smoke to adhere to.

So now that you know this place the brined salmon in front of a fan to dry and develop a shiny skin, this will take 3-4 hours and is vital to step to good smoked salmon or any other fish.

Once the pellicle is nice and glossy and sticky shake a little coarse black pepper on the fish if you like pepper if not skip it no problem at all.

Now it's ready for the smoker, put the fish into the smoker while the smoker is still cool start your fire only adding enough fuel/heat to get it up to around 125* to 150* start your smoke tube or maze with your favorite wood saw dust or pellets and stick it into the smoker. I like a combo of apple and cherry about 3/4 apple and 1/4 cherry is my go- to for salmon but you can use whatever you have on hand. I smoke the fish with one full smoke tube or smoke maze then the rest of the time with zero smoke or the smoke flavor with be overpowering.

After the smoke tube is done start brushing the fish with 100% pure maple syrup every 20 to 30 minutes until it's done. You will have to decide when it's done to your own taste, I like my smoked salmon to be done when the inside is no longer raw looking but some people like that...yuck. So I smoke mine until the fish starts to flake under the pressure of a fork. This normally takes 4 to 6 hours at the temps I smoke my fish at but if you live in a really humid area it can take up to 6 to 8 hours, you just have to watch it.

Once it's done take the racks out and let the fish cool on the counter until it's 100% cool to the touch.
Then put the fish into a plastic or glass container I like to use Ziplock bags. It will keep in the refer up to 10 days. If you want to store it longer freeze it then vacuum seal it, it will store up to a year this way some say it will store more than a yr but I don't see a need for that unless you don't get salmon yearly.


Best of luck to you, if you have any questions either shoot me a message or post them here and I will do my best to walk you through it.

Good luck.
Dan

P.S.
I almost forgot I smoke my fish on the cooling racks I posted above, I spray the racks down really well with cooking spray, so they don't stick. It makes it so much easier moving the fish from the smoker into the house and it's great for cooling the fish after the smoke. If you aren't using racks to smoke it on make sure you spray your smoker racks down really well with a good cooking spray before you put the fish onto them.

 

[Solo_Falcon]

Awesome thank you very much.

 

[Solo_Falcon]

Hot smoked salmon is great, just not as great as cold smoked in my opinion.
The best of both worlds is warmish/hot smoked salmon. Meaning smoked at around 110* for 3 to 8 hrs.
If you don't have an A-Maze-N smoke tube or MAZE order one you will use it way more than you think, cheese, fish, bacon, veggies and plenty of other things.



Start off with cutting the fish into equal size pieces I cut mine into strips 1'' to 2'' wide but you can cut them 4 to 6'' if you like the bigger chunks better.

Then make up a simple dry brine.

1 part kosher salt or sea salt 3 parts brown sugar depending on how much fish you are smoking you can go 1 cup salt 3 cups brn sugar......or as little as 1/4 C salt 3/4 C sugar. All you want to do is cover the fish, sprinkle a light dusting into a plastic or stainless steel container (not aluminum) then cover the fish with the rest of the dry brine.
Leave it in the dry brine in the refer for 2 to 4 hours.......no more than 4 hours or it will be salty.

I'm getting ahead of myself, some people swear by just salt and sugar...I've tried that way and it was bland as hell to me. So in my dry brine in the one cup batch I add 1 TBS Old Bay seafood seasoning, 1 TBS onion powder, 1 TBS onion powder, 1 ts All Spice, 1 TBS white pepper black pepper will do if you don't have white pepper but use the white if you have it, 4 to 6 shakes of TX Pete pepper sauce Frank's or Tabasco will do. Mix all the above into the dry brine and brine as mentioned above.

OK, now that the salmon has been brining for 2-4 hrs, take it out and rinse it really well in cold water while running your hands across it to get 100% of the brine off of it.
(don't worry if a little pepper sticks to it because you will be adding more black pepper later in the process)

Once the fish is rinsed dry it very well with paper towels then place is on drying racks.
View attachment 454089
And either place it uncovered into the refer overnight or in front of a fan or under a ceiling fan for 3 to 4 hrs.
Why do you do this you ask??? To form a pellicle layer on the fish.
What is a pellicle? The pellicle is a sticky glossy skin type of layer that forms on the fish it seals and creates a sticky surface on the fish for the smoke to adhere to.

So now that you know this place the brined salmon in front of a fan to dry and develop a shiny skin, this will take 3-4 hours and is vital to step to good smoked salmon or any other fish.

Once the pellicle is nice and glossy and sticky shake a little coarse black pepper on the fish if you like pepper if not skip it no problem at all.

Now it's ready for the smoker, put the fish into the smoker while the smoker is still cool start your fire only adding enough fuel/heat to get it up to around 125* to 150* start your smoke tube or maze with your favorite wood saw dust or pellets and stick it into the smoker. I like a combo of apple and cherry about 3/4 apple and 1/4 cherry is my go- to for salmon but you can use whatever you have on hand. I smoke the fish with one full smoke tube or smoke maze then the rest of the time with zero smoke or the smoke flavor with be overpowering.

After the smoke tube is done start brushing the fish with 100% pure maple syrup every 20 to 30 minutes until it's done. You will have to decide when it's done to your own taste, I like my smoked salmon to be done when the inside is no longer raw looking but some people like that...yuck. So I smoke mine until the fish starts to flake under the pressure of a fork. This normally takes 4 to 6 hours at the temps I smoke my fish at but if you live in a really humid area it can take up to 6 to 8 hours, you just have to watch it.

Once it's done take the racks out and let the fish cool on the counter until it's 100% cool to the touch.
Then put the fish into a plastic or glass container I like to use Ziplock bags. It will keep in the refer up to 10 days. If you want to store it longer freeze it then vacuum seal it, it will store up to a year this way some say it will store more than a yr but I don't see a need for that unless you don't get salmon yearly.


Best of luck to you, if you have any questions either shoot me a message or post them here and I will do my best to walk you through it.

Good luck.
Dan

P.S.
I almost forgot I smoke my fish on the cooling racks I posted above, I spray the racks down really well with cooking spray, so they don't stick. It makes it so much easier moving the fish from the smoker into the house and it's great for cooling the fish after the smoke. If you aren't using racks to smoke it on make sure you spray your smoker racks down really well with a good cooking spray before you put the fish onto them.

Hot smoked salmon is great, just not as great as cold smoked in my opinion.
The best of both worlds is warmish/hot smoked salmon. Meaning smoked at around 110* for 3 to 8 hrs.
If you don't have an A-Maze-N smoke tube or MAZE order one you will use it way more than you think, cheese, fish, bacon, veggies and plenty of other things.



Start off with cutting the fish into equal size pieces I cut mine into strips 1'' to 2'' wide but you can cut them 4 to 6'' if you like the bigger chunks better.

Then make up a simple dry brine.

1 part kosher salt or sea salt 3 parts brown sugar depending on how much fish you are smoking you can go 1 cup salt 3 cups brn sugar......or as little as 1/4 C salt 3/4 C sugar. All you want to do is cover the fish, sprinkle a light dusting into a plastic or stainless steel container (not aluminum) then cover the fish with the rest of the dry brine.
Leave it in the dry brine in the refer for 2 to 4 hours.......no more than 4 hours or it will be salty.

I'm getting ahead of myself, some people swear by just salt and sugar...I've tried that way and it was bland as hell to me. So in my dry brine in the one cup batch I add 1 TBS Old Bay seafood seasoning, 1 TBS onion powder, 1 TBS onion powder, 1 ts All Spice, 1 TBS white pepper black pepper will do if you don't have white pepper but use the white if you have it, 4 to 6 shakes of TX Pete pepper sauce Frank's or Tabasco will do. Mix all the above into the dry brine and brine as mentioned above.

OK, now that the salmon has been brining for 2-4 hrs, take it out and rinse it really well in cold water while running your hands across it to get 100% of the brine off of it.
(don't worry if a little pepper sticks to it because you will be adding more black pepper later in the process)

Once the fish is rinsed dry it very well with paper towels then place is on drying racks.
View attachment 454089
And either place it uncovered into the refer overnight or in front of a fan or under a ceiling fan for 3 to 4 hrs.
Why do you do this you ask??? To form a pellicle layer on the fish.
What is a pellicle? The pellicle is a sticky glossy skin type of layer that forms on the fish it seals and creates a sticky surface on the fish for the smoke to adhere to.

So now that you know this place the brined salmon in front of a fan to dry and develop a shiny skin, this will take 3-4 hours and is vital to step to good smoked salmon or any other fish.

Once the pellicle is nice and glossy and sticky shake a little coarse black pepper on the fish if you like pepper if not skip it no problem at all.

Now it's ready for the smoker, put the fish into the smoker while the smoker is still cool start your fire only adding enough fuel/heat to get it up to around 125* to 150* start your smoke tube or maze with your favorite wood saw dust or pellets and stick it into the smoker. I like a combo of apple and cherry about 3/4 apple and 1/4 cherry is my go- to for salmon but you can use whatever you have on hand. I smoke the fish with one full smoke tube or smoke maze then the rest of the time with zero smoke or the smoke flavor with be overpowering.

After the smoke tube is done start brushing the fish with 100% pure maple syrup every 20 to 30 minutes until it's done. You will have to decide when it's done to your own taste, I like my smoked salmon to be done when the inside is no longer raw looking but some people like that...yuck. So I smoke mine until the fish starts to flake under the pressure of a fork. This normally takes 4 to 6 hours at the temps I smoke my fish at but if you live in a really humid area it can take up to 6 to 8 hours, you just have to watch it.

Once it's done take the racks out and let the fish cool on the counter until it's 100% cool to the touch.
Then put the fish into a plastic or glass container I like to use Ziplock bags. It will keep in the refer up to 10 days. If you want to store it longer freeze it then vacuum seal it, it will store up to a year this way some say it will store more than a yr but I don't see a need for that unless you don't get salmon yearly.


Best of luck to you, if you have any questions either shoot me a message or post them here and I will do my best to walk you through it.

Good luck.
Dan

P.S.
I almost forgot I smoke my fish on the cooling racks I posted above, I spray the racks down really well with cooking spray, so they don't stick. It makes it so much easier moving the fish from the smoker into the house and it's great for cooling the fish after the smoke. If you aren't using racks to smoke it on make sure you spray your smoker racks down really well with a good cooking spray before you put the fish onto them.

Awesome thank you very much. Just one question. Where would I place the smoke tube? I have a charcoal/gas combo grill with an offset smoker. When I smoke I use the firebox for the charcoal and wood and place the meat that I’m smoking in the charcoal side of the grill. So where would I place the smoke tube? Thanks again for all the info. I’m getting very excited to do this!

 

[forktender]

Awesome thank you very much. Just one question. Where would I place the smoke tube? I have a charcoal/gas combo grill with an offset smoker. When I smoke I use the firebox for the charcoal and wood and place the meat that I’m smoking in the charcoal side of the grill. So where would I place the smoke tube? Thanks again for all the info. I’m getting very excited to do this!

Forthe times that you are using the fire box place it in the smoke chamber opposite side from the smoke stack.
You can either set it on the cooking grates or under the cooking grates.

For times when you aren't using the fire box I'd put it in the fire box close to the air inlet.