Smoked Salmon Constructive Criticism

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365buckin

Newbie
Original poster
May 24, 2014
22
10
Midwest
Here is a video of my first smoked salmon attempt.  I would appreciate any tips or advice from you salmon smoking pros.

Some things I've learned since then:

-Get rid of aluminum foil under fillets.

-Use foil to line drip pan and water pan for easy clean up.

-Open damper wide open.

-Don't use water in drip pan for hot smoking.

-Use fish and vegetable screen rack.

-Score skin side of fillet for deeper smoke penetration.

-Don't pre-soak wood chips.

-Use internal meat thermometer with remote probe and digital readout to monitor temps without opening door and loosing heat.

 

This salmon still came out very tasty.  It just wasn't as good as some of the other smoked salmon I have tasted.  Any tips you guys have would be awesome to hear about!  Thanks for watching.
 
 
Here is a video of my first smoked salmon attempt.  I would appreciate any tips or advice from you salmon smoking pros.

Some things I've learned since then:

-Get rid of aluminum foil under fillets. Yup---Don't block the smoke.

-Use foil to line drip pan and water pan for easy clean up. I do that all the time---Not just with fish.

-Open damper wide open. Always---Don't want stale smoke.

-Don't use water in drip pan for hot smoking. Right---Water will cool the smoker & does nothing to the fish or meat. IMO

-Use fish and vegetable screen rack. Excellent !!

-Score skin side of fillet for deeper smoke penetration. I just remove the skin on large fish, like Salmon for same reason.

-Don't pre-soak wood chips. Right---Never!!

-Use internal meat thermometer with remote probe and digital readout to monitor temps without opening door and loosing heat. Absolutely---If fish is thick enough!!

This salmon still came out very tasty.  It just wasn't as good as some of the other smoked salmon I have tasted.  Any tips you guys have would be awesome to hear about!  Thanks for watching.
Here's a Step by Step of how I do it (My method is for snacking---Not for Dinner.):

Smoked Salmon      

Bear
 
Last edited:
No need to use water when doing fish

Agreed, no foil except to maybe cover the water pan or other equipment at the bottom.   Put fish directly on the racks.

Removing skin will cause the fish to dry out more so you would have to be careful, especially with thin pieces.   I only skin my Salmon when I'm making jerky or nuggets.

Keep the upper damper totally open

I see you used about 1/3 salt and 2/3 sugar.   That seems a little too salty, for my taste buds anyhoo.   How was it for you?   How long did you brine the fish?
 
Bearcarver has had lots of practice, knows what he is talking about

Gary
 
I used to line the drip pan, but now just get the disposable foil pans for under a buck that work great. I use a 9x13x2 in my mes30.
Greg
 
I see you used about 1/3 salt and 2/3 sugar.   That seems a little too salty, for my taste buds anyhoo.   How was it for you?   How long did you brine the fish?
I brined the fish in a wet brine for 24 hours.  Dont recall how much water I used.  It was a tad bit too salty for my liking, not sweet enough, and a little more smoke would have been good.  Still very tasty, just not the perfection that I am seeking.
 
 
I brined the fish in a wet brine for 24 hours.  Dont recall how much water I used.  It was a tad bit too salty for my liking, not sweet enough, and a little more smoke would have been good.  Still very tasty, just not the perfection that I am seeking.
That depends on the strength of brine & how long you brine.

If I brined for 24 hours with my brine, it would be too salty. That's why I state how long to brine with my brine, per thickness of pieces.

Bear
 
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