Tried smoking salmon... grilled instead

[iamnewtosmoking]

Hi all,

First time poster here - just want to start by saying thanks to everyone in the community for sharing their knowledge and helping people like me avoid serving up lumps of charcoal (or setting myself on fire)!

Short version is that I tried smoking salmon, and it seems to have just been grilled instead. Do y'all have any advice on how to avoid this?

Long version is that I have never smoked anything before and thought I'd give salmon a shot. I got a piece of salmon (~250 grams) from the grocery store, covered it in brown sugar, salt, pepper (just eyeballed the amount), set it to rest in the fridge for about 8 hours, rinsed it off, and patted it dry.

I then loaded up my smoker box with wood chips, removed a grill and placed the box directly on the flavorizer bars, and set all 3 burners on high. Once there was smoke, I left the burner under the box on high and turned off the other 2. I placed the salmon on some foil and placed it on the grill above the 2 burners which were off. I continuously lowered the burner every 15 minutes for about an hour. The gauge on the grill hovered around 300 degrees. I then removed the salmon when internal temperature hit ~145degrees.

Well, the finished product looked/tasted awfully similar to grilled salmon (not smokey, not sugary). Any help to avoid this in the future would be much appreciated, thank you!

PS I am working with a 3-burner Weber Spirit using LP. The smoker box is a generic cast iron thing, and I was using apple wood chips.

 

[SmokinAl]

That is strange, cause salmon really picks up the smoke quickly.
Were you getting a fair amount of smoke from your chip box?
When I hot smoke salmon I just coat with evoo, and dust with Cajun spice.
It only takes about 1/2 hour to get done, and I still have plenty of smoke flavor.
Al

 

[fivetricks]

Next time, try 4:1 brown sugar:salt for the dry brine.

Also, try keeping your grill as low as possible. Maybe one burner all the way to the right going as low as you can smoke the chips at and the fish all the way to the left.

I do mine between 140 and 180 and it usually takes 6+ hours for salmon.

This is right out of the smoker. Then I wipe off the fat and put it in brown paper bags for several days to wick off excess oil.

 

[un4gvn1]

Next time, try 4:1 brown sugar:salt for the dry brine.

Also, try keeping your grill as low as possible. Maybe one burner all the way to the right going as low as you can smoke the chips at and the fish all the way to the left.

I do mine between 140 and 180 and it usually takes 6+ hours for salmon.

View attachment 379349

This is right out of the smoker. Then I wipe off the fat and put it in brown paper bags for several days to wick off excess oil.

How do you keep it hidden long enough to wick for several days? My wife keeps finding anything I stash...

 

[fivetricks]

^^ that is a problem. Idk, tell her it was a total flop and you're saving it for the dog?

 

[iamnewtosmoking]

Hi all,

Thanks so much for your replies!

I DO get a lot smoke, initially, but once I lower the burner, the box stops smoking. I'm not sure if I should be adding fresh wood chips at this point?

Holy moly, your salmon looks amazing (and nothing like mine haha)! Anyway, guess I'll give it another go soon.

Thanks again!

 

[fivetricks]

You just have to figure out how to lower your chamber temp is all. Do you have an upper and a lower rack on the grill?

Play with it a bit with just your smoking pouch or whatever you're using and no food. Stick some thermometers in there at different zones and see if you can produce smoke and find a cool spot.

I wouldn't preheat with all 3 burners. No need for it.

 

[schlotz]

Look into a tube or tray smoker from AMazeN. They are not expensive, and will allow you to use lower temps.