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Author Topic: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine  (Read 7660 times)

Offline Kc_Kracker

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Ive been asked for this also for those not on my facebook smoking group here ya go. also if you want to join the link is
https://www.facebook.com/groups/lowANDslowsmokehouse/
Follow this and you'll never wet brine again.
(pics are in order of directions)

1-catch fish  :fishin: and care for it properly. Quality in quality out. Trash in is trash out. Immediately bleed (rip the throat out) and ice (not bonking helps bleed much better)
2- Filet out and cut into uniform sizes as pictured skin on preferable

In a bowl add:
----3 cups DARK brown sugar, regular is fine i just love how dark brings out the gorgeous deep red in the meat
----1 cup sea salt/kosher salt
----And anything else you care to ad, i highly suggest nothing
----mix thoroughly!

3- layer brine 1/4" in bottom of container
4- Pack into NON ALUMINUM containers because salt and aluminum are reactive. Leave a 1/4" between pieces if possible. Do not jam them tight together though.
5- pack brine between pieces and on top of fish
6- refrigerate. It will become liquid jelly like melted sugar snot lol
7- 8-12 hours later, remove the fish, then rinse in COLD water til its clean
8- Lay out on a towel, dab water off, on paper or cardboard to dry. A fan helps speed this up, til you form pellicle, which means its tacky.
9- Now smoke it. You only need smoke the first 4 hours, after that its wasted wood. Smoke/heat 100-110, 120 MAX degrees and any higher and you will push the fat or collogen out of the meat getting a white goop on it losing quality, flavor etc.
Remember your brining to remove moisture by dehydration, and smoking it to cure it. Not baking it!
10-eat.

Tips
There is no time or schedule.. so dont ask. Usually 8-12 hours depending on many variables. If someone tells you an exact time never listen to them again. You test it and test it and test it, every batch is different.

You smoke until its to your liking and beware it will fool you. BE AWARE when it seems done its usually over done. It cools dryer than when its warm n moist!

Stop opening the smoker for pics, selfies, whatever. Every peek adds 20 minutes usually.

AND-->Water trays do nothing but regulate temps throughout the smoker box. and they tend to make it humid which i personally do not like steaming my meat. They do not add moisture. They do not add flavor no matter what you put in the bowl. Its a myth. Whiskey in the water dish does NOT make whiskey meat.

Last- NEVER EVER VACUUM PACK WARM FISH, it will start to rot very fast..
Pics are in order as to how i listed the steps.
« Last Edit: October 14, 2018, 04:06:36 AM by Kc_Kracker »

Offline EyeTooth

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #1 on: October 14, 2018, 07:22:34 AM »
Thanks for the recipe and instructions Kc! I wish I had a piece of that right now. It looks Mmmm Delicious!

Offline Timberstalker

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #2 on: October 14, 2018, 07:23:53 AM »
Nice share, KC. Looks great.
If you aint hunting, you aint livin'

Offline Magnum_Willys

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #3 on: October 14, 2018, 07:39:56 AM »
Thx! Haven’t tried coldsmoking yet - My big chief gets a lot hotter than 120.... maybe if I prop pan door up and lid ajar will work. 


Offline WSU

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #4 on: October 14, 2018, 07:42:30 AM »
Any thought on using a wet brine vs dry when the fish has been frozen?

Offline Kc_Kracker

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #5 on: October 14, 2018, 09:14:41 AM »
120 is fine and dry brine is always superior. I swore by my wet brine recipes for 20 years, til i tried dry, ill never go back, there are so many advantages and better quality.
« Last Edit: October 14, 2018, 04:09:55 PM by Kc_Kracker »

Offline gaddy

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #6 on: October 14, 2018, 09:15:29 AM »
I have been told not to wet brine fish that has been frozen as it will get mushy ?
Does rinsing help it take on more smoke ? I had been told to just wipe it off and dry, seemed to get a bit of a crust on it though.

Offline Kc_Kracker

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #7 on: October 14, 2018, 11:01:53 AM »
True and rinsing is to get the salt n sugar off

Offline Kc_Kracker

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #8 on: October 14, 2018, 04:08:28 PM »
Thanks for the recipe and instructions Kc! I wish I had a piece of that right now. It looks Mmmm Delicious!
@EyeTooth if your near Lacey I have some left  :tup:

Offline CaNINE

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #9 on: October 16, 2018, 07:06:49 AM »
Thanks for posting this up KC. One of my favorite things to eat.  My Dad brought some fish back from Alaska that is destined for this method soon.
The lazy do not roast any game, but the diligent feed on the riches of the hunt.

Proverbs 12:27

Offline cavemann

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #10 on: October 16, 2018, 08:35:58 AM »
KC
How do you feel about smoking fish that was already frozen??  We eat a ton of it baked/BBQ's but I was thinking about smoking some too since I have a bit more than usual.

Offline WSU

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #11 on: October 16, 2018, 08:37:20 AM »
I just about only use frozen and a dry brine.  It turns out great.  The biggest key, I think, is rinsing and then drying before smoking.  Don't rush the drying process.

Offline Sandberm

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #12 on: October 16, 2018, 08:42:38 AM »
Ive been dry brining my steelhead and larger trout this way since i discovered a similar recipe from Cee Dubs Ethnic & Regional Dutch Oven Cookin', page 153 back in 02 or 03.

Seems the trick to making it taste REALLY good is to not over dry it in the smoker. Get it too dry and that layer between the meat and the skin gets too dry and it just tastes salty. Do it just right and that layer will stay tender and hold the sweet brown sugar flavor which is what in my opinion makes this dry brine so great.

Thanks for sharing Kc.

Offline Wetwoodshunter

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #13 on: October 16, 2018, 09:21:13 AM »
KC, great post. Also, I joined your Facebook group hopefully to learn a little more about smoking meat.

My system is very similar to yours.
When I fillet my fish, I cut a small slit by the tail so that I can hang my fillets on a nail and they drip. You can stick your finger through the holes and hold the fillets meat to meat when you rinse them and stick them on a nail so that they drip dry within a few minutes as your filleting your other fish. The meat side of the fish always faces the opposite meat side of the fish. They never touch meat to scales, even in transport off the fillet table.

Once I'm getting ready to smoke,
I have been using the black totes that you can get from Costco that have the yellow lids to stack my fish in since two of them stacked fit well in my fish fridge. In the bottom of the tote I have a cookie drying rack set up so that the fish is always at least a 1/4" off the bottom and the bottom of the totes have holes drilled in them so they can drain into a cheap metal pan that is under the tote.

I use a dry brine, 1/3 brown sugar, 1/3 cain sugar, 1/3 iodized salt. I mix that all together and lightly sprinkle it onto the top of the salmon. I use maybe a spoon full on each piece of fish, just so that the top is lightly dusted as if snow was just starting to stick. Below the first layer of fish on the cookie drying rack goes 1 layer of paper towels. The fillets, that have been cut to size are placed about a 1/4" apart on the drying rack. Then the fish is placed meat up on the paper towels and lightly dusted with the brine as described above. Once a layer is brined, I put a layer of paper towels on top and place the next layer of fish scale down on the new paper towels. I continue the brine/paper towel/ stacking process until the tote is as heavy as I want to carry - 75ish lbs.

I typically let the fish and brine sit for about 24 hours in my fridge. Once it is time to smoke the fish, spray the racks with liberally with cooking oil and unload the totes directly into my smoker. Since I did not bury the fish and my system already lets it drain there is no need to wipe off the fish as everything on it has already been absorbed. (If you are doing fish from the rivers, I suggest you pat dry both sides of each fish. River fish creates a slime that doesn't exist on ocean caught fish, its super important that this comes off)

The smoking process for me is the same, 120 degrees ish, species and size of fish determine how long your cook time is. My smoker is run by a plumbed in wood stove from a few feet away so I smoke through the whole cook with alder.

KC has it down, take your fish out slightly before you think it is done. After mine is finished I put it in paper grocery bags and let it cool for about 2 hours before I vacuum pack it. The bags lets the fish still breathe and equalize since it cools slowly.

Here is my last run in my smoker I did last week, this is 23 coho.

Offline Magnum_Willys

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Re: Recipe and directions for top shelf smoked salmon with dry brine
« Reply #14 on: October 16, 2018, 10:14:29 AM »
Thxs!  Looks so good.   Wetwoods yours looks a lot like mine smoked at 140+ vs cold smoked at 120 -.

I want to try both and see if I like one over the other.

 


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