Hi, I am new to posting but have been checking out the posts since shortly after getting my OBS 6 months ago. Yesterday I had mine and my brothers 6 rack digital stuffed with salmon my buddy caught on the west coast of Vancouver Island. About 50 lbs. I dry mixed half and half brown sugar and course salt with pepper to taste. I packed the fish in a plastic container with the mix coating on each layer and let it brine for 13 hours. Then smoke cook it for5 hours and cooked it for 4 more hour then added smoke for 2 more hours. I only wish I had read the posts on this sooner as I punch the temp up to 210 as quick as it would go. Yup, Boogers. Well it will still taste good. I lowered the temp to 150 when I read the post but it was to late. I also did not know about drying the surface first. My dad has always smoke fish in a 8ft tall ply wood smoker and it was "smoke on" for 12 to 14 hours with a hot plate in the bottom. Hand cut alder discs and shavings and hope the whole damn thing didn't catch on fire, which it did a few times. LOL. I think I will get a used fridge for brining and drying with a fan inside. There is never enough room in our fridge and it's hard to take a shower with containers packed in ice in the tub. If anyone sees something wrong with this just let me know, please.
Sounds ok to me, I like to wet brine my fish but that is just a personal preference!
My personal reference is wet brine as well and until now, I always though dry brine was only for cold smokes salmon. At least that is what all the recipes I have say.
HR
Welcome to the forum Quarlow. I saw a smoking recipe for salmon 'somewhere' but can't recall where ??? It was based on using an Auber PID http://auberins.com/. You might start there. It involved several sequenced low temp settings on the PID. Also, tell your dad to get a fire extinguisher or more insurance ;)
I haven't tried salmon yet. I have to go some to find wild caught versus farm raised (yuk) here on the east coast. But, I'm looking forward to it. BTW, the wet brine sounds good to me.
Hi all, well the dry brine starts out dry, but it doesn't take long for the salt to suck the moisture out and then you have wet brine, It juices up pretty good.
I know what you mean about farm fish, they pen raise Atlantic salmon here and then try to get us to buy it. I Had it once and never again. After being raised on the wild stuff they don't have a chance to convert me. But I suppose people who have had the wild all their life might think it was OK. yuk.
Here is the finish product.
(http://i1011.photobucket.com/albums/af233/quarlow/S7301187.jpg)
Looking good there Quarlow!
C
Thanks West ya know all the work is really worth it, and the results just taste soo good.
Quote from: Quarlow on September 11, 2009, 04:20:56 PM
Hi all, well the dry brine starts out dry, but it doesn't take long for the salt to suck the moisture out and then you have wet brine, It juices up pretty good.
I know what you mean about farm fish, they pen raise Atlantic salmon here and then try to get us to buy it. I Had it once and never again. After being raised on the wild stuff they don't have a chance to convert me. But I suppose people who have had the wild all their life might think it was OK. yuk.
The salmon looks real good but correct me if I am wrong, aren't we supposed to wash the salmon after brining? Sorry to repeat my self but most of my cold smoke recipes call for at least a half an hour wash.
HR
Well I don't know what others do but our dry brine mostly dissolves and what is left we just rinse of quick and in to the smoker, But know I see where some people air dry theirs and I think I will try that next time.
I also add a handful of more brown sugar half way through on some slabs because we like some of it sweeter and some of it salty.
Quarlow,
just so that we are talking about the same brinning method. You place your brine in the container, place the salmon skin side down cover with brine, place the next one meat side down and again cover with brine. From then onward you keep layering the fish the same way.
Is that what you do?
HR
Yeah exactly, thats the way my dad always did it and it works good. By the end of about 6 hours the brine is mostly covering all of the fish. After 12 to 14 hours, check the flesh. If it is all firm and uniform in colour it is ready to smoke. If there is any salt left on the meat either brush it of or a quick rinse and it's ready to go in.
Welcome Quarlow
Fish looks great
Cheers
Mike
Welcome , Glad to have you with us.
This is the place to learn, lots of good info and helpful friendly Members.
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Paul