Fish Brine

[JJC]

Here's a brine recipe that I have used for 15+ years that is fabulous for salmon, steelhead trout, and bluefish.  It should work on other fish as well.  It's an odd collection of ingredients, but it really works.  It's also incredibly forgiving in many ways . . .

Fish Smokin' Brine (source:  Henry Kanner, West Virginia)

1 quart water
1/2 cup non-iodized salt (scant for table salt, rounded for Kosher)
1/2 cup white sugar
4 ounces cheap scotch (rum or bourbon can be readily substituted)
3 ounces lemon juice
5 sections minced garlic (about 1/8 cup of minced garlic from a jar)
1/4 cup pickling spice
1/4 teaspoon lemon pepper
5 bay leaves

1)  in a glass or plastic (NOT metal) container, mix all ingredients well

2)  add fish to brine and refrigerate for 4-24 hours depending on thickness of fillets and personal taste

3)  rinse lightly in cool water; remove excess water with newspaper or paer towels

4)  air dry for 3 hours +/- to allow a pellicle to form; at this point the fish can be stored in the frig for at least a couple weeks before smoking

5)  smoke using apple, alder, oak, or cherry (my favorites are oak or a combo of apple and cherry).  I can't give BS parameters yet, and the times with the bullet smoker were incredibly variable because I had little control over the temp.  Of course, the times will vary a lot in the BS depending on the thickness of the fillets.

 As I said, this is a very forgiving recipe.  Some of the forgiveness is mentioned above, but I've occasionally left out the lemon pepper or bay leaves and it's still terrific.  I've also varied the salt:sugar ratio for friends who liked a sweeter smoke (a bit less salt and a bit more sugar).

Let me know how this works or if anyone has questions.



John
Newton MA

[charlie]

test....

[nsxbill]

Thanks John

Have to give it a try soon.

Bill

[Oldman]

I'll try it on my next mullet... thanks. However I think I will try it with Brandy... [:D]

http://rminor.com

[Chez Bubba]

For the fish or you?[:D][:D]

Kirk

http://www.chezbubba.com
Ya think next time I check into a hotel & they ask "Smoking or Non?" they would mind?

[Oldman]

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">For the fish or you?[:D][:D]<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

Now Chez that is a foolish question.... It would be for both [:I][;)]

http://rminor.com