More Candied Salmon

mhoy · April 03, 2011, 08:09:50 PM

Cut down the following recipe by 1/4 and came up with the following:
http://www.fishsniffer.com/recipes/salmon12.html

2 x 1 lb salmon fillet (previously frozen)
2.5 cups water
1/4 cup sea salt
1/2 lb dark brown sugar (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup maple syrup (grade b)
8 alder bisquettes

Mixed up sauce in a rectangular glass baking dish placed in salmon skin side up. It all just fit! Let it sit over night for about 20 hours in the fridge.

Took it out and placed it on the wire rack

and blew air via a fan across it for 2+ hours.

Placed it in my Original Bradley Smoker at 110F but as the sun hit the system I couldn't keep it that low and it drifted up to 130F for the first 1.5 hours. At least it was a nice day in the mid 70's (F). ;D

Mixed up a glaze of 2 oz of honey and 2 oz of maple syrup.

The next two hours at 140F, then applied the glaze. Tested a couple of the end pieces as it was cooking quicker than I expected.

Upped the heat to 150F for the next hour. Decided it was starting to flake apart and took it out.

Yummy.

While everyone loves it, it's not quite right yet, moister and sweeter has been requested. More testing (and sampling) will be required! ;D I suspect that people smoking with entire full racks have a moister environment.

Thanks,
Mark
BTW: Used a digital probe at the location of the cooking rack.
[edit]repaired links[/edit]

iceman · April 04, 2011, 10:20:33 AM

Great looking salmon mhoy. :)

OU812 · April 04, 2011, 11:36:25 AM

That there salmon looks gooood.

MidKnightRider · April 04, 2011, 02:11:13 PM

Now that is some great look candy!
trick or treat ;D

Kummok · April 04, 2011, 09:37:54 PM

Quote from: mhoy on April 03, 2011, 08:09:50 PM...While everyone loves it, it's not quite right yet, moister and sweeter has been requested. ....

Feel free to send all your culls up here, Mark...Just trying to help! ;) ;)

pikeman_95 · April 04, 2011, 09:46:25 PM

Very good looking fish. If you crack a chunk open take a picture of it if you would. I would like to see the penetration of the glaze and the smoke. They look just fantastic.

mhoy · April 04, 2011, 11:07:08 PM

Thanks for all the kinds words. I purchased the Bradley on the strength of this forum for support! It really shows on how well you critique and promote each other. The ease of use of an electric vs charcoal was a hands down winner.

Kummok: I tried to follow your lead on the times for cooking the fish. So thanks very much for postings! I actually grew up in northern BC in Quesnel and my dad loved to fish for trout in the lakes and for salmon in the Bella Coola and Dean river. So I really can't believe I'm paying $10/lb for 'tiny' salmon fillets in Silicon Valley. >:( At least they taste good.

Pikeman: I'll try and get a shot of the insides before they all disappear.

Now to get busy and build my DIY PID controller as I'm already tired of adjusting the controls. ;D

Mark

mhoy · April 05, 2011, 07:55:43 PM

Here is the inside of the salmon. I personally don't see a smoke ring (I thought that was more from a charcoal smoker), but it sure tastes good. There are a bunch of people at work that would like a lot more than the small taste they got today. I guess I can trade them 2 slabs of salmon for 1 smoked one. ;D

Mark
[edit]fixed link[/edit]

pikeman_95 · April 05, 2011, 08:43:43 PM

Quote from: mhoy on April 05, 2011, 07:55:43 PM
Here is the inside of the salmon. I personally don't see a smoke ring (I thought that was more from a charcoal smoker), but it sure tastes good. There are a bunch of people at work that would like a lot more than the small taste they got today. I guess I can trade them 2 slabs of salmon for 1 smoked one. ;D

Mark

what I see is it might be a little dry but that is kind of the idea. What I like is the cure appears to have penetrated all the way in. Cutting the salmon into chunks is a good Idea I probably wouldn't have done that before now but I think it was the thing to do. Good Job.

Is it kind of chewy.

mhoy · April 05, 2011, 08:56:47 PM

It's a tad on the dry side after sitting in the fridge overnight. Chewy but not in a beef jerky chewy. I probably could have removed it a bit sooner from the smoker, but as my first batch of fish, I was concerned about not under cooked fish and getting people sick.... Next time I'll put a thermometer into the fish and monitor it. What target temp that are considered good?

Mark

mhoy · April 10, 2011, 05:04:19 PM

Arg, I messed up my picasa folder and some of these links now need to be fixed... sorry.

Mark

mhoy · April 17, 2011, 02:25:03 PM

OK fixed the old links up.

While my mom was in town, I decided to do another batch up. They are considering buying a smoker. Guess it turned out OK. ;D

And about 30 minutes later after some taste testing...

This time I used a 3 small pink salmon fillets and glazed them twice.

Mark

iceman · April 20, 2011, 10:10:59 AM

Mighty tasty looking salmon Mark!
Great job!

Kummok · April 20, 2011, 11:28:45 AM

Best possible use for Pinks, Mark...great looking salmon!!

mhoy · April 23, 2011, 10:13:53 PM

Did a tray of Sockeye today. This has to be one of my favorite fish to smoke so far. Probably because I grew up eating it from my dad's smoker.

Heating element died with an hour or two left, luckily the smoke element kept the temp up while I figured out what was wrong. Getting used to the set and forget on the digital controls I added already. :-[

It's smoking in here!

Luckily the oven finished it all off just fine! Hmmm, some seems to be missing already!!

=-=-
Mark