Smoking frozen salmon

[Wouter]

I was wondering if it's possible to smoke frozen and defrosted salmon.
Is this a good idea?
Can I freeze it back?

[manxman]

As long as it has been handled correctly and thawed properly / thoroughly then the answer is yes including re freezing, done it loads of times without issue.

[Wouter]

Thanks for the answer. It's hard to find really good salmon in Belgium, so when I find some maybe I can freeze them in to smoke later

[manxman]

Exactly what I do here in the U.K, as soon as I find some reasonable quality salmon at an acceptable price I typically buy half a dozen sides, vacuum seal them if they aren't already then freeze for use as an when required.

[iceman]

Like manxman said it works well. Actually for brining, frozen then thawed works better. The cells break up a bit during freezing and absorb the brine better. Just my two cents from years of testing things out. No scientific background but it works for me  . Just vac pack it when you find a good price then freeze until you can get to smoking it. Thaw it in the fridge then brine it and smoke when time permits. BTW manx we still talk about the kipper you sent us!!! 

[Habanero Smoker]

Hi Iceman;

Good seeing you post again.

Habs

[manxman]

Hi iceman,

Great to see you posting. 

And we still talk about the exceptional sauce you sent us… still use the handled jars for storing bits and pieces in the garage! 

Manx

[iceman]

Great to see Hab and Manx hanging around! Been way to busy with grand kids and all this virus stuff to keep up with things. Hope all is well with all of you. I'll try to input a bit more this go around now that we are back in the states for awhile. Travel the last couple of years has been a challange to say the least. Chat with you soon guys. 🤗

[manxman]

All going OK here thanks Ice although I have just got a new hip and am a bit limited what I can do at the moment, not great when you have a low boredom threshold! However it is only a short term problem and in the greater scheme of things no big deal.

Look forward to hearing more from you. 

[KyNola]

Good to know you’re doing well, Ice!

[Habanero Smoker]

Glad you are doing well.

All my parts are original, but I may be missing a part or two. 

[manxman]

Hopefully I won’t be swapping out any more parts or indeed losing any for a good while yet Habs! 

[Habanero Smoker]

I'm aboard with that. I couldn't agree more.

[wkw]

Smoking previously frozen product usually produces a better end product.