# Brined Supper Salmon w/ Qview ,results, and Poll



## young one (Jun 20, 2011)

OK I've smoked Salmon before, but never Brined it. I saw that quite a few people do, so I thought I would try it out.

Brine Ing:

2 Qts water

1/2 C kosher salt

1 C brown sugar

1/2 C real maple Syrup

1/4 C golden rum infused with Vanilla beans

Brined Skin up for 12 hrs

Basting Sauce I used 3 parts honey to 1 part water 

Copper River Sockeye Salmon

Smoked over Apple wood chips this time around

Added Brine to Water Vessel








Rinsed and placed in fridge for 4 hrs to form Pellicle. 

( Also Brined some Kingfish in diff Brine for Smoked Kingfish Dip )







Used honey/water for Basting Salmon:







Now, The Electric ECB grilling guidelines for Small Fillets is 3-4 hrs, so I followed that. I do know that some here suggest cooking until the fat starts to rise to the top of the fish and It flakes easily. So to me, I'm thinking it should be done by this stage after 1-1/2 hr:







Problem is, at this stage there was hardly no smoke flavor at all, I used chips near the element and did achieve TBS. And had to add more chips during smoking thus lowering the temp and temp recovery time.

However I wanted more smoke flavor so I let it continue to cook 1 more hour.

End Result:

 
	

		
			
		

		
	







IMO the Kingfish came out dry.... not to salty ( used different Brine recipe )

the Salmon came out  dry and super Salty.

All turned out overcooked, so the moral of the story : don't rely on suggested cooking times,Dont ruin a great piece of meat. Invest in an internal meat temp gage.

TO BRINE OR NOT TO BRINE:  IMO Kingfish no problem. Salmon for a supper smoke I won't do it again, to me it is to mild a fish for all that salt.

Maybe this Salmon would make a good dip! 

What is the community consensus on this one? I'm curious on how many brine this type of fish. Would you brine your salmon?


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## alaskanbear (Jun 20, 2011)

Well, living here in Alaska, and doing many pounds of salmon, Reds, Kings and Silvers, I always brine before smoking.

Rich's Alaska Salmon Smoke

12 each Silver/Red fillets, cut into 1 inch pieces

4 pounds brown sugar

1 cup onion powder

1 cup garlic powder

1/2 cup black pepper

2 cups pickling salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (fresh ground)

Brine:  6 hours -  removed and wipe dry with paper towels

Air Dry:  12-14 hours

Smoke:  14-16 hours (120-130 degrees) 

I use hickory 1/3 and alder 2/3

Remove from smoker and air dry for 1 hour before vacuuming.

Now, dont tell anyone I shared this with you as it is a long time Alaskan format that I was priveleged to get from a native lady dear to me..

Rich


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## young one (Jun 20, 2011)

Your secrets safe with me, 

WOAH, now that's a whole heap of fish!   
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





    I'm guessing that long and low produces much different results than quick n fast!


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## Bearcarver (Jun 20, 2011)

I do mine similar to Alaskan Bear's method (must run in the family).

However the ones I do that way are not for my Dinner. They're for snackin' & pickin'.

Bear


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## thebarbequeen (Jun 20, 2011)

If I have time, for a "dinner salmon" I really like what brining adds, but it depends on the fish and what else I'm having and who I'm feeding.  We're spoiled up here in the NW by such an abundance of good salmon that it's one of my quick, dirty, what the heck is for dinner? go-to's.  I would use a different brine for a dinner salmon than for snacking salmon, and wouldn't leave it in nearly as long.

My last two were grilled, one mayo, no brine, and tonight's was maple syrup/teriyaki/citrus 1 hour marinade.  So, I guess I'm not much help at all!  sorry! Salmon's good however you like it!


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## nwdave (Jun 21, 2011)

I always brine except for fresh caught, that is I went out on the bay and hooked 'er and brought her back up to the cutting board.

I also keep the brine ingredients a lot simpler (as in the KISS principle)

1 cup kosher salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 quarts water

3 bay leaves

That's about right for a whole salmon, filleted into two sides.

Don't give up learning how to brine salmon.


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## SmokinAl (Jun 21, 2011)

I never brine salmon for a dinner meal. I do brine/cure salmon for lox.


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## Bearcarver (Jun 21, 2011)

SmokinAl said:


> I never brine salmon for a dinner meal. I do brine/cure salmon for lox.


You must get your Salmon in the store!!!   I heard the Florida Bass ate all the Salmon during the Ice Age!!!

Bear


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## otter (Jun 21, 2011)

Bearcarver said:


> You must get your Salmon in the store!!!   I heard the Florida Bass ate all the Salmon during the Ice Age!!!
> 
> Bear


LMAOROTF !!!!!!! GOOD ONE Bear LOL


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## SmokinAl (Jun 22, 2011)

The bass down here get so big they could eat a small child!


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## meateater (Jun 22, 2011)

I like brined and not brined.


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## africanmeat (Jun 23, 2011)

The fish looks   delicious and yummy

i do brine my salmon


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## lathrop (Jul 11, 2011)

AlaskanBear said:


> Well, living here in Alaska, and doing many pounds of salmon, Reds, Kings and Silvers, I always brine before smoking.
> 
> Rich's Alaska Salmon Smoke
> 
> ...




I have a Question. How much water?   I am tempted to make a bag of the mix then  divide by 7 for 1 salmon and add water when ready to brine.. Seems like it would work well on BlackCod.


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## skayk (Sep 14, 2011)

Tell me more about the mayo salmon... sounds like a great idea.

Thanks, Sharon


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## jonboat (Sep 15, 2011)

I don't do supper salmon, but love my smoked salmon.
I always brine it before smoking. 

BC does the slow, cool smoke, stepping the temps up from almost jerky temps to cooking temps in his MES, while I smoke mine a bit hotter (I can't maintain those low temps in my charcoal ECB)
The way I like smoked salmon (and my family and friends like it this way too) is smoked so that the meat is firm - something else that bearcarver and I have in common.

My first batch turned out way too salty, so I reduced the salt in my next batch and now have an extremely simple brine that turns out yummy snack salmon.

1.5  gal water (when brining in a cooler, I use 1 gal water and half a store-bought bag of ice)
1C dark brown sugar
1/2C kosher salt

I generally brine for 8-12 hours (overnight).

I rinse then air dry at room temp for one hour to form a pellicle. This usually means waiting 30 minutes before firing up my chimney starter. By the time the charcoal is ready, it's been an hour and I'm ready to rock and roll.

NOTE: I've become a convert to smoking skinless fillets - gets more of that good smokey flavor into the meat (thanks to bearcarver).

I smoke with apple chunks for 4 - 5 hours at 200 - 225 degrees. Actual time is based on texture of the fillets and varies with how well I am able to maintain my temp.

30 minutes before it's done, I baste with maple syrup.
This "recipe" yields firm pieces of smoked salmon that is perfect for snacking as finger-food, but can still be used in dips and other recipe's (my wife makes a killer smoked salmon fettuccine alfredo)

the end result is this:


The salmon run here in upstate NY should really get going within the next couple weeks - can't wait to hit the river!  Mean-time, I'm going to go trolling for staging fish this weekend.  YUM!!!!!


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## skayk (Sep 23, 2011)

I did dinner salmon and did not brine it was good but next time will brine for sure.  I did brine my salmon when I made "Squaw Salmon Candy" wow was that stuff good. Next time I will get pictures before we devour it.


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## billyj571 (Oct 1, 2011)

Looks great thanks for the brine resp.


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