# Smoked Bluefish anyone?



## WaterRat (Jul 14, 2018)

Hey All,
Big time fishing season here in New England and I've been out with my buddies fishing for stripers. As it continues to warm though, the bluefish will be coming in and eventually we'll be catching them while striper fishing. Normally I just throw them back but I've "heard" that smoked bluefish is awesome. I have had grilled bluefish did not care for it - very fishy and oily.... but supposedly the smoked blues are good so does anyone have a go to smoked bluefish recipe? I'm running a pellet smoker so can only get down to around 200°F or so I'm looking for a relatively "hot" smoke.

Thanks,
Aaron


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## chilerelleno (Jul 14, 2018)

I'm down for Bluefish, grilled, fried or smoked...  But.
But they need to be smaller Blues under 5lbs, preferably 2-3lbs.
A favorite of ours for fish tacos.

I don't have a recipe for smoking, but I know the basics, brine, dry, pellicle, smoke and enjoy.
I'd pick a basic brine from the many available here and go from there.
I'm sure that you'll get more help from others here.


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## WaterRat (Jul 14, 2018)

Thanks Chile, I haven't smoked any fish yet but I'm pre-planning for the eventual catch. The blues we catch are usually on the bigger side ~5-10lbs (because we're not actually trying to catch them but the much bigger stripers) but I'll bleed 'em and they'll hopefully be ok, and if not... oh well...


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## SmokinAl (Jul 14, 2018)

I bet they would make fantastic fish dip!!
Al


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## kit s (Jul 14, 2018)

WaterRat said:


> Hey All,
> Big time fishing season here in New England and I've been out with my buddies fishing for stripers. As it continues to warm though, the bluefish will be coming in and eventually we'll be catching them while striper fishing. Normally I just throw them back but I've "heard" that smoked bluefish is awesome. I have had grilled bluefish did not care for it - very fishy and oily.... but supposedly the smoked blues are good so does anyone have a go to smoked bluefish recipe? I'm running a pellet smoker so can only get down to around 200°F or so I'm looking for a relatively "hot" smoke.
> 
> Thanks,
> Aaron


Aron
i would filet and smoke like salmon which is also an oily fish....found that smoking fish is not only easy, but just about every fish I have smoked taste pretty darn good.
200f would be ideal temp.
kit


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## nimrod (Jul 14, 2018)

I found this recipe some time ago and bookmarked it as we do get some Bluefish down here.
 Hope it helps...

Smoked Bluefish Spread

2 medium bluefish filets (skin on); place skin side down on foil, season with Old Bay and brush with a mustard BBQ sauce; smoke about 3 hrs on low heat.

Remove skin and dark flesh along centerline of filet; break filet into small pieces

Combine with:

small tub light cream cheese
1/2 cup mayo
chopped parsley; chives; finely chopped celery
juice 1/2 lemon
dash of worcestershire sauce


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## normanaj (Jul 14, 2018)

I


WaterRat said:


> Big time fishing season here in New England and I've been out with my buddies fishing for stripers. As it continues to warm though, the bluefish will be coming in and eventually we'll be catching them while striper fishing. Normally I just throw them back but I've "heard" that smoked bluefish is awesome. I have had grilled bluefish did not care for it - very fishy and oily.... but supposedly the smoked blues are good so does anyone have a go to smoked bluefish recipe? I'm running a pellet smoker so can only get down to around 200°F or so I'm looking for a relatively "hot" smoke.



Hi Aaron,I'm in RI.Smoked a little blue in my time.

Contrary to popular belief bluefish is not fatty and its quite lean.What makes blue "oily" is what they've been feeding on and size,a 15lber that's been eating nothing but pogies is going to be nasty.The little harbor blues in the 1-3lb range that have been on squid or silversides are ideal for smoking,late season snappers are even better.

Swimming the filets in something acidic like a really mild white wine(I throw in a smidge of minced garlic) will draw away some of the nastiness,on bigger filets removing the "dark" meat helps and the smoking process will take care of the rest.Before smoking,a good rinse and drying.I have no real recipe as far as spicing goes...some black pepper,a pinch of cayenne and a little garlic powder.Google smoked bluefish and there's a million recipes out there.

Bluefish is a low and slow for me,almost in the cold smoking range but not quite.200 isn't to bad if you can keep it that low,lower won't hurt.Time and IT are not so important as is doneness,flaky but not dry but not to "wet" either.It took me awhile and I still on occasion don't always have it come out as good as I like.

Pellet/wood choice is up to you.I go on the mild side and use some type of fruit wood,mostly apple.I used hickory and it wasn't to bad.Tried mesquite once......wouldn't do that again!

Norm


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## nimrod (Jul 14, 2018)

Norm,
 Thanks for that explanation, I rather like Bluefish while many say it is poor tasting fish. The Blues down here rarely exceed 10 lbs with most being less than 3 lbs. Just right for my liking.
 Craig


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## chilerelleno (Jul 14, 2018)

WaterRat said:


> Thanks Chile, I haven't smoked any fish yet but I'm pre-planning for the eventual catch. The blues we catch are usually on the bigger side ~5-10lbs (because we're not actually trying to catch them but the much bigger stripers) but I'll bleed 'em and they'll hopefully be ok, and if not... oh well...


We do a lot of surf, pier and jetty fishing here on the Gulf Coast.
Lots of Blues here too, but none like y'alls, our average fish is all of two (2) pounds.
Your Blues are on my Bucket List, a big 15-20lb'er.
Our Stripers are pretty much in our rivers, catch them in the tailraces of our turbine electric dams when they're pushing water.


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## normanaj (Jul 14, 2018)

chilerelleno said:


> We do a lot of surf, pier and jetty fishing here on the Gulf Coast.
> Lots of Blues here too, but none like y'alls, our average fish is all of two (2) pounds.
> Your Blues are on my Bucket List, a big 15-20lb'er.
> Our Stripers are pretty much in our rivers, catch them in the tailraces of our turbine electric dams when they're pushing water



We had some banner years for blues in the 80s when the stripers were all but non-existent.Fall run of 86 was sick,18-22lbers.A 20+ pounder in a feeding frenzy of pogies fights like nothing else!

When it comes to stripers I just can't seem to break the 40lb mark,lost many in that range.Granted I do little to no cut/live bait fishing...I throw plugs from the surf,mostly needlefish as they're my go-to.


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## chilerelleno (Jul 14, 2018)

We had a school of East Coasters make a wrong turn in the Keys, they came North through the Gulf and tore stuff up.
Tore up everything they could eat for one, not much bait fish left for months and they took all the smaller game fish too.
They tore up people's gear too, them damned Blues can not only fight like hell, them chompers took 90%+ of tackle they hit.
But man what a time people had fishing 10lb + Blues.
Only had that happen once, would love to see it happen again.


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## WaterRat (Jul 14, 2018)

Thanks everyone! (So many replies can hit everyone ) Yeah the blues chew up our tackle and fight like hell! Hoping to put a tasty plate on the table after a good fight. Most around here seem to do fish dip with it (I'm an import not a native New Englander)


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## WaterRat (Jul 15, 2018)

nimrod said:


> I found this recipe some time ago and bookmarked it as we do get some Bluefish down here.


Thanks, I'll give this a shot when the opportunity arrives!


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## nimrod (Jul 15, 2018)

My neighbor gave me a couple nice Spanish Mackerel this afternoon. Filleted them and have them in the smoker.
Looking forward to some mighty good fish dip!
Craig


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## tomd8 (Jul 16, 2018)

I’ve smoked many bluefish but I’m a bit embarrassed that my recipes from years ago are in a shambles.  Please accept my apology for the rough guideline.

I recently smoked a fish (15lbr) using the following as a guideline but as I indicate add additional spice to taste.  The other thing worth mentioning is my salt to water ratio.  The standard seems to be a 16 to 1 ratio of water to salt but because I brine overnight to get all the flavors that’s far too salty.  What I found years ago is to use a saltwater aquarium hydrometer to get a 42-44 parts per thousand (PPT) ratio of salt to water. 

I cut my fish fillets up into smaller pieces to maximize smoked surface.  I've had other folks smoked fish done with skin on (scaled I presume) which was also good.

Once brined I don’t rinse but just pat and let the fish dry to form a pellicle.  When I smoke bluefish I may add some spice (light Cajun spice sprinkle) on some of the pieces.

I like it sliced thin with cream cheese on a bagel or in a wrap with lettuce.  I suspect it would also be good made into a dip.

I’ll try to tighten this recipe on my next bluefish smoke since I have a few more fish in the freezer.

*Bluefish Brine (Draft)*

8 hr brine overnight
4 cups water
Salt 42 – 44 PPT ( less than 1 oz I believe)
Sugar (white) 1 oz
Sugar (brown) 1 oz
Black pepper (fresh ground)  ¼ tsp
3 dried bay leaves crushed
Dark molasses – 1/8 cup
Soy sauce low sodium – 2 Tblsp (add to taste)
Worstesrshire sauce – 2 Tblsp (add to taste)
Garlic powder – ½ tsp
Onion powder – ½ tsp
Hot sauce ½ tsp (add to taste)


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## tropics (Jul 16, 2018)

I have smoked lots of blues.I use to use a dry rub that was every kind salt you could find.
Celery,garlic,onion,sea,kosher
Now I prefer a wet brine
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/smoked-black-fish.173389/#post_1310491
Richie
Was up in Ma.fishing last Sun. & Mon. some nice big Fluke


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## normanaj (Jul 16, 2018)

tropics said:


> I have smoked lots of blues.I use to use a dry rub that was every kind salt you could find.
> Celery,garlic,onion,sea,kosher
> Now I prefer a wet brine
> https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/smoked-black-fish.173389/#post_1310491
> ...



You use that much salt really?I use almost no salt especially when it comes to smoked bluefish...it simply doesn't need it.

You're blackfish brine  isn't bad but I would eliminate the majority of the salt.Try using white wine and a little vermouth and eliminate a majority of the water.A "drunken" brine is so much better than a salt water based one.


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## Bearcarver (Jul 16, 2018)

WaterRat said:


> Thanks Chile, I haven't smoked any fish yet but I'm pre-planning for the eventual catch. The blues we catch are usually on the bigger side ~5-10lbs (because we're not actually trying to catch them but the much bigger stripers) but I'll bleed 'em and they'll hopefully be ok, and if not... oh well...




The only good eating Blues I ever had were Smoked.
Grilled and Fried were lousy.
Below is my Salmon Smoke, but I use the same Brine listed for all the Fish I Smoke:
*Smoked Salmon*

Bear


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## tomd8 (Jul 17, 2018)

Bearcarver - you may want to try bluefish made in tomato sauce over linguine.  As I'm sure you know to cut out the dark meat which may reduce the fishiness that most dislike about it.


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## normanaj (Jul 17, 2018)

Bearcarver said:


> The only good eating Blues I ever had were Smoked.
> Grilled and Fried were lousy.



Properly done bluefish can be insanely good when its grilled or fried.Especially fried!


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## Bearcarver (Jul 17, 2018)

normanaj said:


> Properly done bluefish can be insanely good when its grilled or fried.Especially fried!




I used to have Blues Grilled, at my BIL's, and all the other fish was Great, but the Grilled Blues were Lousy. (He knew about the Darker Meat)
His were normally good sized Blues though.
I had some Smoked twice & they were Great.
It's been awhile, as that BIL passed a few years ago.

Bear


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## Phillyfisherman (Aug 7, 2018)

WaterRat said:


> Hey All,
> Big time fishing season here in New England and I've been out with my buddies fishing for stripers. As it continues to warm though, the bluefish will be coming in and eventually we'll be catching them while striper fishing. Normally I just throw them back but I've "heard" that smoked bluefish is awesome. I have had grilled bluefish did not care for it - very fishy and oily.... but supposedly the smoked blues are good so does anyone have a go to smoked bluefish recipe? I'm running a pellet smoker so can only get down to around 200°F or so I'm looking for a relatively "hot" smoke.
> 
> Thanks,
> Aaron


Done bluefish many times, I put several crushed cloves of garlic in the brine, and depending on the size of the filets usually smoke at 180, but 200 should be doable.  Main thing with the blues is to bleed and ice them immediately upon catching them, and remove the red meat along the centerline of the filets before smoking. I love em, I usually do about half the batch with a rough grind black pepper crust, adds good zip.


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