# Steelhead Trout ~ Multi-Tasking



## thirdeye (Nov 12, 2020)

I eat a lot of fish, and some of my favorite is grilled fish,  smoked fish,... canned fish, fried fish, smoked fish (I really like it) , baked fish and pan fried  meunière style. 

So, my home water reservoir is undergoing renovations on the dam and is at the lowest level since the late '30's when it was built. My blue ribbon tailwater river is low and harder to fish even with fall runoff.  But, Lake Sam's (Club) is open for business with Steelhead trout.  This was a skin-on two-pack, and weighed in at 3#.  So maybe a 9# fish before field dressing??






Most of it I prepped for dry curing and smoking..., but there is a missing section...





That was the piece I seasoned and grilled over live fire... without ever turning. 










Fast forward to the smoked Steelhead...  I love this stuff.


----------



## SmokinEdge (Nov 12, 2020)

Awesome fish! Most excellent.


----------



## Brokenhandle (Nov 13, 2020)

Looks good! Don't think I've had trout before but would definitely give yours a try. 

Ryan


----------



## crazymoon (Nov 13, 2020)

TE, Looks good!


----------



## BrianGSDTexoma (Nov 13, 2020)

Care to share your curing recipe?


----------



## 2Mac (Nov 13, 2020)

Brian Trommater said:


> Care to share your curing recipe?


I was going to ask the same question.
Did you brine it at all?


----------



## chef jimmyj (Nov 13, 2020)

Looks very good. I've not developed a taste for Fatty Full Flavored fish like Salmon or Trout. But, folks here sure make me want to keep trying!...JJ


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 13, 2020)

chef jimmyj said:


> Looks very good. I've not developed a taste for Fatty Full Flavored fish like Salmon or Trout. But, folks here sure make me want to keep trying!...JJ



That's understandable, and you need a somewhat fatty fish for smoking. One of my buddies is a CIA graduate so he can cook a variety of salmon and trout dishes (he left NY in the 80's and moved to Montana), and he loves catching trout, but he doesn't eat what he refers to as "fin fish".  I've come to the conclusion that some folks that say they don't like trout really mean they don't like bones, and trout have a bunch of bones! Some are very fine.  I taught myself to completely de-bone fillets, which is very pleasant when pan frying them.  All that said, you can still catch and release a trout, but you can't un-shoot an elk.


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 13, 2020)

Brian Trommater said:


> Care to share your curing recipe?





2Mac said:


> I was going to ask the same question.
> Did you brine it at all?



Absolutely.  My cure is salt/sugar based and you can add 0.25%  of Cure #1 if you have fillets thick enough you think you will exceed the 4 hour window of safety.   It's a dry cure that turns into a syrup after drawing out some liquid from the fish. After trimming the belly, those two fillets ↑↑  were just over a pound each, trout fillets are much smaller, so I get them to 145° in about 3 hours or in the winter I move them into a 180° oven to reach temp.  Parts of my technique  are embedded in older posts here, but this is the direct link to my fish curing ARTICLE with many photos and some alternate smokers.  I prefer the plastic wrap method, and my vintage Big Chief electric box smoker is the most reliable for me.


----------



## TNJAKE (Nov 13, 2020)

Looks delicious bud. Love me some steelhead


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 13, 2020)

TNJAKE said:


> Looks delicious bud. Love me some steelhead
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I've always liked steelhead and for the last few years Sam's has been a very reliable source, so it has overtaken salmon for me.  I really like the consistency of the thickness.


----------



## TNJAKE (Nov 13, 2020)

thirdeye said:


> I've always liked steelhead and for the last few years Sam's has been a very reliable source, so it has overtaken salmon for me.  I really like the consistency of the thickness.


We get ours from sam's as well. We've also decided we prefer it over salmon. Has a delicious fattyness to it


----------



## PulledPorkSandwich (Nov 13, 2020)

thirdeye said:


> Absolutely.  My cure is salt/sugar based and you can add 0.25%  of Cure #1 if you have fillets thick enough you think you will exceed the 4 hour window of safety.   It's a dry cure that turns into a syrup after drawing out some liquid from the fish. After trimming the belly, those two fillets ↑↑  were just over a pound each, trout fillets are much smaller, so I get them to 145° in about 3 hours or in the winter I move them into a 180° oven to reach temp.  Parts of my technique  are embedded in older posts here, but this is the direct link to my fish curing ARTICLE with many photos and some alternate smokers.  I prefer the plastic wrap method, and my vintage Big Chief electric box smoker is the most reliable for me.


I read through your curing article.  Very detailed and informative!  Our Kroger here has steelhead from time to time.  I'm going to get some this weekend and try your recipe.  Thanks!


----------



## SmokinAl (Nov 13, 2020)

Looks delicious!
Al


----------



## BrianGSDTexoma (Nov 13, 2020)

thirdeye said:


> Parts of my technique  are embedded in older posts here, but this is the direct link to my fish curing ARTICLE with many photos and some alternate smokers.  I prefer the plastic wrap method, and my vintage Big Chief electric box smoker is the most reliable for me.


Wow that was a good read.  I grew up in Michigan and they have some great smoked fish places.  Really like Whitefish.  This is going toward the top of my to long list.


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 13, 2020)

Brian Trommater said:


> Wow that was a good read.  I grew up in Michigan and they have some great smoked fish places.  Really like Whitefish.  This is going toward the top of my to long list.


I have tried the same procedure on Ahi Tuna, and it's a nice cross over for people that don't like sushi or want something different than salmon.


----------



## disco (Nov 13, 2020)

Love the colour you got on that! Big like!


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 13, 2020)

disco said:


> Love the colour you got on that! Big like!


I think it's a lot to do with species, time of year and feed plus I do use more cherry with fish. These are some late fall local trout, these have a shine coat of oil but the fish were feeding on fresh water shrimp and the flesh was really pretty.


----------



## uncle eddie (Nov 13, 2020)

I fish regularly at Lake Sam's Club and steelhead trout is actually not that hard to catch.  We love it smoked with mesquite for smoke.  We usually smoke it at 275F to hurry things up.

Yours look great...like!


----------



## smokerjim (Nov 13, 2020)

looks fantastic, the only way i like trout or salmon is smoked!


----------



## jcam222 (Nov 13, 2020)

Man it looks AMAZING!! I’ve caught a ton of steelhead. A couple nearby rivers have nice runs of Manistee strain that run in the fall. Crazy thing is someone told me they we weren’t very good to eat so never tried them. I haven’t got out much to fish for them the last couple years. I’ll have to try next fall.


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 13, 2020)

jcam222 said:


> Man it looks AMAZING!! I’ve caught a ton of steelhead. A couple nearby rivers have nice runs of Manistee strain that run in the fall. Crazy thing is someone told me they we weren’t very good to eat so never tried them. I haven’t got out much to fish for them the last couple years. I’ll have to try next fall.


There is good steelhead fishing next door in Idaho and some fishermen count the number of strikes rather than fish because they are hard to land in a big river.


----------



## Sowsage (Nov 13, 2020)

Dang that looks good! I could eat steelhead once or twice a week! Hell I could eat just about any fish once or twice a week! Yours looks amazing! Im a little jealous right now!


----------



## Fueling Around (Nov 13, 2020)

Big like to your posts.  Thanks for sharing.
I've always had smoked fish that flakes, so overcooked by your guidelines?
May have to experiment.


thirdeye said:


> That's understandable, and you need a somewhat fatty fish for smoking.
> ...  I've come to the conclusion that some folks that say they don't like trout really mean they don't like bones, and trout have a bunch of bones!
> ... All that said, you can still catch and release a trout, but you can't un-shoot an elk.


Funny, you cannot un-spear a fish either.
I have learned to deal with fish bones, too.  Fish bones has nothing to do with flavor on my plate.   I don't like (any) salmon, steel head, lake trout, or river trout. That is fresh or smoked.  


thirdeye said:


> I have tried the same procedure on Ahi Tuna, and it's a nice cross over for people that don't like sushi or want something different than salmon.


I am really excited to see you mention yellow fin.  I really like tuna on the grill cooked through not half sushi rare.  My wife (that loves salmon) is so-so on tuna that doesn't come out of a can.
I'm going to brine and smoke a few pieces of Ahi. I've got a Big Chief, too.  Mighty fine cooler smoker.


----------



## civilsmoker (Nov 14, 2020)

That’s some nice fish!  BUT I’m not sure how you found my honey hole spot to find them.....lol


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 14, 2020)

WOOHOO!!  Thanks for the ride on the carousel, a nice Saturday surprise    



Fueling Around said:


> Big like to your posts.  Thanks for sharing.
> *I've always had smoked fish that flakes, so overcooked by your guidelines?*
> May have to experiment.
> Funny, you cannot un-spear a fish either.
> ...


For me, flaky is too done.  I try to buy skin on and I never turn it.  If I do get skinless I cutout a piece of parchment and spray it with olive oil and use that as a heat shield.  I have a thermometer with a super thin probe and 140° - 142° is my magic number on grilled, and I let it rest for a couple of minutes.    I really watch the albumen too, once I see traces of it I know I'm close.  I go 145° on my cured and smoked, and will let it cool down on the counter, then refrigerate overnight before eating. 

I'm with you on grilled tuna, I use a little griddle and like the inside a warm pink, not a cool red.  I add toasted sesame seeds to the edges too. 










civilsmoker said:


> That’s some nice fish!  BUT I’m not sure how you found my honey hole spot to find them.....lol


Yep, it's a popular place and the parking lot is YUGE.


----------



## civilsmoker (Nov 14, 2020)

Nice seared tuna!  Just LOL that stuff!


----------



## Fueling Around (Nov 14, 2020)

Congrats on the ride.
I'll try the smoke both ways and see what the fans prefer.
I'm with you on sesame flavor.  I use a couple drips of toasted sesame oil.  Wife uses a couple of shakes


civilsmoker said:


> Nice seared tuna!  Just LOL that stuff!


Laugh Out Loud that stuff?  That's a LOL moment...


----------



## kawboy (Nov 16, 2020)

Fueling Around said:


> Funny, you cannot un-spear a fish either.


You must be a Darkhouse spearer as well?


----------



## Fueling Around (Nov 16, 2020)

kawboy said:


> You must be a Darkhouse spearer as well?


Nope. Not a winter fishing fan.
My Father and Uncle were fanatics.  I ... heard ... rumors of having to un-spear a fish or two.
I do miss winter catch northern pike.


----------



## thirdeye (Nov 16, 2020)

Fueling Around said:


> Nope. Not a winter fishing fan.
> My Father and Uncle were fanatics.  I ... heard ... rumors of having to un-spear a fish or two.
> I do miss winter catch northern pike.


Well you know what they say about ice fishing?  'You can get just as drunk on water, as you can on land'.


----------



## Fueling Around (Nov 16, 2020)

thirdeye said:


> Well you know what they say about ice fishing?  'You can get just as drunk on water, as you can on land'.


 I never heard that saying.  Know lots of people that can attest to it.
Wife works at Hospital that gets rotating providers in for Emergency Department (ED).  More than 1 has requested to go winter fishing  as the concept of walking on to a frozen lake blows their mind


----------



## GaryHibbert (Nov 19, 2020)

That certainly does look fine!!
Gary


----------



## BrianGSDTexoma (Mar 9, 2021)

thirdeye said:


> Absolutely.  My cure is salt/sugar based and you can add 0.25%  of Cure #1 if you have fillets thick enough you think you will exceed the 4 hour window of safety.   It's a dry cure that turns into a syrup after drawing out some liquid from the fish. After trimming the belly, those two fillets ↑↑  were just over a pound each, trout fillets are much smaller, so I get them to 145° in about 3 hours or in the winter I move them into a 180° oven to reach temp.  Parts of my technique  are embedded in older posts here, but this is the direct link to my fish curing ARTICLE with many photos and some alternate smokers.  I prefer the plastic wrap method, and my vintage Big Chief electric box smoker is the most reliable for me.



I need to get this to the top of my list!


----------



## DRKsmoking (Mar 9, 2021)

They look fantastic, Never had Steelhead but love Rainbow, brown, brook , speckled etc.
 Waiting for the ice to leave the lake by April when the season opens up here in the backyard, we have rainbow here in the lake

So now that i am learning the smoking thing , i will have to try your way 
Great pictures 
Thanks 
David


----------



## thirdeye (Mar 9, 2021)

BrianGSDTexoma said:


> I need to get this to the top of my list!





DRKsmoking said:


> They look fantastic, Never had Steelhead but love Rainbow, brown, brook , speckled etc.
> Waiting for the ice to leave the lake by April when the season opens up here in the backyard, we have rainbow here in the lake
> 
> So now that i am learning the smoking thing , i will have to try your way
> ...



Below is a link to my full article (with even more photos)   and to be honest it's probably 75% technique and 25% recipe.  The cure mix does have some signature seasonings, and those can be changed up, or omitted to better suit your tastes.  But once you figure out the technique everything falls into place pretty quickly.  I generally mix a triple batch of the dry cure and have it in the freezer.  It softens in about 20 minutes, so if Mrs ~t~ buys some fillets or I make a run to the lake the cure is ready by the time I've rinsed and trimmed my fish.

The post-rinse (and before smoking)  seasoning is up to you as well.  I add more cracked pepper, and roasted garlic powder.  Some of my friends add maple sugar or brush with slightly diluted maple syrup.  One guy likes flakes of sea salt,  another uses lemon pepper (Kingsford makes a good one), and I've used cajun spices.  One family I gift it too wants 6 or 8  narrow slices that have pepper and maple sugar, and smoked to around 155°, so it's drier.  And at least one fillet that has 2X cracked pepper that they use to make salmon spread. 














						SEAFOOD -  Dry Cure for Salmon, Trout or Steelhead
					

Revised 1-13-2022  Cured fish has been prepared for centuries as a means of food preservation. Because of refrigeration and our knowledge ...




					playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com


----------

