# Smoking Salmon



## mackconsult (Sep 17, 2010)

I threw some brown sugar, soy souce, creole, chopped onions, water, & garlic together.  Took out one slab of salmon fillet from the freezer.  It was a little burned on the ends, and about one year old.

Soaked it in the brine for 2 hours.  Pulled it out and patted it down with paper towels then put it back in the fridge for two hours.

Smoked in my 7 in 1 masterbuilt BBQ for a couple of hours using hickory chips.  When the internal temperature got to 150 F I pulled it out.

Tastes pretty good, but not amazing.  I am wondering if fresh fish would be better for hot smoking.

Working on building a cold smoker with a metal trash can and terra cotta pot & ice chest in between.

This will be my winter project to fill out time between trying to steelhead fish, working on WVO/biodiesel, and my sprinter van.


----------



## Bearcarver (Sep 17, 2010)

mackconsult said:


> I threw some brown sugar, soy souce, creole, chopped onions, water, & garlic together.  Took out one slab of salmon fillet from the freezer.  It was a little burned on the ends, and about one year old.
> 
> Soaked it in the brine for 2 hours.  Pulled it out and patted it down with paper towels then put it back in the fridge for two hours.
> 
> ...


I would say the fresher the better, especially when you're gonna do a hot smoke, or grill, or oven bake.

If you're gonna smoke them hard, like I do, it isn't quite as important, but still the fresher the better.

Bearcarver


----------



## mackconsult (Sep 17, 2010)

Need to catch more fish.  I caught a nice one last Thursday ....

Check out the fish ....

http://www.mackconsult.com/

BTW .... love your recipes I will try them next time :o)


----------



## smoke_chef (Sep 17, 2010)

Hey Bear... what does that mean.. "Smokem Hard". Like a fish jerky maybe?? Sounds interesting.


----------



## Bearcarver (Sep 17, 2010)

Smoke_Chef said:


> Hey Bear... what does that mean.. "Smokem Hard". Like a fish jerky maybe?? Sounds interesting.


Smoke_Chef,

Not really "fish jerky", but not what you would eat as a meal. Click on "Smoked Salmon" in my signature, at the bottom of all of my posts to see.

Bear


----------



## Bearcarver (Sep 17, 2010)

mackconsult said:


> Need to catch more fish.  I caught a nice one last Thursday ....
> 
> Check out the fish ....
> 
> ...


That's a real nice Salmon Mack!

That's about the size my son catches in NY, but they're on their way to spawn.

That one you got there would be a lot better tasting as a meal from the grill, smoker, or oven than the ones I smoke. That's why I smoke ours hard. They aren't falling apart or sickly or anything, but they aren't as good to cook as ones from a lake, like you got there. Although these are great the way I make them.

Thanks, 

Bear


----------



## mackconsult (Sep 17, 2010)

That one is probably about 4 or 5 days out of the ocean on the Columbia River heading up to spawn.  Two foot long bags of eggs came out of it that I give to my buddy.


----------



## Bearcarver (Sep 17, 2010)

mackconsult said:


> That one is probably about 4 or 5 days out of the ocean on the Columbia River heading up to spawn.  Two foot long bags of eggs came out of it that I give to my buddy.


OK,

It looks fresher than that.

The ones we catch aren't out of the lake very long either, because the whole trip isn't very long. Not like some out West where they travel a whole lot of miles. Yours looks like it was right out of the lake----Nice!

I always think "Salmon" when I think NorthWest, USA.

If I can find the picture of a stringer full, I'll post it.

Found it.

They're a lot lighter in color the first hour after you catch them:








Bear


----------



## Bearcarver (Sep 17, 2010)

Mack,

Here's my son with a couple of Brownies from the same place. About a month after the Salmon spawn, these Browns go upstream to eat the Salmon Eggs. My son likes to be there to greet them with his flyrod:


----------



## mballi3011 (Sep 17, 2010)

Man oh Man I wish I liked salmon. I don't know what it is but I can't eat the stuff. But you have some really nice ones there bear and you to Mack. I really like the fish that we get here on the east coast.


----------



## mackconsult (Sep 17, 2010)

Thanks guys.  I am just getting into sport salmon fishing, and smoking at 44 years of age.  Back in my teens and twenties I was a commercial fisherman out of Astoria, OR with my long time commercial fishing uncle.  Used to go out on the ocean with him and others and fished commercially for salmon, tuna, and other types of fish.  Even did one year up in dutch harbor .....

Sport is fun though I must admit.  So many years wasted not doing sport fishing


----------

