![]() Small trout only take a few hours to smoke, but larger trout and salmon can take several hours. If you're looking for something other than fish, you'll love my Smoked Juicy Lucy's! Love this post? Be sure to check out my smoked salmon recipe! Gradually increasing the temperature helps the fish firm up at a slower rate, thus reducing the albumin appearance, and giving you much better flavor! You can start your smoker out at 225 and just keep it there, but you'll notice a white substance ooze out of the fish called albumin. What's That White Stuff Oozing Out of My Smoked Fish? After two hours, increase the temperature in your smoker by 20 degrees. Set your smoker up to cook with indirect heat at around 140 or 150 degrees, and then place your trout or salmon fillets on the grill grates. Now it's time to put your fish in the smoker! Hopefully, you've taken the time to properly brine the fish, and form a nice pellicle on the surface of the flesh. The pellicle will help your trout or salmon hold more of that smoke flavor you're looking for, and keeps the fish from cooking too quickly. This step produces a tacky film on the surface of the salmon, called the pellicle. The fish will need to sit out for at least three hours. If you don't have room in the fridge, you can put the fish in a cool (under 50 degrees), well-ventilated area. Place the fish on a grill rack, and then put the rack on the sheet pan you were using before, and back in the fridge! This next step is the step most people completely skip over, and it's the difference in perfect smoked salmon, and average smoked salmon (or trout).Īfter the trout has been brined, rinse each of the fillets thoroughly, and then pat dry. I could go into detail about what the pellicle is, but you probably don't care. You'll be shocked by how much moisture is in the container when you finally decide to pull the fish out of the brine and move on to the next step! Smoked Fish Pellicle If you do, you'll end up with some very salty smoked trout! Let the fish brine for 3-6 hours.īe careful not to dry brine the trout much longer than 6 hours. Once the fish is adequately covered, cover the container with saran wrap and place it in your refrigerator. Every nook and cranny of the fish fillet should be covered with your dry brine. Place your fish fillets in the container with the brine, and then liberally sprinkle the brine over your fish. ![]() I have to emphasize that I use kosher salt for this brine - don't use table salt! There's a huge difference in the two, and if you make the mistake your fish will be ruined.Ĭombine the ingredients in a large food safe container like this one, and then set aside. There are just a few ingredients you need to make the dry brine: Everyone has there own preference, but mine is a dry brine for fish. You can brine your fish in a dry brine, or a wet brine. Adding an additional layer of flavor to the meat of the fish.Keeping the fish from drying out during the smoke process.The brine serves a couple of different purposes, but the two that are most important are: There are a few mistakes people make when they smoke salmon or trout, mistake #1, they don't brine the fish. Common Mistakes When Smoking Trout or Salmon If you're going for salmon, Sockeye Salmon is my favorite, followed closely by Coho Salmon. I'm using two Lake Trout fillets for this recipe, but any of the previously mentioned trout species or salmon will do. Smoked Fish Brine A nice lake trout from a recent trip to Manitoba Furthermore, most farm-raised fish are treated with a dye to make their meat look appealing. The meat is of lesser quality because the fish don't have to move like wild fish do. Farmed fish are a poor substitute for their wild counterparts. Wild, line-caught salmon or trout is the best, and the only type of fish I would buy. If you're buying fish, ask how it was caught. I'm confident I can help!Īnother option is to buy the fish from your local grocery store or market. If you have access to those fish, and you know how to catch them, go catch a few and then come back to this recipe.ĭon't know how to catch them? Send me an email. This recipe works especially well for salmon, rainbow trout, brook trout, and lake trout. The best smoked fish is fish you've caught your self. I know how to catch fish, and this smoked trout recipe is one of my favorite ways to prepare fresh trout or salmon. There aren't many freshwater species I haven't caught, and I even spent time in Alaska as a fishing guide. Not because I'm lucky, but because I've spent thousands of hours with a fishing rod in my hand. There aren't many things I can confidently say I'm REALLY good at, but let me just brag for a minute and say I'm REALLY good at fishing.
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