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I smoke a lot of salmon, and I am proud of this recipe, although it would be the height of arrogance to say that what I do is the end-all, be-all of salmon smoking recipes. Lots of people smoke their salmon in lots of ways, and many of them are good. But I’ve been smoking fish for many years, and I’ve developed a system that works well.
Keep in mind this is a hot-smoking recipe. Cold smoking, which is the kind of slice-able smoked fish you get in fancy boxes from Scotland is an entirely different thing.
Almost everyone in Salmon Country hot smokes their fish. If you’re unfamiliar with hot-smoked fish, think about those golden smoked whitefish you see in delicatessens; those are hot smoked.
How do you eat it? Well, you can just eat it plain, or you can flake it and make it into a smoked salmon salad, you can pound it with butter and make salmon rillettes, serve it in deviled eggs, tossed with pasta… you get the point.
Here’s what you need to get started:
- A smoker. I’ve uses a Traeger and a Bradley. Both are good. No matter what smoker you use, you will need to be able to a) know your smoking chamber’s temperature, and b) control the heat, at least in a rough sense.
- Wood. The only downside to a Traeger smoker is that you need to use their wood pellets. As a guy who used a Brinkmann wood-fired BBQ for years, fueling it with scraps of almond and other fruit woods, buying wood can be annoying, but you get better precision with this method. I prefer to use alder wood for my salmon, but apple, cherry, oak or maple work fine.
- Salt. Buy a box of kosher salt from the supermarket. Do not use regular table salt, as it contains iodide and anti-caking agents that will give your salmon an “off” flavor. I use Diamond Crystal, which is cut finer than Morton’s.
- Something sweet — salmon love sweet. I prefer to sweeten my smoked salmon with birch syrup; It’s just like maple syrup, only tapped from birch trees instead. Super cool stuff. But maple syrup is just as good. Just use real maple syrup, OK? Not the imitation crap. Honey works, too.
- A large plastic container. Buy the big, flat ones from the supermarket. They stack easily in a normal fridge, so you can have two different brines going. And they clean easily and are pretty cheap.
- A wire rack. You need to rest your brined fish on a rack with plenty of air circulation to form the all-important pellicle (more on that in a bit), and you will use it to rest the smoked fish before storing it.
- A basting brush. You probably already have this in your kitchen, but if not, pick one up. Get the flat kind, like you use to paint detail on window trim.
When you are ready to start, you will need smallish pieces of salmon about 1/4 to 1/2 pound each. Any salmonid fish will work with this recipe. I’ve done it with king salmon, sockeye, coho, and pink salmon, dolly varden, plus kokanee, steelhead and Lahontan trout.
There is no reason it would not work with chum salmon or any other char or trout species. And yes, it works with farmed Atlantic salmon, but I never eat the stuff.
I prefer to smoke salmon with its skin on, but I’ve done it with skinless pieces and it works fine.
Smoked Salmon
Note that my salmon cure is very simple. Feel free to add things if you like. I've added bay leaves, chiles, thyme, garlic and minced onion. All are fine, but subtle. And since I often use smoked salmon as a base for another dish, I want mine to remain simple and clean-tasting.
Ingredients
- 5 pounds salmon, trout or char
- Birch or maple syrup for basting
BRINE
- 1 quart cool water
- 1/3 cup Diamond Crystal kosher salt, about 2 ounces of any kosher salt
- 1 cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Mix together the brine ingredients and place your fish in a non-reactive container (plastic or glass), cover and put in the refrigerator. This curing process eliminates some of the moisture from the inside of the fish while at the same time infusing it with salt, which will help preserve the salmon.
- You will need to cure your salmon at least 4 hours, even for thin fillets from trout or pink salmon. In my experience, large trout or char, as well as pink, sockeye and silver salmon need 8 hours. A really thick piece of king salmon might need as much as 36 hours in the brine. Never go more than 48 hours, however, or your fish will be too salty. Double the brine if it's not enough to cover the fish.
- Take your fish out of the brine, rinse it briefly under cold running water, and pat it dry. Set the fillets on your cooling rack, skin side down. Ideally you'd do this right under a ceiling fan set on high, or outside in a cool, breezy place. By "cool" I mean 60°F or cooler. Let the fish dry for 2 to 4 hours (or up to overnight in the fridge). You want the surface of the fish to develop a shiny skin called a pellicle. This is one step many beginning smokers fail to do, but drying your cured, brined fish in a cool, breezy place is vital to properly smoking it. The pellicle, which is a thin, lacquer-like layer on top of the fish, seals it and offers a sticky surface for the smoke to adhere to. Don't worry, the salt in the brine will protect your fish from spoilage. Once you have your pellicle, you can refrigerate your fish for a few hours and smoke it later if you'd like.
- Start by slicking the skin of your fish with some oil, so it won't stick to the smoker rack. Know that even though this is hot smoking, you still do not want high temperatures. Start with a small fire and work your way up as you go. It is important to bring the temperature up gradually or you will get that white albumin "bleed" on the meat. I can control my heat with my smoker, so I start the process between 140°F and 150°F for up to an hour, then finish at 175°F for a final hour or two. NOTE: What my smoker is set at is not necessarily what the actual temperature is. Smoking is an art, not a science. To keep temperatures mild, always put water in your drip pan to keep the temperature down. If your smoker is very hot, like a Traeger can get, put ice in the tray.
- After an hour in the smoker, baste the fish with birch or maple syrup, or honey; do this every hour. This is a good way to brush away any albumin that might form. In most cases, you will get a little. You just don't want a ton of it. Even if you can't control your temperature this precisely, you get the general idea. You goal should be an internal temperature of about 130°F to 140°F. (Incidentally, yes, I keep the smoke on the whole time. I don't find this to be too much smoke, but if you want a lighter smoke, finish the salmon without smoke or in a 200°F oven.)
- You must be careful about your heat. Other than failing to dry your salmon long enough, the single biggest problem in smoking salmon is too high heat. If you've ever seen salmon "bleed" a white, creamy substance, that's a protein called albumin. If you see lots of it, you've screwed up; a little is normal. Here's what happens: If you cook a piece of salmon at too high a heat, the muscle fibers in the meat contract so violently that they extrude albumin, which immediately congeals on the surface of the fish. It's ugly, and it also means your salmon will be drier than it could have been. You prevent this with a solidly formed pellicle, and by keeping your heat gentle. If you let your heat get away from you and you do get a white mess on your salmon, all is not lost. Just flake it out and make salmon salad with it: The mayonnaise in the salad will mask any dryness.
- Once your fish is smoked, let it rest on the cooling rack for an hour before you put it in the fridge. Once refrigerated and wrapped in plastic, smoked fish will keep for 10 days. If you vacuum-seal it, the fish will keep for up to 3 weeks. Or freeze your fish for up to a year.
Notes
One last piece of advice: Try to fill up your smoker with fish. This process takes a while to do, and your smoker doesn't care if its full or half-empty, so you might as well make a big batch.
And keep in mind this recipe is for basic smoked salmon. Other options are smoked salmon candy, a great snack, and, once you have your smoked salmon, you can use it in smoked salmon dip on crackers.
Nutrition
Serving: 113g | Calories: 132kcal | Protein: 21.3g | Fat: 4.9g | Saturated Fat: 1.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2.3g | Cholesterol: 26.7mg | Potassium: 198.7mg | Vitamin A: 100IU | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Tried this recipe? Tag me today!Mention @huntgathercook or tag #hankshaw!
Excellent!!
I panicked about the heat level you warned about and put half as much charcoal as well as ice in the water bowl of my “old school” smoker. So it ended up not getting above 100 degrees for like 2.5 hours. I went with it and kicked the heat up eventually. All in all the fillets were in there for 5 hours.
Was hesitant on the maple syrup but went with it and it was just amazing.
As stated, it is a relatively “simple” flavor but that’s not to say it wasn’t absolutely delicious. I might try some of the other herbs and spices mentioned next time but not necessary for the best smoked salmon of your life.
Today is going to be the fifth time I’ve made this recipe and I wouldn’t change anything. My friends and I love it.
My dad was always the one smoking everything for Thanksgiving. This year I’m hosting at my house and we’re going to start with a little of this salmon made into a dip for the family. I haven’t tried your dip and can’t wait.
Thanks for sharing. I’ve tried multiple other recipes but this is definitely my go-to.
Could you freeze your fish after brining and curing (step 3) and later smoke them?
I’m limited to using a Cameron’s stove top smoker and don’t have the ability to smoke in bulk
Joe: I am not certain. I’ve never tried that.
could you “hot smoke” salmon in the oven at low temperature if you don’t have a smoker? (granted it would not have the same deep flavor but if you were going to turn it into salmon salad anyway…)
can you brine your salmon skin up if short of brine. Do you dilute the syrup or use straight from the bottle?
Jim: Just make more brine. It’s salt and water and maybe some sugar. And no, I do not dilute it.
Can you tell me roughly how many hours I should keep the salmon pieces (all cut to about 1 1/2 in width) in the smoker?
Kimberly: Hmmm… those are really thin pieces. I would say no more than 3 hours.
Can pink sea salt be used instead of the Kosher salt?
James: Yes.
Hank, Smoked much more of this delicious Salmon then we can consume in a reasonable amount of time. Can I freeze this smoked salmon and for how long?
Kathleen: Yes and if you vacuum seal it, a year or more, although it will get soften over time. Definitely good for 6 months.
Simple: This works quite well and is delicious, thanks for sharing Hank.
Question: Do you have guidance for dry brining salmon? Also, as a master forager, do you guidance for the use of West Coast seaweeds?
I have been hot smoking salmon for a while now. My method is very similar. I have never basted with syrup though. I will have to give this a try. Thanks for the tip.
Dry brining salmon is awesome. 4 parts dark brown sugar to 1 part canning pickling salt. Add some fresh garlic to your liking. Skin to skin in the container refrigerate 6-8 hours. The rinsing, air drying before smoking, all the same. There’s going to be a lot of liquid after you brine it.
Hello! Can I take my fish out of the brine and let it sit in the fridge for a day before smoking? I realize I don’t have enough time to smoke the fish right away and don’t want it to get too salty by sitting in the brine for 2 days….
Alaina: Yes, you can do that.
I am avoiding sugar. I don’t mind a little bit of honey on the fish, but I’d like to avoid the brown sugar in the brine. Any thoughts on that, or do I need a substitute? PS: I did try it with the Atlantic farmed and it wasn’t very good, quite greasy actually. The wild coho and sockeye I’ve smoked was much better!
Mike: Heat the brine, use honey to your taste, mix well, then let it cool before brining the salmon.
My Charbroil smoker won’t start smoking til it’s 200 degrees. I’ve tried to follow these instructions but I keep getting the white stuff. Any suggestions?
Lin: Paint the albumin off with the honey or syrup. That works.
Should I rinse the salmon after taking it out of the brine?
Matt: Yes.
Thank you!
Amazing!!! My husband and our eldest son caught some salmon this past weekend and we wanted to try and smoke it ourselves. We followed the instructions to the letter and wow this fish came out perfect!!!
One question…how long will this stay good?
Paris: It should stay good in the fridge about a week or so, and it freezes well.
Third try, all a success story. Today I cold smoked a Costco Salmon with hickory at a cool 65 deg ( outdoor temp) for about 1.5 hours. Then finished in the oven set at 170 deg. Finish internal temperature was 143 deg. Sumptuous. ( my non fish loving wife ( she dislikes fishy fish) said ” Thats Goood”
I have just finished making this recipe for what I believe to be the 9th time since I found it last year. I used applewood for the smoke and maple syrup for the glaze on a total of 12lbs of salmon. If you follow the instructions, you will be blown away how incredibly delicious, tender, and popular this fish comes out. Even among my more finicky children and skeptical in-laws, this recipe is a knockout. It is demanded of me at holidays, and I even started making a simple dip using Greek yogurt and celery seed that is a big hit on ritz crackers. Do yourself a favor and make this treat for your family and friends, just make sure you take Hanks advice and fill your smoker all the way up.
Tried the recipe today. Absolutely the best salmon I have ever tasted.
Hi Hank, just put a 5-pound salmon in the (6% salt) brine in the fridge. Two 2-pound fillets. Would you recommend 5 1/2 hours or 24? They’re my options because of work timetable. :). Thanks if you (or anyone else) get chance to answer in time to make a difference.
Peat: I’d go with the shorter time. You can still enjoy slightly undersalted smoked fish, but over salted smoked fish can be challenging.
Thanks Hank…really appreciate it.
I’ve been smoking on a Traeger for just three years, but I’ve been following this recipe with little, or no variance. It has not let me down one time and everyone loves my Salmon when they try it. After reading recipe again I think I may try a batch using some of the suggested herbs and spices.
Thanks,
I have been using this brine recipe for a couple years. It is a true crowd pleaser. I have smoked salmon on electric, gas, and pellet grills, and have fine tuned it as of late on a Pit Boss pellet grill. I typically brine overnight, about 12 to 18 hours. I set the smoker on the smoke setting and leave it at that. I maintain about 165 degrees throughout the smoke. I shy away from the glaze only because I don’t care for a sweeter end product. I pull the fish off at 140 degrees, rack it and let it cool for about an hour. For me, this works but to each their own. Thank you, Hank!
What kind of pellets do you use for your Pit Boss? And do you keep the draft wide open?
I use the Pit Boss branded apple wood pellets. I keep the chimney open with about a half inch gap between the pipe and the cap.