Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => The Fish Kitchen => Topic started by: oldtimehockey on December 10, 2006, 11:03:40 AM
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I am new to smoking fish and did my first batch yesterday. How much moisture should there still be in the fish after hot smoking? I brined the fish the night before. Washed it off and dried it with paper towel. Let dry for 1 hour before putting into my little chief smoker. I ended up leaving some pieces in for 12 hours and others for 14. The fish was dry on the outside and still a bit moist on the inside. Is this ok or should it all be dry?
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RIGHT AFTER U SMOKE IF, PUT IT IN THE FRIDGE OVER NIGHT, IT SHOULD BE READY TO GO THE NEXT DAY AS THE FISH FIRMS UP A BIT !
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when I do mine with the little chief I brine it, then let the peices dry for a day on the racks in a cool area, then we smoke it for about three pans of moist chips, we check it and if its still a little mushy in the center we let it cook for a little while longer without any more smoke. Try and use equal size peices of fish, nothing too thick, and by allowing to dry for 6 to 8hrs this will cut down on the time in the smoker.
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nothing too thick
^ I JUST SMOKED A 40 POUND RED, PROB THE BEST FISH I EVER SMOKED, ALL U HAVE TO DO IS PUT SLICES IN UR FILLET EVERY 2 INCHES OR SO RIGHT DOWN TO THE SKIN, SO THAT THE BRINE AND SMOKE GET ALL THE WAY THROUGH !
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I am new to smoking fish and did my first batch yesterday. How much moisture should there still be in the fish after hot smoking? I brined the fish the night before. Washed it off and dried it with paper towel. Let dry for 1 hour before putting into my little chief smoker. I ended up leaving some pieces in for 12 hours and others for 14. The fish was dry on the outside and still a bit moist on the inside. Is this ok or should it all be dry?
Sounds like you did it right. Moisture content is a personal preference. As long as the fish is not mushy and flakes well it is done. If you prefer a dryer product try a prolonged dry brine, don't rinse it off and air dry a tad longer. I let mine cool down after smoking then I vaccum seal it and freeze. Onced unthawed the consistancy changes for the better. I find this process redistributes the moisture content. eg. if the outer crust is dry this will moisten it up some.
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The fish was dry on the outside and still a bit moist on the inside. Is this ok or should it all be dry?
Perfect. That's the way I like mine.
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I skin all my salmon. It's a pain in the A##, but the fish tastes way better. Salmon store alot of the nasty toxins in their fat layer as well as their fishy after taste. By taking the skin off you eliminate those things in your fish, the brine gets into fhe fish better and the smoking process goes faster.
You 'll also want to check the temperature of your smoker. Before I got my Bradley, I always had a tough time getting the smoker warm enough. I had to stick a briquette or 2 in there as well as wrapping the smoker with cardboard.
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The fish was dry on the outside and still a bit moist on the inside. Is this ok or should it all be dry?
Did you like it? - Is so, it was perfect ;) Too moist for your likes? smoke it longer. Everyone finds their "sweet spot"
Cheers!
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"little chief smoker" are not the best for "hot" smoking and can take days to really dry out a fish. Like someone else mentioned put some bbq briquettes in the bottom to decrease the dry out time. I use two batches of eight briquettes(the normal one not the easy lighting ones with the fuel all over them) in metal box used for wood chips for the bbq. Works great as I like the fish dried right out to jerky. Just did some and it took about 14 hours and it's dry as crackers.
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Is it ok to put the smoked fish in the freezer after smoking it? I thawed the fish out in the first place in order to smoke it and I am worried that if I freeze it again that the quality will deteriorate. Any suggestions? Also, how long will smoked fish last in the fridge? Simply in a tupperware container. What's the shelf life? Thanks for all of your prior suggestions. ;)
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No Tupperware, yes paper bag. The fish will get moldy in the Tupperware and will continue to dry out in the paper bag. I have kept some hiding in the back of the fridge for a couple months, the last batch I did is almost gone. The little chief only does 2 smaller size salmon. The drier they are the longer they last and yes you can freeze them again after smoking. Canning works better though and makes nice Xmas presents or whatever.
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I was unable to post a new topic. I have not posted before and it seems due to spam new posters must reply to something first. I think. Anyway could anyone in the port moody area help me understand where foreshore park is? I have been on google maps and can find shoreline park but not foreshore park. The reason I am asking is because I was told there was a boat launch there? This is a different one than the one at Rocky Point I hope? Any info on this or any other boat launches in the moody area would be greatly appreciated. Thankyou in advance.
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Great idear about the briquettes in the little chief.
Had more than one batch in the cold and damp that this would have benefitted from.
Great tip but i now have a Bradley.
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If you like hot smoked fish, look into these propane fired smokers. My buddy has one and they're the cat's bezzoink.
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if you want it a little more dry near the center of the fish I would put it in the oven for a while on low mabey 3mins as low as you can get it but I think that sounds good.
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I always put mine in the oven but after I peel the skin off. This helps to dry the oils out.
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If you like hot smoked fish, look into these propane fired smokers. My buddy has one and they're the cat's bezzoink.
Absolutely positively the best way to make smoked fish (or smoked turkey which I did one year as well ...mmmmm).
Around $250
(http://www.northerntool.com/images/product/images/168812_lg.jpg)
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I always put mine in the oven but after I peel the skin off. This helps to dry the oils out.
just curious what temp you use and about how long? My last batch took 20hrs in the smoker to get to the consistency I wanted. I debated putting it in the oven to finish it off sooner but decided against it.
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The lowest temp on the oven. Mine is about 150-200. I lay paper towel on a cooky sheet and lay the smoked salmon on the paper towel and layer it putting paper towel between layers. Just did a batch yesterday and boy is it good.
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Just bring it right out of the brine and smoke it!!
That gives it the most flavor.
The real secret-----------is to vac pac it while it is still warm,tthat gives it that nice glaze on the fish an seals in all the fresh smoked flavor.try that and you will not be disapointed.
I don`t care if my fish is pretty------it just tastes good,and that is what counts!
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can you get away with just using zip lock bags after smoking?
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Try and get all the pieces the same thickness so they cook evenly and you wont have this problem. Keep in mind that the fish will continue to cook for a bit once you remove it from the smoker. Some people like it dry and others like it moist.
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I put the biggest thickest pieces on the bottom rack, to help cook them first, then start moving racks around threw the last half of smoke
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Do you baste your salmon as you smoke them or do you just baste them after they come out of the smoker ? Just got a little chief , first batch going in tomorrow .
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Read the recipes that come with the smoker. I find my variation of the dry cure suits my taste. I suppose you could " baste " it before, but I prefer the flavour the brine with spices give the salmon ( along with your own mix of hardwood chips ). I don't baste only brine (to cure). My 2 cents worth.