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[Navy Seal Fisherman]

original thread: http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=24924.0

Here is a link to my photo summary on the smoking process:

http://picasaweb.google.com/114076504906753337732/SmokingSockeye?authkey=Gv1sRgCMrX8s2ho6-45QE&feat=email#

Thanks AF for the the support and detailed info, it turned out pretty good. did two batches. Now I can experiment

[Fish Assassin]

Looks totally awesome. What kind of chips did you use ?

[Navy Seal Fisherman]

Thanks, Alder pucks from Bradley

[alwaysfishn]

Looks great! Were you happy with the salt content? I use probably 1/3 of what it looks like you used. I'm pretty cheap so I use the minimum I need to.

Just a comment on your smoked product.....   If you bring up the temperature a little slower you won't have any of the white formation on your product. It doesn't make any difference on taste, just how it looks!

What are you thinking of doing different next time?

[Navy Seal Fisherman]

Thanks, I was thinking of dropping my timing to 2 hrs for the ends and 2.5 for the little thicker pieces. they were all 4-6 pound sockeyes. I could have been less generous on the thickness of my brine mix, but due to the container , I had to build up my stacks 4 high, but I tried laying down 1/4 inch. Next time I will try putting meat to meat, skin to skin so I can cut down on the layering. (i.e. put the mix between only the meat sides). I had the temperature between 40-50 for the 1st 2 hrs and 60 for the 2nd 2 hrs and 150-160 for the last hour. I was told that amount of fat is also an indicator of how far in the cycle the fish is ( i.e chrome ocean ones have less fat seepage and river salmon have more) I do know, from reading, that initial heat application should be kept low. I though 40-50 for the first 2 hrs was low enough.

I didn't see as much pellicle after refrigeration as I was expecting. That may be a factor.

The people that have tried it say they liked it. I'd like it a touch less salty, just a touch. I did try light maple syrup from costco on about 1/3 of the pieces but it did not come out sweet at all. actually no noticeable maple flavor. I am curious about the candying aspect and would like to try that. 2/3 of what I did make had ground fresh pepper, chili powder and some parsley

[doja]

If you would like to be more like candy I found out that cutting them into cubes or stripe works 10x better!!! They taste better as they have more exposed surface area to the "sauce" and when smoking they don't get the white film that you can get on the top like yours. You don't even have to be picky with the temp either when cut thin vs slabs and it can finish faster and more even as well.

I'll never do it any other way again!!!

Here is a pic of what it looks like when done this way. These are all pinks.

***Note*** Not all the peices are from the same batch and brine. The ones on the bottom that look like candy are just a wine brine and no glaze and they turned out the best.


 

And note that refrigeration doesn't make the pellicle as it slows the drying which creates the pellicle. It just keep the fish from spoiling while drying. I'll take it out of the fridge and put a fan on it for a hour or 2 to ensure it has set right (pellicle) and then into the smoker it goes. If you can put a fan in the fridge it will happen much, much faster and would be ideal!!!

And I don't bother wasting my time and money on a glaze as it is not needed when done this way. My brine is the glaze!!!

Give it a go!!!

Doja

[Navy Seal Fisherman]

Thanks Doja.  So what is candy exactly?. is it caramelising of the sugars on the outside like a candy apple? I have never tried candied salmon. and what forms the coating? i.e. constant basting?

[NiceFish]

Here is another one for candy from the IronNoggin

http://forum.fishbc.com/index.php?showtopic=26851

[Navy Seal Fisherman]

Thanks Nicefish, that candy looks amazing. I would love to try one of his. The cost of the ingredients is pretty steep. would be good to know if I liked it before I invest.

AF & Doja , doing another batch right now, drying on the counter this time under a fan instead of the fridge overnight. I'll see what the pellicle looks like in 2-3 hours. I am going to try a honey & maple syrup mix on maybe 1/2 of the fillets to see how that goes.

Thanks for all you time and inputs guys... BTW by temp info I gave in the opening thread, I mixed F and C in that description. I will try and keep it to 40 for the first 2 hrs, then gradually increase to 60 for the next 2 then 70 for the next 1-2 hrs... If anyone thinks these are too high, let me know....cheers

[Eagleye]

If you are going to baste it with honey/maple syrup I would recommend doing so in the last two hours of smoking.  I usually baste if the outside is drying out before the inside is done.  I use fireweed honey with a touch of water.  I haven't used a recipe with more salt:sugar before... sounds salty.  If you want it to be more like candy brine it for longer in a brine with mostly sugar and or cut the pieces into thin strips.  With the type of cut you used I would have put slits down to the skin about 1 inch apart to help in brine and cook more thoroughly.  I usually only leave the tail and belly meat in pieces like you have and the rest I cut into strips about 1-1 1/2 inch wide.  My mild brine for red salmon to retain the flavour is 1 cup Kosher salt to 2 bags demerrea brown sugar.  Brine for approximately 16 hours. My Dry Brine Candy recipe (which is good on all salmon but especially White Springs): http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=21851.msg216780#msg216780  http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=22987.msg217493#msg217493

[Navy Seal Fisherman]

Why last 2 hrs? Yes my salt  mix is higher but i also just keep it in for 3 hrs...thx your stuff looks amazing.. pls describe the taste

[doja]

Thanks Doja.  So what is candy exactly?. is it caramelising of the sugars on the outside like a candy apple? I have never tried candied salmon. and what forms the coating? i.e. constant basting?

The drying forms the coat, with the help of the brine (I'd think wet is better), not basting, and I'd suspect is where the name candy comes from however some recipes like to use more sugar and add honey to make it sweeter and that may be true "candy", but I'm not a fan of overly sweet things and am happy with my brine.

What I use is,

1/4 cup coarse salt
1 cup soya sauce
1 cup water
3 cups dry white wine
garlic powder
onion powder
1/2 cup brown sugar or Demetra
Tabasco sauce
Soak for 24 hrs

Not a lot of sugar and no honey but it turns out very good. I don't rinse them when I remove from the brine, just hang and dry thoroughly! And I'm pretty sure the booze (alcohol) helps make the flavors more adsorb-able.

If you are using a dry brine you may want to look at using a wet or wetter brine as you can add more flavor stuff that will soak into the fish better if cut into stripes. I'm sure the soya sauce helps create the pellicle. I've even done recipes with sweet chili sauce (quite cheap) and they turned out very good too. You can do a lot of experimenting with sauces and they all help create a good pellicle.

The hardest part is getting the pellicle to set right. Right now it is  ~76% humidity... may take a while but if done right you will have a great looking product with a great texture. Remember, the sauce helps create the pellicle! but it doesn't have to be just plain sugar and honey....

I've tried basting but have over done it with not so great results and have stopped the practice as it is not really needed if done properly.

Why last 2 hrs? Yes my salt  mix is higher but i also just keep it in for 3 hrs...thx your stuff looks amazing.. pls describe the taste

Because it can be done wrong with bad results.... I've been there before with the baste and if it drys too much it can leave sugar crystals which are not good!!!!

Just focus on a good pellicle and you won't need to baste. trust me!!!! And try a wet brine as well!!!

Note - nogs batch took 36 hrs to dry and I usually leave it in the fridge for 24 hrs and then set out to dry some more and then smoke. This is a very important step to a great result.

And I see you let the fish sit in the brine for only 3 hrs, not a bad thing but you won't get much absorbed from the flavors you add and that is what you want. You need 12 - 24 hrs for good absorption and I don't know how that fits in with a dry brine. I don't use dry brine's, only wet's.

Good luck!

[Eagleye]

Why last 2 hrs? Yes my salt  mix is higher but i also just keep it in for 3 hrs...thx your stuff looks amazing.. pls describe the taste

Like I said I use it to keep the outside moist while the inside cooks but it is also good because it lets the smoke flavour penetrate the fish first and then adds some extra sweetness at the end so that you have the smokey flavour and the sweet glaze will be more noticeable.  All the smoking recipes I have seen call for the glaze at the end.  But I suppose you could preglaze too.  In the Dry Candy recipe I posted I do not rinse off the brine like in alwaysfishin recipe so it is like having a preglaze I suppose.  Glazing near the end will add more sweetness to your finished product and give it more of a shiny appearance (But it will also be more sticky).  If you want it extra sweet you can glaze it once it is done too but it will be extra gooey.  With my dry brine candy recipe I usually don't glaze it unless I need to moisten the outside.  You can experiment with many diffent types of glazes made of a combination of maple syrup, honey, brown sugar, water, bourbon, molasses, etc.   I mostly smoke red/white springs with the Dry Brine Candy recipe and the result is sweet candy coated outside that retains some moisture and lots of oil on the inside and does not taste salty at all.  The mild brine recipe I posted mostly just tastes like the fish.  Both are very tasty IMHO and those I have given it to say it is the best smoked salmon they have ever had...

[NiceFish]

After my cedar smoker went up in flames, I was gifted a brand new Bradley digital 4 rack smoker from my parents (i have no idea why? maybe they felt it was safe than me trying to build another).

SO with that being said, I will be smoking up my first batch sometime this week, I'm going to use alwaysfishn's recipe however I may glazed one rack with maple syrup an hour or so before it's done.

[NiceFish]

Also maybe I didnt catch this, but how long does it roughly take for the pellicle to form in the fridge vs. how long it will take if I put a fan on the fish in a small room with a window open?

I'm trying to basically smoke my fish through a work day so I can go out fishing on the weekend