Fished Ice Off Yesterday ~ Will Smoke Trout Tomorrow

[Dark Cloud]

I just finished up a steelhead that I used this recipe with... it turned out awesome!

I dont have a smoker plus I dont care for things heavily smoked so heres what I did..

I "cook/smoked" it on my regular gas grill. I placed the fish on the left hand side of the top rack and only turned on the far right burner on about medium-med/low.

To get some smoke flavor I made a tinfoil pouch and filled it with hickory chips soaked in apple juice. I wedged that pouch between the burner and side of the grill. She smoked just the right amount for me...

I also drizzled some apple juice and black pepper on the fish.

The grill was running 250-300 and I cooked it two hours. I did open the lid quite a bit keeping an eye on it, never made it before...

The final product turned out great! A tad salty but perfect.

Tomorrow i'll make some into a spread by mixing the fish into some cream cheese, lemon juice, chopped pickles, cajun seasoning...

[old goose hunter]

Thirdeye this is a great way to cure fish for smoking. A friend of mine

just brought me two big bags of king salmon he brought back from Alaska

this fall. I do have a question, some of these fillets were very large

like as in 20lb fish. So one end was 1 1/2 inches thick, the other was

down to a 1/4" thick. I left the fillets whole when I put the cure on them

in the plastic wrap. The thin ends turned out pretty salty until the

fillets were 3/4ths of an inch thick. Then the rest was incredible. I guess

I should have cut the fillets up in chunks and cured the thinner parts

only a couple of hours? I left them in the cure for about six hours as

the fillets were much larger than the ones you have pictured. I did add a

couple of extra garlic cloves to the recipe, then I did some with red pepper

flakes, and black pepper. Some I sliced a little onion on top of them, and

a couple I put fresh dill, and marjorum on top. Excellent recipe, thank you

for sharing. Some day I will have to have my wife help me post some pic's

I have another bag of probably 25 more pounds of fillets. This batch was

the smaller bag and it was 21lbs of fish.

[thirdeye]

Glad you liked it.... and yes, you are correct about the different thicknesses of a fillet. Cure time is based on thickness, amount of cure used is based on weight. 1-1/2" thick sections of the fillet could have gone 8 hours, and the 1/4" thick would have been better about 4 hours. Of course these are just a guide and you can adjust the times, but you know how the 3/4" thick section turned out, so that's a good start on figuring out how you like yours to come out.

Here is what I do, these fillets were about 3 or 3.5 pounds each. First I cut off the tail sections, so they have a somewhat even thickness. Then I cut the belly strip off, leaving me a rectangular fillet. Then decide if I need to cut the remainder of the fillet into smaller pieces. They present better when whole, but they are easier to smoke perfectly when they are in smaller pieces. The last photo shows you what I wound up with after smoking.

Like I mentioned, I adjust the amount of cure I use (more on the thicker pieces) then stagger the cure time, allowing longer times for the thicker pieces. On the ones above, I decided I would cure the belly strips for 4 hours, the tail sections for 6 hours and the thicker pieces for 7 or 8 hours. At noon I prepped and wrapped the thick sections, at 2:00PM I prepped and wrapped the tails, and at 4:00PM I prepped and wrapped the bellies. Then around 8:00PM I removed all the packages from the fridge and rinsed them. Then added some pepper and returned to the fridge to rest overnight.

The next day when I smoked them I knew the belly strips would be up to temp first (I use 150° internal), then the tails would be done next, followed my the thicker pieces.

However.... The one thing about those belly strips... they are very fatty, and I actually took them to a higher internal temperature (close to 170°) to sweat some additional fat out. They were very good at this temp, and still very moist. Because of the fat, they have a stronger fish flavor, but it's a good contrast to the mild flavor of the other pieces.

[old goose hunter]

Thanks Thirdeye, Good information. I did and or do cut the fillets up before

I smoke them as smoke time varies on thickness. But I have always just used

a salt sugar brine before, so I left them whole to brine. With your dry

cure it is great to be able to impart the garlic and ginger, and I would

have never thought of bay leaves. I did leave them in the fridge over night

with the pepper, onions etc. on them while they dried. That really let the

flavors sink in to the fish. Next time I will also cure according to the

thickness. So thanks again, and keep posting those great pictures!

[thirdeye]

I know it's tough to do.... but after smoking I like to chill the fillets overnight before serving. That time really helps with texture and evens out the moisture. It also makes it slice easier.

For a fancier look, I will take red and green peppercorns and soak them in warm water for an hour or so to soften them up, then spray a light coating of oil on the fish and sprinkle them on about 2 hours before smoking. They look like capers (which I don't really care for).

[toughguy]

TTT! Tried this today. All I can say is wow!

[Jim Almquist]

It is that time of the year were this thread should be closer to the top for all to find.

[JP Z]

I was just thinking of that Jim. Was hoping to catch a couple more Bows yesterday to smoke up. I think the 2 small ones I got will go in the frying pan instead. Yum!!!

[thirdeye]

I wish this year's ice off was as hot as last years..... Most of our lakes and reservoirs are really low, but a few nice ones bit my line. We still have good runoff so the water is at least nice and cold.

[otterman91105]

Tried this recipe a couple of weeks ago it's awesome. The more smoke the better.

[thirdeye]

One of the few brands of smoked salmon I purchase is one that has some honey added. I snooped around on their site and saw that they use hickory.

Now, this was against everything I learned about smoking fish, but I gave it a try and found I like a hickory blend. Of course it works better on thicker fillets, but I have done a couple of batches of trout with hickory in the mix.

[DonBo]

One of the few brands of smoked salmon I purchase is one that has some honey added. I snooped around on their site and saw that they use hickory.

Now, this was against everything I learned about smoking fish, but I gave it a try and found I like a hickory blend. Of course it works better on thicker fillets, but I have done a couple of batches of trout with hickory in the mix.

I often use hickory and like it a lot. I think you can overdo the smoke though. I usually just use the smoke (with hickory) for a couple hours.

As for the honey, I usually brush some honey, or better yet, real maple syrup on the fillets about an hour before they come out of the smoker. Adds a nice sweet flavor that we really like.

[thirdeye]

I often use hickory and like it a lot. I think you can overdo the smoke though. I usually just use the smoke (with hickory) for a couple hours.

As for the honey, I usually brush some honey, or better yet, real maple syrup on the fillets about an hour before they come out of the smoker. Adds a nice sweet flavor that we really like.

I think wood selection is somewhat dependent on the smoker itself. I smoke my fish in a Little Chief or a Big Chief, so I can regulate the temp by unplugging the hot plate, and regulate the smoke by limiting the amount of chips I use. I sometimes block the lid open to increase the air flow.

The honey salmon I mentioned must be a secret method, their HSOforum alludes to using honey but it sounds like it might be mixed with water and sprayed into the smoker or used in a water tray or something.... not applied directly to the fillets.