Steve Harford

On 12/12/2020 at 7:02 AM, Alan Kilroy said:

Is it essential to have a Vacuum sealer machine?

Can you just remove air from bag or as I do atm, use clingfilm to freeze in (smoked Salmon)?

Just don't want to have another contraption knockin' about the kitchen if possible.

Hi Ped

Lidls have one this week for 20 quid. would do the job and its not very big  

Yes mate, that was my concern but then it’s quite a thick piece. Will post a pic later. Maybe an eq cure is the way to go?

Hi all

I’ve just picked up a side of pork from a proper free range bacon pig. Separated into belly and back and bones out. Now at the end of the loin is a nice meaty piece which the butcher pointed out as ‘a nice gammon’. I liked the sound of that so he cut it off to be treated separately to the bacon. I’m assuming I wet brine it as you would a normal ham?  Then I plan to do boiling bacon with it. As I am going away for 2 weeks this Friday, can I wet brine it and leave it for what will effectively be 3 weeks before drying off. My concern is that i won’t be there to stir up the brine occasionally. The other option is that I freeze it until after the holiday. Either way, a pointer to a suitable brine would be much appreciated. Many thanks 

No Justin. Why would I do that mate? Completely unnecessary. I’m making bacon. English breakfast bacon. 

The portable digital temp gauge reads 3degC inside and just before I close the door it o my gets up to about 5. 

The curing is done fully vac packed. 

After washing off it is patted dry with kitchen towel and hung inside the fridge  

I did notice a small amount of moisture on the meat surface when I checked it. This makes me think it’s a humidity problem. But I’m doing nothing different to that which I’ve always done, except that it’s a different fridge. I will double check the temp with my thermapen.  

No Justin. I never normally have to do that. 

Interestingly, I have just done another batch where, due to being hospitalised, the cured loins were left in the fridge for 3 days. When I went to smoke them this morning I noticed some furry bits on one of them. This indicates, to me, that there is too high a humidity in the fridge. This is with a new fridge but never happened in the old one even for several weeks of being sat there. I can’t see how the air circulation can be any different. In fact this fridge is bigger so it should be better. I’ve even turned the stat down to 3 dog so it’s not temperature. 

Thank you Wade. 

The meat was in the fridge between smoking, which was 3 full CSGs in total.  I do it overnight then bring it into the fridge during the day but I’m wondering from what you have said, that the air was too damp as it was rainy. 

Next time, I will hold the flaps open the whole time to get better circulation. I’ve previously tied it all up right from the very start with no problem. A waste of a good piece of meat but a lesson learnt. 

Just about to start slicing some cured and smoked loins and a collar and surprised and disappointed to see that the inside of the collar is furry. Never had this happen before so I thought I would ask for advice here before I throw it. I’ve sliced off the ‘ solid’ end and that’s fine and tastes as it should. 

I did my usual 3% Lucas curing salt with 0.4g sugar and was careful ( I thought) to rub it well in to the inner part. This was then vac packed and left in the fridge for 2 weeks followed by 2 days pellicle forming, then 52hrs total smoke. Since then it has been hanging in the fridge. 

The temperature of the fridge was at 4C at all times. 

As you can see it has a grey/green colour to the inner surface which was slightly furry when first inspected. 

My first thought was that the I hadn’t been thorough enough with curing it but surely it would smell off if that was the case?

Since starting to write this I have chosen to bin it. 

Thank you Wade. As expected, a very well put explanation and confirmation of my concerns. I’m surprised that This is sold from such an outlet when there are so many others suppliers who could provide them with a safer product. 

Hi all

I thought I would bump this conversation as i was just about to order some smoking dust from HotsmokedUk when I thought I’d check out the cost of their Supracure and was astonished to see their recommendation of 6% of meat weight. Surely this is too high based on the above discussion and would result in a very salty bacon? Also how does their brine solution recommendation look? I assume they mean per litre?

Oh yes. Sechaun pepper ! I forgot about that one. I always dry fry it before grinding now. Much easier. 

Justin, they are ok. I use one for small quantities but if making up a decent amount of rub then a grinder saves a lot of work. Especially with peppercorns which otherwise have a tendency to fly all over the kitchen. Also with coriander seeds a mortar and pestle doesn’t pulverise those pesky husks like a grinder does. 

Hi Wade. Well. I only got around to slicing it today. But. Completely different to my normal efforts. Evidently I’ve achieved a much higher weight loss than usual judging by the more oily finish. Also it was a hell of a lot stiffer but not dry. The finished product was very moist and the flavour far more intensified than what I normally get, but in a good way - I like to taste my smoked salmon. Having doubled my normal smoke time to 24 hrs I was surprised to find that it wasn’t overpowering, even having used a mix of oak and hickory. So overall it’s a thumbs up from me, in fact it is my best ever!  

The only downside would be presentation. I can usually slice pretty neatly but this one decided it wanted to break up from about half way down each slice. As you may be able to see in the pic. I will definitely be doing more in this way though  

On 7/31/2017 at 3:13 PM, Wade said:

Smoked Salmon and Trout is one of the products that I produce in reasonable quantity in the Smokery. It has a fairly short shelf life (~10 days in the fridge) ans do must be produced on a regular basis. Smoked salmon can be frozen for longer storage but does eventually start to lose some of its texture whilst frozen.
I regularly get texts from local fishermen at the end of a weekend asking if I will smoke their catch for them. The smoking process takes about 2 days in total and turns the results of their day of sport into something very special to eat.

Making "traditional" smoked salmon and trout is quite straightforward and can be easily done in a home smoker. Bullet smokers are ideal for cold smoking multiple fish however individual fish can be smoked quite easily in most kettle BBQs.

What is "traditional" smoked salmon?

It is when the salmon is preserved in times of plenty for eating later when food is scarce using of a combination salt, smoke and drying as the cure. Historically the resulting salmon would have been expected to last for weeks or months and would have ended up being very salty and much drier than today's smoked salmon. It would probably have need to have been soaked to remove some of the salt before it was eaten.
Today though the smoked salmon we are used to buying is much less salty, but it does only have a chilled shelf life of about 10 days. 

What do we mean when we say we are "curing" salmon or trout?

We are altering the fish flesh in order to slow the growth of spoilage bacteria so that it is safe to eat over a longer period of time.This is achieved by using a combination of three different ways to control bacteria spoilage.

1. Addition of salt. By increasing the salt concentration the bacteria cells are dehydrated through osmosis and the bacteria are killed or their growth is inhibited.
2. Removal of available water. Bacteria need available water in order to grow and multiply. During the curing process we will be removing water that is between 15-18% of the original weight of the fish. This gives the smoked salmon its traditional translucent appearance and oily texture.
3. Addition of smoke. Wood smoke contain a number of substances that inhibit bacterial growth and it can act as an effective anti bacterial in sufficient quantity. Sufficient smoke to do this alone would be unpalatable and so in today's traditional smoked salmon it is predominantly there for flavour.

Do we need Nitrite when curing Salmon?

No we don't. Nitrite and Nitrate are primarily used to control the growth of bacteria spores (e.g. Clostridium botulinum). as the smoked salmon we are producing has a chilled shelf life of about 10 days these are not a problem here.

Step 1 - Preparing the salmon

When I get caught salmon delivered to my door from local fishermen it is whole, ungutted and is in bags.

Salmon bought from the local fishmonger comes looking much less daunting. It is important that you use the freshest possible fish when making smoked salmon so before you buy, ensure that the eyes still look clear and bright and that the gills are still a deep crimson colour

 

First the head needs to be removed. When doing this it is important to keep the bony gill collar in place on the body of the fish as this will help support it while it is smoking.

The fish then needs to be "split". This is similar to filleting - however the rib cage and pin bones are left attached to the fillets during the curing and smoking process.

Using a sharp knife cut along the backbone from the head end down the length of the fish - cutting through the rib bones at the top and then filleting as you move towards the tail. Repeat on the other side so that you end up with the two split sides and a backbone with the tail attached.

If the salmon is large then you can optionally cut away a couple of disks of the skin to allow easier drying. Smaller fish, like trout, do not need to have disks cut.

Wash the salmon sides under cold running water and pat dry with kitchen towel

Step 2 - Curing the salmon

The cure I use regularly consists of 50% salt and 50% sugar by weight. These ratios can be adjusted but the salt should always be at least 50%

• Salt. This can be any non iodised salt. Fine cooking salt works well and I often use this. I also use course sea salt, which you can see in the photos below.
• Sugar. I use standard granulated white sugar. Different sugars can be used but these will affect the colour and flavour of the resulting smoked salmon.

Mix the salt and sugar together well in a bowl and sprinkle on both the skin and flesh sides of each fish split. You should have more of the cure mid at the thicker head end of the fish and gradually reduce it towards the tail. With the fine salt you will see an even layer of white salt ans sugar on the fish but with the coarse salt (below) it is more difficult to see.

Place the salted splits on top of a wire cooling rack in a tray. The action of the salt will pull water out of the fish and it will drop into the tay below as brine. The cooling racks help keep the bottom fish out of the brine and prevent it from becoming too salty.

Salmon can be stacked up to 2 sides high for curing and smaller fish can be stacked up to 3 sides high

Cover in clingfilm and place in the fridge. For large salmon fillets allow 18 hours but smaller trout will only need 12 hours.

If you do not have room in the fridge for one of the large trays then you can use a standard roasting tray with a wire cooling rack placed over the top.

During the curing process the brine will fall to the bottom of the tray. The amount shown below was from 2 whole salmon (4 sides)

Once cured for the required time the fish should be washed well under cold running water and then patted dry with kitchen paper. You will notice that the fish will have turned a deeper orange colour and has become much firmer in texture.

Step 3 - Preparing for smoking

If using a smaller kettle smoker, or if using a cardboard box, the fish can be laid skin side up on a wire cooling rack inside the smoker. If using a bullet smoker or larger custom cold smoker then it is best to hang the sides vertically. To do this it is best to string them ans support them with a skewer.

You will need some non fiberous string (I use butcher string) some metal skewers and a large sack needle. If you do not have a sack needle then you can use the point of a small sharp knife to make the hole for the skin.

Using the needle thread a length of string through the fish side just underneath the bony collar. 

Tie the two ends of the string together to make a loop.

Push the skewer through the flesh of the fish underneath the bony collar but above the string loops. 

This will give the salmon sides plenty of support while they are smoked.

Leave the prepared salmon sides in the fridge, uncovered, for an hour to allow a pellicle (slightly sticky surface) to form.

Step 4 - Smoking

The salmon should then be placed in the smoker and left to smoke at between 20-24 C (the temperature of a nice warm summer day) for 24 hours.

I mostly use hickory when smoking salmon as it gives a nice sweet flavour, but Oak and most fruit woods are good for smoking fish too.

Whilst smoking it is essential that you maintain a good air flow through the smoking chamber. This ensures that the salmon continues to lose moisture as it is smoking.

Once it has finished smoking the salmon should be a nice shiny orange colour and will be quite stiff. 

Step 5 - Slicing the salmon

Remove the skewer and string and with a sharp knife remove any fins. When removing find cut around any small bones attached to the fins.

Cut away the bony collar removing as little meat as possible.

Using a sharp round ended knife slip the tip under the rib cage bones and gently cut along the ribs removing them completely.

The salmon in the photos below has has fresh fennel added to the cure for flavour.

Using a pair of pliers remove the pin bones along the centre of the salmon. The pin bones are usually easier to remove once the salmon has been cured.

Starting slicing at the tail of the salmon using  ~3mm thick slices

When the whole length of the salmon has been sliced, fold the slices back to their original position and remove them from the skin using a sharp knife.

 

Just completed following your method above Wade. I’ve always shied away from smoking in ‘warmer’ Weather but I’ve just averaged 22C in my cold smoker and the result is amazing. Obviously the water loss is significant. I didn’t do a weigh in as it was just an off the cuff cure and smoke but based on your method. Final result? Stiff as a board. I’ve always thought this is how it should be but never attained it before. Very pleased ! Now in the fridge awaiting its first tasting. 

Many thanks ??

That’s great mate. Many thanks. I prefer to hang rather than sit directly on the bars. Thanks for the tip ??

Wonderful memories there Martyn. I can picture it now. Many thanks for sharing. 

OK mate. Didn’t know that. Is that a twitter thing? Never did get twitter tbh. 

On a previous post Wade I saw you drying your fish like this. Did you also smoke them like it?

Thanks Wade. I will get on with that tomorrow. Much appreciated 

Oh dear. Hope all ok Wade. 

No rush mate. They are in the fridge. I have gutted them but taken the head off so will have to hank them upside down I guess. 

Anyway I shan’t be brining until tomorrow so no panic. Hope you don’t have too long a wait in A&E. 

Sorry. Only just seen your request. 

As hoped, they were beautiful. I gave the longer one to the in laws so was really chuffed when they raved about it after. 

I will be doing it again. Will try haddock next time I think. 

I’ve just come back from the farm market with some lovely plump mackerel( as well as a couple of lemon sole and a nice fat Brill) which I fancy smoking whole. Is that recommended for mackerel? And I presume they would need to be hot smoked? So any advice on time and temps would be greatly appreciated. Cheers

Here we go. These have had 11 hours over oak. Looking great. My gut feeling is that is enough. Will let you know after dinner tomorrow ☺️

Will do Wade. 5 hrs in at the moment. Forgot to put it on last night ?

Just picked up some cod loin as I have been wanting to cold smoke some for ages. I knew exactly where to look for guidance. Thanks Wade.