Cold smoked salmon

[Newby Andy]

Had a busy day today so used my cold smoking snake for the first time, before going out for the day I put two salmon fillets in the smoker and lit the smoking snake, came back eight hours later and it was ready. What an easy way to put lots of flavour into some fish.

[Wade]

Hi Andy. Do you havd a pboto of your cold smoking snake and the salmon 

[Newby Andy]

Sorry Wade but sadly not, I will remember to take photos in the future. 

[Justin]

I have ordered a side of salmon 840 g small one.

 

Just found this video. wow

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/video/2013/dec/11/food-diy-how-to-make-smoked-salmon-home-video

 

 

[Raptor72]

24 hours outside my cat would go mental 

 

[Wade]

1 hour ago, Justin said:

Just found this video. wow

Certainly a fun video. I love going to Billingsgate Market - the fish there is wonderful. If you go though, take a lot of cash as most of the traders there will only accept cash if you don't have an account with them.

The soldering iron smoke generator is a good idea. I will give that a try.

A couple of general comments on the curing method. 

• This will produce a fairly salty smoked salmon as the flesh of the fish is in constant contact with a large amount of salt and there is nowhere for the resulting brine to drain away to.
• The tip on the type of salt to use is perfect. There is no point in using any fancy salts for the cure as it is a waste of money. The best type of salt is cheap old fine grain cooking salt.
• I do have a problem with the length of time he is recommending resting after smoking (8-10 days), as generally the safe shelf life of smoked salmon can be as short as 10 days. This would be especially true with this method of smoking as the water content in the smoked fish is going to be quite high.

[sotv]

Tesco selling Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon fillets at the fish counter up to a kg in weight (side) with 25% off till 20/11 at 18.75 kg still twice as expensive as farmed salmon. But a really tasty bit of salmon and very different from the farmed salmon you get from most supermarkets.

[Wade]

1 hour ago, sotv said:

Tesco selling Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon fillets at the fish counter up to a kg in weight (side) with 25% off till 20/11 at 18.75 kg still twice as expensive as farmed salmon. But a really tasty bit of salmon and very different from the farmed salmon you get from most supermarkets.

If you are going to hot smoke them you can use them fresh straight from the counter however, as they are wild salmon, if you are going to cold smoke them you would first need to freeze them in order to kill any potential parasites.

http://www.woodsmokeforum.uk/topic/299-why-do-we-sometimes-need-to-freeze-fish-before-smoking/

[sotv]

 

27 minutes ago, Wade said:

If you are going to hot smoke them you can use them fresh straight from the counter however, as they are wild salmon, if you are going to cold smoke them you would first need to freeze them in order to kill any potential parasites.

http://www.woodsmokeforum.uk/topic/299-why-do-we-sometimes-need-to-freeze-fish-before-smoking/

Tesco Sockeye Salmon says previously frozen, but suitable for re-freezing also

[Wade]

It looks as if they have done the freeze for you. With farmed salmon the freezing is not required.

[Justin]

if you do freeze first it will help to break down the cell structure a bit as the freeze will rupture them so the cure is quicker and more effective

[Ruedeleglise]

I seem to remember the guy behind the fish counter at our local Tesco’s said all their salmon comes in frozen. I have only tried cold smoking Sockeye once and neither of us thought the texture or taste was as good as the farmed. Possibly just personal taste or a bad bit of sockeye?.....or a bad bit of smoking by me!

[Wade]

2 hours ago, Ruedeleglise said:

I have only tried cold smoking Sockeye once and neither of us thought the texture or taste was as good as the farmed. Possibly just personal taste or a bad bit of sockeye?.....or a bad bit of smoking by me!

You have hit the nail on the head... Commercial smoked salmon in the UK is produced using farmed salmon almost exclusively precisely because it is consistent. When I was at Formans in London I asked about the use of wild salmon and they told me that they will only use it at an individual customers request as the lifestyle of wild salmon make its quality and flavour unpredictable. 

[Wade]

2 hours ago, Justin said:

if you do freeze first it will help to break down the cell structure a bit as the freeze will rupture them so the cure is quicker and more effective

Freezing and thawing for the first time will certainly help it lose the first 3% of water but I have not seen any evidence that it makes the ultimate cure appreciably quicker or more effective. Have you seen this tested?

[Justin]

I guess it is theory,  but in the video I posted on this thread? I take you point too on the amount of tie he leaves it to rest, but he does use a lot of salt so I guess he has cured it more. Smoke salmon can be frozen too, then defrost inf the fridge. I have done that many times before.  I have a side of salmon in the freezer at the mo, I delayed the cure because I am hols next week, will do it when I get back from Venice. Love smoked salmon

[martin_b]

Sorry for the late arrival, I'm a newbie here but I’ve been cold smoking salmon for a while so i thought I'd add my thoughts on the Video..

Ref the Market:  As has been said here, absolutely take cash, and also a large cool box, a dripping salmon does nothing for a car’s interior. (Same goes for Smithfield, but remember you have to be out of London by 7:00am to avoid the congestion charge and if you do go to Smithfield be prepared to buy in bulk for the big savings, a wheeled cool box or a wheeled travel bag and some bubble wrap for insulation is recommended. ( Cow, Pigs and Sheep are heavy!) )   

Curing salt:  I now always use Kosher salt, it has no Iodine and I swear tastes better. I buy it in 25KG sacks so it’s pretty good value.  I also always dry cure, Salt,& Sugar mix. Plus a bit of Dill and White pepper directly on the fish. I cure skin side down and cover the entire fish in the mix, less at the tail and the head, then leave between 12h and 24h.  You can prod it and  feel when it’s done, in Steak terms it goes from  “Blue” to a “Well done”. Next rinse gently under running water for at least 20mins.  Unless I’ve caught the fish myself I don’t freeze beforehand.

Leave for a a day for the pellicle to form then I’ll smoke, usually with Alder dust, but I’ll always smoke the fish flat, I just think it’s safer.  What I’m trying to avoid at all stages it to tear the flesh. On the video you can see where this has happened in a couple of places. I use a large Prow for the smoker and I usually refill it once. Different woods burn at different speeds so the time will vary.

Then  I tend to leave it for a another day in the fridge then cut the side in half, vacuum pack and freeze.

I’ve rambled on long enough!

cheers

[Justin]

Thank you. all good advice.  I have done three now and i love the oily texture but i will try different nuances of method like this. I slice and freeze after, just got some out for lunch today, maple smoked. I do not microwave, it lights easily enough and with a kitchen torch and hen gently smokes for 16 hours on the pro q maze, not need to refill

[Raptor72]

36 minutes ago, martin_b said:

Sorry for the late arrival, I'm a newbie here but I’ve been cold smoking salmon for a while so i thought I'd add my thoughts on the Video..

Ref the Market:  As has been said here, absolutely take cash, and also a large cool box, a dripping salmon does nothing for a car’s interior. (Same goes for Smithfield, but remember you have to be out of London by 7:00am to avoid the congestion charge and if you do go to Smithfield be prepared to buy in bulk for the big savings, a wheeled cool box or a wheeled travel bag and some bubble wrap for insulation is recommended. ( Cow, Pigs and Sheep are heavy!) )   

Curing salt:  I now always use Kosher salt, it has no Iodine and I swear tastes better. I buy it in 25KG sacks so it’s pretty good value.  I also always dry cure, Salt,& Sugar mix. Plus a bit of Dill and White pepper directly on the fish. I cure skin side down and cover the entire fish in the mix, less at the tail and the head, then leave between 12h and 24h.  You can prod it and  feel when it’s done, in Steak terms it goes from  “Blue” to a “Well done”. Next rinse gently under running water for at least 20mins.  Unless I’ve caught the fish myself I don’t freeze beforehand.

Leave for a a day for the pellicle to form then I’ll smoke, usually with Alder dust, but I’ll always smoke the fish flat, I just think it’s safer.  What I’m trying to avoid at all stages it to tear the flesh. On the video you can see where this has happened in a couple of places. I use a large Prow for the smoker and I usually refill it once. Different woods burn at different speeds so the time will vary.

Then  I tend to leave it for a another day in the fridge then cut the side in half, vacuum pack and freeze.

I’ve rambled on long enough!

cheers

Sounds like a Smithfield visit in the future Justin 

[Wade]

Hi Martin - great post, thanks 

Just to clarify that Billingsgate market is outside the London congestion zone so you will only pass through the zone if you are travelling to it through central London

Yes, the cool box is essential. The first couple of times I went I didn't take one and my wife complained for days afterwards.

Totally agree about avoiding salt with iodide, which is why I use cooking salt and not table salt.

As you point out, you cannot hang large fillets of fish without fear of the meat tearing unless you leave in both the gill collar and rib cage to support the weight. I am not sure if you have seen this post? Traditional smoked salmon and trout

[martin_b]

58 minutes ago, Wade said:

Hi Martin - great post, thanks 

Just to clarify that Billingsgate market is outside the London congestion zone so you will only pass through the zone if you are travelling to it through central London

Yes, the cool box is essential. The first couple of times I went I didn't take one and my wife complained for days afterwards.

Totally agree about avoiding salt with iodide, which is why I use cooking salt and not table salt.

As you point out, you cannot hang large fillets of fish without fear of the meat tearing unless you leave in both the gill collar and rib cage to support the weight. I am not sure if you have seen this post? Traditional smoked salmon and trout

That’s an interesting thread..  A fine example of the old saying about many ways to skin a cat!

I’ve never wrapped in cling film,  (because its an invention of the devil and impossible to get off the roll without tearing) also as its my preference is for a what might be considered a salty flavour,  i just use a large food safe box, bung the sides in there cover in salt and sugar and go from there.  What i have found is that the strong salt taste doesn’t go all the way through the flesh of the fish, so you can mitigate the salty taste by a longer rinse cycle.

What does intrigue  me is the idea of smoking before filleting, might give that a try after  I visit Dever spring or Avington.

[Justin]

Tip on cling film. When you cut bit off wrap loose end of the roll the other way and it is easy to grab the next bit.

[Raptor72]

Great tip 

[martin_b]

Thanks, for this..  however my tip for clingfilm use tinfoil instead! 😀