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Author: Subject: Smoking Fish techniques?
Santiago
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[*] posted on 5-13-2010 at 07:05 PM


Thanks guys - good stuff.
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Sharksbaja
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[*] posted on 5-14-2010 at 02:05 AM
An earlier discussion


that I found interesting

http://forums.bajanomad.com/viewthread.php?tid=26681#pid2587... (scroll up)




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estebanis
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[*] posted on 5-14-2010 at 01:02 PM


Quote:
Originally posted by torch
estebanis Ive never done a dry rub on fish but would love to have the recipe or at least a little more than above , also powdered teriyaki (ive never seen this)


I have to look at the ethnic stores to find the powdered Teriyaki. An Arabic Food Store in Anaheim carries the Kim's Asian brand that I like.

Generic Dry Cure Recipes

Directions:

Mix 3 parts brown sugar to 1 part non-iodized salt together in a bowl. Add 1 package of dry teriyaki marinade and mix into salt sugar mixture. Layer fillets in a deep non-metallic pan. Rub each fillet lightly with the cure mix and then cover each layer generously with more dry mixture.

Cover and place in refrigerator or ice chest for 18 to 24 hours. The mixture will draw moisture out of the fish, creating it's own liquid brine. Rinse lightly, pat dry, and set out on paper towels to air-dry for about 1 hour. I cover mine with some fly-stopping screens from my camp kitchen.

See below for more info on drying your fish.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Drying Your Fish
After the fish has been cured, using either brine or dry cure methods, it must be allowed to dry before smoking. This critical step allows a pellicle, or glaze, to form on the skin to keep moisture in and contaminants out. The pellicle also provides a good surface for the smoke to adhere to, giving your smoked fish both its smoky flavor and uniform color.

How to Dry Fish. Rinse the fish in cool running water and pat dry with paper towels and place skin side down in a cool shady spot. If you place your fish on your smoker racks to dry, you can save some time later.

The fish should have plenty of air circulation space all around to ensure even drying. A small fan will help speed up the drying process. The fish is dried and ready for the smoker when the pellicle forms on the surface.

Q: How do I know when the pellicle has formed?
A: When a shiny and tacky (sticky) skin has formed on the fish.

Drying time depends on the moisture content of the fish, the temperature, amount of air flow, and the relative humidity in the surrounding air. The pellicle should be formed usually in about an hour – the time can vary depending on the factors above.
This is what gives some smoked fish that golden or red sheen.
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[*] posted on 5-14-2010 at 01:11 PM


Smoking fish or anything else isn't hard to do. Temps.? There're about a million recipes on the www. :D
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fishabductor
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[*] posted on 5-31-2010 at 08:32 PM


Bring along your own wood, I brought down 60# of Alder pellets, 20# of Apple wood, and 20# of cherry wood. the smoke flavor comes from the wood, not the brine. Don't use mesquite for smoking fish..it is way too strong and is best with red meats and chicken.

Cold smoke if possible by getting the fish far from the heat source, or it will cook rather than cure.

For a brine, I use Soy sauce, orange juice, garlic powder, onion powder, salt(iodine) white/brown sugar, a little seafood seasoning and red pepper flakes if you like a little kick. The brine should taste stong. All ingredients need to be added before the brine is brought to a boil, and then cooled to room temp. For best results the fish should be frozen overnight and then thawed and placed in the brine. the freezing breaks down the flesh and creates a better consistency.

My family is a commercercial fishing family from WA(1960-1970's) and AK for over 3 decades and have used this mix for the majority of it. I like to experiment with it at times but the base is always the same.

remember don't soak the fish too long or it will be extremely salty..a couple hours for 2" fillets and about 45min for 1" fillets will suffice. I have used this receipe of salmon(all 5) steelhead, croakers, sierra, dorado, tuna as well as halibut.

Once again Bring a good supply of quality wood, if you have a fruit tree at home trim off some branches and bring them with you...you'll be glad you did!!




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durrelllrobert
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[*] posted on 6-1-2010 at 02:32 PM


yellow tail is about the only thing I smoke since i don't have salmon in baja and good tuna is too good raw.

i always brine first using 50/50 mix of salt (don't use kosher; it's too strong) and brown sugar injust enough water to dissolve it. brine time depends on thickness of fillet; 1-2 hours for less than 1" thick and 3-6 hours for thicker. never overnight unless you are a real salt freak. remove from brine, rinse in cold water and pat dry with paper towels.

then low and slow in my brinkman charcol smoker:
1) fill bottom with charcoal (i use mesquite chunks) light and and let coals burn down until ash is formed
2) throw on good handfull or two of mesquite or hickory chips that have been soaked in water for at least 2 hours
3) fill water pan with plain H2O and assemble rest of smoker (water helps keep temperature low and adds moisture)
4) put thickest fillets on bottom rack and others on top rack leaving good air space around them
5) watch temp gauge and keep it below 120 by regulating air intake
6) after about 1 hour, open door add 1 or 2 more chunks of charcoal and throw in another handfull of wood chips
7) repeat step 6 five more times (about 6 hours total) then let charcoal burn out and remove fillets after 8 hors.
8) let fillets dry in air for about 1 hour before vacuum sealing.

WORKS FOR ME EVERY TIME. never dried out and perfectly smoked:biggrin:




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CortezBlue
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[*] posted on 6-2-2010 at 09:20 AM


Quote:
Originally posted by Santiago
I recently picked up a cheap Brinkman charcoal smoker at a swap meet and have tried beef and pork. I want to take it to Baja and try smoking fish but have run into a gillion different ways to do it. Rubs without brine, brine only, saw dust, chips, or chunks etc. Which fish seem to be best? Shrink wrap when done and freeze?
I know Shari does a bunch.
Thanks.

Edit: and just to get this out of the way - you guys from Gecko can leave out the answers like "Takes at least 3 Zig-Zags", "A 4-way hooka full of Boonsfarm Strawberry" etc etc.

[Edited on 5-13-2010 by Santiago]


I remember when I use to use the old Brinkman smoker, and then I got smart.

If you have a grill that has seperate burners that allow you to heat one side of the grill and not the other, just use your grill.

Think about as if you were laying your brinkman on its side.

I use a large envelope of alluminum foil filled with soaked wood chips and put the heat on the opposite side of the fish or meat. You can also use a pan with apple juice or water if you want the moisture.

Give it a try
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