Do you like Smoked Salmon? If you want to smoke your own salmon, try this brine. Before smoking, most fish (including salmon) need to be brine overnight, not less or more. There are two basic ways to brine, wet brine and dry brine. This recipe will cover my favorite way to make a wet brine for smoking salmon, shrmip and other fish as well as include a dry brine recipe.
Instructions
1. Before smoking fish, most fish (including salmon) need to be brined overnight, not less or more. The first step in making a wet brine for smoking salmon is to wash and prepare the fish fillets by cutting out any bones and unwanted skin. The skin / shells can be left on with some fish (salmon or shrimp) or taken off (catfish, northern pike).
2. Next, remember to use salt without iodine. Mix the salt in warm water until the solution will float a raw egg in the shell.
I have found that this is about as salty as you will ever want it. Over time I have learned to dilute the solution down a bit.
3. At this point, you can kick the brine up a notch by adding soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and/or brown sugar. In the recent years, I have been using more brown sugar and soy sauce. A dab of the Worcestershire sauce seems to help. Remember that when you add in soy or brown sugar, some of it will take the place of salt. But you will never need more salt than will float the egg.
4. Different fish take the salt at different rates, the same solution will cause some fish to taste very salty and some not so. This is another reason to start out with a modestly diluted batch until you get the feel.
5. Mix up the solution, put in the fish, close it up and refrigerate it overnight.
6. Next morning take the fish out, rinse, pat dry with paper towels. Then, ideally, put them on a rack and dry in front of a fan for awhile. It used to take about 45 minutes to dry them at home. The surface of the fish should be between tacky and somewhat dry. Again, you'll have to experiment. You just don't want to put it on the grill wet.
7. At this point you are ready to put on the Weber. To continue on, with the smoking salmon recipe see my article titled "Smoke Salmon, Fish or Shrimp - Recipe"
8. DRY BRINE RECIPE BELOW
9. Mix well in container
2 Cups Dark Brown Sugar
2 Cups Light Brown Sugar
3/4 Cup Salt
10. In a second container, sprinkle small amount of dry brine mix to create thin layer just enough to cover the bottom.
11. Place 1st layer of salmon skin side down add 1 inch of brine.
12. Second Layer of Salmon is placed skin side up (meat to meat) add 1 inch of brine.
13. Cover and place in a dry cool area for 24 - 36 hours, drain liquid, rinse to remove brine from salmon under very cold water, lightly sprinkle teriyaki, or some other sauce over salmon steaks & season with coarse ground black pepper and/or additional seasonings as desired.
14. Air dry on wire racks for another 24 hours. At this point you are ready to put on the Weber. To continue on, with the smoking salmon recipe see my article titled "Smoke Salmon, Fish or Shrimp - Recipe"
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