Smoked Salmon

One of the main reasons I ended up getting a smoker is because I like smoked salmon (cold)  and it costs too much.  After some research I figured I may as well give it a shot and see what happens.  The smoked salmon I prepare is also known as "Nova Lox".  This is in contrast to "gravlax" which is not smoked.  In general the two have slightly different seasonings too, but that is the main difference.  "Smoked salmon"  is a somewhat general term that can also encompass hot and cold smoked salmon which as the names imply, use different temperatures.

This is a generic rundown of what I do to make Nova Lox.  After trying a few different methods from online, I found this one to work out best for me.

Step one:  Be attractive Curing

After cleaning the fish and removing the bones, the first step is curing.  The cure is made from salt and brown sugar and this helps preserve the fish as well as add flavor.  The process draws out the water in the fish resulting in a much more dense protein.



Step two: Brining

Remove the cure (which most has turned into a syrup from drawing out the moisture from the salmon) by rinsing.  Afterwards find a container to brine the fish in salt and sugar solution.  This will make the fish taste less salty by putting some water back into it.  I ended up just using the bottom tray of the fridge because I'm lazy and its easy.



Step three: Rinsing and resting

After the brining, I rinse the fillets off with water and allow them to soak a bit in water.  This will draw out some of the salt so that its not too salty.  After drying I season, in this case pepper and dill, and let them rest for a while.  Then its on to smoking!



Step four:  Smoking

The salmon is smoked at a low temperature in order to keep its texture. I have been experimenting with different woods and Alder seems to be the most traditional route.  It has a light mellow flavor which is nice.  However I tend to like things to taste a bit smokier so I may add some oak and apple in next time.





Step five:  Storing (sometimes in stomach)

I find that vacuum sealing and freezing almost immediately results in the best flavor if you aren't going to eat it within the first day.  After thawing, the texture and flavor both seem very well preserved.  As for slicing, I usually slice at a slight angle and then scrape the slice off of the skin with a horizontal motion.  This usually gives a nice clean piece with little waste and picks up some of the tasty stuff near the skin.




















For people who are looking for more details, I got most of my info from this page:
http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com/2006/08/thirdeyes-nova-lox.html
I tried various different recipes and methods and decided I liked this one the best so far.  I've tweaked things a little bit to fit my personal taste, as should anyone trying any sort of food really.