Cold Smoked Salmon

[pnoon]

Originally Posted by Coach Deg

Does this work on a regular smoker at a low temp? I have no cold smoker.

To cold smoke salmon (lox), you must keep the temp below 90 degrees. Hot smoking, which will cook the fish, should be 180 and above. Anything between 90 and 180 you run the very high risk of bacteria and disease.

[T.G]

Based on some comments Peter and I made in the smoker thread, here is where this recipe has ended up for me when I'm making it for goyims.

Dry Cure For Salmon - 1.5 lb. fillet

1/2 cup Diamond Crystal kosher salt **
1 cup sugar
1 tsp instacure #1 (prauge #1)
2 tsp white pepper
2 tsp allspice
1 TBS bay leaf (about 25 leaves)
1 tsp clove
1 tsp juniper berries
1 tsp mace (ground)
1 TBS dill leaf

1.5 lb skinless salmon fillet (use a milder one like coho/silver or chum/dog/keta)

Mix the salt and sugar together in a large bowl along with the mace, dill and instacure #1 (prauge #1) curing salt (if using).
Crush bay leaves by hand and place in spice grinder, grind to powder. Add white peppercorns, allspice, clove and juniper, grind to powder. Mix all of this into the salt/sugar mix.

Place half of the dry cure in a dish/pan. Place salmon on top of that. Coat with remainder of cure. Cover in plastic wrap. Place light (about 2 lb.) weight on top.
Refrigerate ~36 hours or until thickest part feels dense and stiff.

Rinse thoroughly. Pat dry.

Place on rack over a pan and refrigerate uncovered for 18-24 hours.

Cold smoke for around 2 hours. Serve daintily on a my little pony platter.

**: If using Morton kosher salt, which happens to be denser, reduce to about 1/3 cup.


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When I'm making it for me, it looks more like this:


1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp ground white pepper
1 tsp instacure #1

zest of two limes

skinless salmon filet (sockeye/red or king)

Mix the salt, sugar and pepper. Dump it in a tray, dredge the filet(s) through it, toss half the zest down and then place them on top of the pile. Put remaining zest on top of the fish.

Place a cutting board or pyrex tray with a big ass weight on top of the fish, like 10lbs.

Place in the refrigerator for 48-52 hours.

Wash the salt off, then soak for about 2 hours in a few changes of ice water.

Dry the salmon, place on a rack and back into the refrigerator for 3 days.

Cold smoke for 2 hours or so.


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