Smoked salmon

[westburg]

The white stuff or curd you see forming on the flesh side of the fish is protein. The best way to avoid this is to dry the salmon sufficiently before smoking; you can tell by the shiny pellicle forming on the flesh, after a while you'll be able to tell just by touching it - similar to a slab properly cured bacon. Drying time depends on the thickness and fat content , it can take a whole day or can speed it up with ventilation from a fan. A good rule of thumb is to raise the inside smoker temperature slowly, try not let it go above 100 F for at least the 1st couple of hours.

Will it still smoke at that low of temperature?

 

[westburg]

Nothing different just my brine for 24 hours and then smoke for about 6 to 8 hours this new smoker I built is so easy to use i can keep temp down to 125-130 the whole time just keep adding alder to it,

How do you get it to smoke at that low of a temp. I have a masterbuilt electric smoker and it wont smoke at that temp. am I doing something wrong

 

[jeffywestcoast]

okay i know im dredging up an oldie here but i am curious everyone's take on the pellicle stage , my sockeye turned out amazing last time with only a 3 hour drying time, i like to pat the fish dry once it goes on the rack , is 3 hours rushing it or am i okay because the sockeye are smaller then most salmon i smoke? i really enjoy the smoked salmon and have never had a complaint yet , i gave out 14 packs last week and everyone raved about it . it seemed to be not 100% dry but more of a tacky texture when it went in the smoker .. about 3 hours on the racks ..

 

[wishiniwasfishin1]

okay i know im dredging up an oldie here but i am curious everyone's take on the pellicle stage , my sockeye turned out amazing last time with only a 3 hour drying time, i like to pat the fish dry once it goes on the rack , is 3 hours rushing it or am i okay because the sockeye are smaller then most salmon i smoke? i really enjoy the smoked salmon and have never had a complaint yet , i gave out 14 packs last week and everyone raved about it . it seemed to be not 100% dry but more of a tacky texture when it went in the smoker .. about 3 hours on the racks ..

If you only have 3 hours you could always hook up a fan to blow air over the fish as it sits on the rack. I have found that really helps speed up the process.

 

[jeffywestcoast]

Thanks man, it isn't a matter of not having the time believe me i have way too much time on my hands .. 3 hours worked good last time im just looking for the best amout of time ..I have it on racks next to a window with the fans on

 

[Whitebuck]

The longer air/fan dry the better!!!!!!