Smoking Halibut

[Beartooth]

Anyone try smoking halibut? Do you do it like salmon. How long will it last in the freezer? I dry brine my salmon then smoke it and vacuum pack it and it has still tasted great after a year. How about halibut? Suggestions? Brine/cures?

 

[wolf]

Yes you can i did it one time and you really want to go on a cold smoke like tuna and black cod unfortunately halibut doesn't have a lot of fat content so you want to go very low and slow . I personally did it with skin on and peeled it off later as it does stick to the racks. too long at it does go dry quick ...
I did the normal dry brine...

 

[Beartooth]

Yes you can i did it one time and you really want to go on a cold smoke like tuna and black cod unfortunately halibut doesn't have a lot of fat content so you want to go very low and slow . I personally did it with skin on and peeled it off later as it does stick to the racks. too long at it does go dry quick ...
I did the normal dry brine...

Interesting. Saw something on-line that said to smoke it fast for 2-3 hours at 200-220 deg. or it'll dry out. Thanks for your info.

 

[IronNoggin]

Yes you can i did it one time and you really want to go on a cold smoke like tuna and black cod unfortunately halibut doesn't have a lot of fat content so you want to go very low and slow .

Done it a good handful of times.
You can run a dry or wet brine.
I ran with dry, then desalination process, and a heavy rum based glaze.
And just like Wolf says - low & slow or it WILL dry out too much. I never went above 125 degrees.
In my case it was skin off, and a heavy BarBee Pam soaking of the grills.
Perfect cold smoking material, and damn YUMMY if you do it right!

Cheers,
Nog

 

[Beartooth]

Done it a good handful of times.
You can run a dry or wet brine.
I ran with dry, then desalination process, and a heavy rum based glaze.
And just like Wolf says - low & slow or it WILL dry out too much. I never went above 125 degrees.
In my case it was skin off, and a heavy BarBee Pam soaking of the grills.
Perfect cold smoking material, and damn YUMMY if you do it right!

Cheers,
Nog

Going in the smoker tomorrow. Will post the results.

 

[Whitebuck]

Low and slow as posted above.
Some of the best cracker/spread going!

 

[Sir Reel]

Done it a good handful of times.
You can run a dry or wet brine.
I ran with dry, then desalination process, and a heavy rum based glaze.
And just like Wolf says - low & slow or it WILL dry out too much. I never went above 125 degrees.
In my case it was skin off, and a heavy BarBee Pam soaking of the grills.
Perfect cold smoking material, and damn YUMMY if you do it right!

Cheers,
Nog

Nog, what is your desalination process? I use dry brine for my salmon but sometimes it is a bit too salty when done

 

[IronNoggin]

Nog, what is your desalination process? I use dry brine for my salmon but sometimes it is a bit too salty when done

Just a little tricky...
Put the cured halibut into a tub, run COLD water over it at a slow rate, allowing the water to run over the sides carrying away the salt with it.

You MUST keep a VERY sharp eye on this process! If you don't allow sufficient time for the desalination to occur, the halibut will be overly salty, and no-one will want to consume it! On the other hand should you leave it in for too long, they will turn into a wet soggy mess and be ruined - non-recoverable error!

You're looking for a product that still has a bit of a firmish "skin" on it.
What you want to see is the ability to slice the halibut VERY thinly, and no salt taste.
OK if that just so starts to loosen up, but if it gets that far, get it out of the freshening water NOW and under the fans asap.
Don't have any pix on hand unfortunately...

Cheers,
Nog

 

[Sir Reel]

Thanks!

 

[Beartooth]

Finished. Was going to post a pic. Too many pixels. Tasted ok. Still prefer the salmon smoked.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/TLwHh8uxigmL5kNW8

Link to photo, if looking at a pic of smoked fish turns your crank.

 

[IronNoggin]

Perhaps a tad too long / hot in the smoker? Looks good though. Still moist inside?

Wondering...
Nog

 

[spoiler]

Perhaps a tad too long / hot in the smoker? Looks good though. Still moist inside?

Wondering...
Nog

I have heard it's better with no brine.

 

[IronNoggin]

I have heard it's better with no brine.

Sincerely Doubt That!

Nog

 

[Aces]

Waste of Halibut imo

 

[Beartooth]

Perhaps a tad too long / hot in the smoker? Looks good though. Still moist inside?

Wondering...
Nog

Fairly moist. Most of it.

 

[IronNoggin]

Waste of Halibut imo

You have obviously never had it when it turns out well.
I thought the same way back when.
Now it is among our preferred ways to chow down on halibut.
Recipe was altered from a tuna cold smoke, and that is still our favorite way to eat tuna as well.

Cheers,
Nog

 

[Aces]

You have obviously never had it when it turns out well.
I thought the same way back when.
Now it is among our preferred ways to chow down on halibut.
Recipe was altered from a tuna cold smoke, and that is still our favorite way to eat tuna as well.

Cheers,
Nog

I tried it a few times and gave up. My favourite smoked fish is cold smoked albacore

 

[Newf]

I tried smoking hali a few weeks back with my normal dry brine and while I liked the taste of the end result I found it a bit "chewy but not dried out" in texture. Not sure what I could do to change that. Suggestions welcome. My son-in-law and daughter however liked it better that smoked salmon and wanted me to make more. I have another small batch in brine now, sliced thinner than the last time. (1/4" versus 1/2") and I will smoke some and try some on the dehydrator.

As for the comment as a waste of halibut, I say, "to each their own". I'm not a big fan and pound for pound I would swap Halibut for Ling anytime, so I have no problem using some to experiment with. My wife on the other hand loves Hali. I do enjoy catching them though.

 

[Aces]

I tried smoking hali a few weeks back with my normal dry brine and while I liked the taste of the end result I found it a bit "chewy but not dried out" in texture. Not sure what I could do to change that. Suggestions welcome. My son-in-law and daughter however liked it better that smoked salmon and wanted me to make more. I have another small batch in brine now, sliced thinner than the last time. (1/4" versus 1/2") and I will smoke some and try some on the dehydrator.

As for the comment as a waste of halibut, I say, "to each their own". I'm not a big fan and pound for pound I would swap Halibut for Ling anytime, so I have no problem using some to experiment with. My wife on the other hand loves Hali. I do enjoy catching them though.

Same here, i give away Halibut but not Ling Cod

 

[Rain City]

Same here, i give away Halibut but not Ling Cod

My wife and I are always trying to come up with a way to enjoy halibut. There's no such thing as not enjoying ling or whole rockfish.