Anonymous Tue May 23 19:42:22 2006

***See Directions***

IMO Fresh Chinook or King salmon are the best and Coho or Silver salmon run a weak

second for a sweet buttery flavor. Scale, remove the head, fins and cheeks. Filet the fish,

removing the backbone and rib bones. Leave the skin on. Lay the filets out and dry

salt-Use a kiln dried medium or medium fine salt and apply the salt just a little heavier than

you would salt to eat. It will look like fresh fallen snow - not completely white all over - the

belly and thinner tail areas will have less salt than the thicker mid-body areas. I don\'t brine

in a solution because it is difficult to predict the amount of salt in the thin areas. To put a

whole filet into a brine and have it come out with even salt is difficult if not impossible. Dry

salting allows for proportionate distribution according to thickness, and I believe it is much

more accurate. Too little salt will not hurt anything, if it is fresh fish to begin with and it is

kept cool before smoking, I wouldn\'t worry about it - kippered s

almon is smoked without any salt at all. Stack the filets on top of each other in a container

that will permit drainage, cover with plastic or a lid and let it sit in the refer for about a day (if

you butcher and salt early in the morn, it will be ready to smoke the next morning). Before

smoking, gently rinse the filet and squeegee the excess from the surface with your hand.

The surface of the filet should be allowed to dry - I do this in the smokehouse as I am

getting the fire started, I leave the doors open just a crack for a couple of hours to let out the

excess moisture. After the surface becomes somewhat dry to the touch, close the doors

and slowly bring up the temp to about 100F. I\'ll try to maintain this temp for about 4-5 hours

and then slowly bring the temp up another 20F. For the next 3-4 hours try to hold at about

120-130F or so. For the last couple of hours I\'ll bring the temp up another 20F so that the

internal temp will be 140-150F for the last 30 min. and take the f

ish out and let it cool. This process isn\'t really a cold smoke or a hot smoke, it\'s sort of in

between. The filets are cured with salt and then smoked. I\'ve been smoking salmon this

way for many years and have never had any problems with spoilage or sickness. The

USDA says that the internal temp should reach a minimum of 180F for thirty minutes for

salmon, but there is no viable reference as to the salt content. I have tried to smoke at 180F

for thirty min and the results aren\'t nearly as moist. I think that 150F is stretching it. In the

last hour or so of the process, 40F makes a hell of a difference in the finished product. Just

a note, during the smoke cycle the thin areas will be done and drier before the thicker parts

- I will cut the filets into three pieces across, put the tail sections on their own tray so I can

move them around and take them out when they are done. If I\'m smoking for myself I

usually cut the entire filet crossways into 2\