I haven't tried aluminum, but I usually set meat I will use (still in it's plastic wrap) in the next hour or so on an iron skillet. The metal conducts the cold out very quickly. I turn it a couple of times. So aluminum works faster?

Okay, my directions will be cut and pasted into this post because I don't have a link to send you to. IF you're interested you might want to print this up, just in case it gets lopped out later. I wrote this for my next door neighbor, who wanted to try my recipe (I made a convert of her--she thought she didn't like smoked salmon until she tried some of mine!) and send it to a friend. So pardon any personal references, but I have to go feed the kids so won't stop to edit.

Here goes:

This is the recipe (more or less) that I use for the brine for my smoked salmon:

1/4 cup non-iodized salt
1 cup soy sauce
3 cups water
1/2 tsp (or a little more) onion powder
1/2 tsp (or a little more) garlic powder
a few grinds fresh pepper, till it feels right ;-)
1 cup white wine (whatever is in the house, usually chardonnay)

This is by default a recipe with reduced salt, though I think this is PLENTY salty already, and someone restricting salt should probably halve both the salt and soy sauce in this mix. You'll see (by comparing with the original) that I also make it more watery. It covers a good sized fish (any that you'll find around here frozen whole--up to about 10 pounds). You can use the brine a second time if you're going to use it within a day or two and if you have to stagger smoking and curing your fish due to fridge and smoker space.

The fish should be covered with brine (I use a Tupperware bowl so I can seal it in the fridge) and left for at least 8 hours. You might want to take it out and nudge it around a bit if there are pieces in the top of the bowl that aren't completely covered. After enough brine time, carefully lift each piece of fish from the brine, rinse it under a gently running faucet, towel off extra water with a wad of paper toweling, and place it one layer deep on a plate. When all of the fish is arranged so the air can get to the top and sides, place this back in the fridge and let it sit for several hours. The surface of the fish forms a kind of shiny surface and is ready to place on the smoker racks.

I use a Little Chief Smoker, which works at a low temperature with an element in the bottom and a small pan of wood chips that rests on it and smokes inside the case. My smoker has three racks, and I put the largest chunks of fish on the bottom and graduate it so the smallest pieces are on the top. A pan of chips takes about 20 to 30 minutes to start smoking and then continue to smoke for the next hour. If you plan to go add a new batch of wood chips every 1 1/2 to two hours you'll have plenty of smoke on the fish. I sometimes stop at two pans, but more typically use three pans of chips, though the last one might be a smaller measure. It depends entirely on how smoky you like your fish.

I don't try to cook the fish all of the way in the smoker, though after six to eight hours a smaller fish can be about finished. The smoker is intended for drying the fish as well as smoking, so it is okay to finish it that way, but time is usually the determining factor for me. I don't want to have to get up in the middle of the night to take it out. After a few hours I put it on baking pan and put it in a 325 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes. (I would normally take only 30 minutes to bake a filet anyway, so this is plenty for the fish). It will be very soft when it first comes out, but firms up as it cools. I refrigerate my fish in a covered cake pan, and if it looks like it will last for more than a few days, I wrap each piece individually in plastic wrap, freeze it, then put several wrapped pieces at a time into a heavy freezer bag. You don't want to dry this stuff out in the freezer! To thaw I try to give it time in the fridge or at room temperature. Be careful thawing in the microwave, you don't want to accidentally cook it any more and the microwave turns the salmon oil liquid. (The oil is what is so good for you in wild salmon).

(Ignore this part if you already know what you're doing when preparing the fish)
Once you have the brine ready, it's time to fix the fish. Thaw it completely and it is best to work with it when it is still a little icy. It's easier to filet. I use a filet knife and take out the spine and ribs, and use a needle nose pliers for feeling along the hump of the filet and pulling out any bones. Leave the skin on the fish. That is crucial to its holding together through all of this handling! The fish should be cut into strips (across the width of the fish) of 2 inches or less. They fit in my bowl better and cook more thoroughly without drying out parts of it before the middle is finished. This depends entirely on how fat the fish is. I attempt to have strips of fish that are as fat as they are wide when looking at the thickest part.

The choice of smoker makes a big difference in cooking. I would suggest experimenting first with a few pieces if you're using some other kind of smoker than a Little Chief, because the key to this recipe is low heat and really slow cooking. Too hot and you just have baked salmon. My smoker is made by the big fishing gear company Luhr-Jensen, and their web site has everything pretty well mixed together. A good site with information on smokers is at: http://www.smoke-house.com/ Their prices are as low as any I've seen online. I don't know what the local market has as far as smokers go. The same company has a good set of frequently asked questions at: http://www.smoke-house.com/smoker_faq.htm


This is the recipe that came with the smoker, for comparison:

Little Chief Smoked Salmon Deluxe (recipe from the smoker box)

1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup non-iodized salt
2 cups soy sauce
1 cup water
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp tabasco sauce
1 cup dry white wine

Enjoy! If you have any more questions, or want me to email the word file, PM me.

SRS