Cold Smoking Salmon with cold smoke generator

[cabmandone]

I'm thinking about cold smoking some Alaskan salmon next week. I have a Weber Summit with a smoke tray that I'll be using to do some but I'm considering a cold smoke generator for my Weber Smokey Mountain to cold smoke some. I was wondering if anyone here has used one and if they're worth it or not.

I'm looking at something like the one below. I can't see how I can go too far wrong for $22 plus the smoke sawdust to fill it. From the videos I have watched they say this thing will go for 10 hours on a full tray.

[PetrolBlueSC]

I hot smoke fish almost every summer. But I have made gravlax.

Do you plan on brinning first and if so how?

[Mattcamp]

I see you're in Ohio, just curious where the Salmon is from??

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by PetrolBlueSC

I hot smoke fish almost every summer. But I have made gravlax.

Do you plan on brinning first and if so how?

I'm planning to do a salt/brown sugar brine and then cold smoking. IIRC, I'm supposed to brine for 24 hours and then cold smoke. I'm going to try and call my Aunt who does a great job with Salmon to see if I can get any suggestions.

Originally Posted by Mattcamp

I see you're in Ohio, just curious where the Salmon is from??

A family member brought it back from Alaska.

[PetrolBlueSC]

I place a trash bag in a cooler and then fill 1/3 with cold water. Ingredients include kosher salt (no iodine), brown sugar, soy sauce, and black pepper. After a night in the brine, I remove and pat them dry. Then sprinkle some with brown sugar and black pepper before placing in smoker. Some is smoke with out sugar and pepper. Once out of smoker, I either can (jars in pressure cooker) or vacuum pack and freeze. The pressure cooker salmon gets a slice of jalapeno pepper.

[PetrolBlueSC]

Pics:

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by PetrolBlueSC

I place a trash bag in a cooler and then fill 1/3 with cold water. Ingredients include kosher salt (no iodine), brown sugar, soy sauce, and black pepper. After a night in the brine, I remove and pat them dry. Then sprinkle some with brown sugar and black pepper before placing in smoker. Some is smoke with out sugar and pepper. Once out of smoker, I either can (jars in pressure cooker) or vacuum pack and freeze. The pressure cooker salmon gets a slice of jalapeno pepper.

Sounds good! I'll add it to the list. I have smoked salmon with a few different marinades but all were done on a warm grill. This will be my first swing at cold smoking.

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by PetrolBlueSC

Pics:

That is some absolutely beautiful fillet. When I start mine I'll try to do some pics and post in the what's for dinner thread here.

[cabmandone]

Let the Games Begin!
I brined the salmon for 16 hours in a salt,brown sugar,cracked black pepper, gaaaahlic mixture. After 16 hours I rinsed and then placed back in the fridge uncovered for 16 hours. This morning I fired up the cold smoke generator with apple wood (my favorite wood to smoke with) dust. Below is the beginning of hour one of what I anticipate being a 9 hour cold smoke. I also have 6 fillets in the fridge getting happy in a Soy Sauce, Sugar, Chopped Ginger, Chopped Gaaaahlic, olive oil brine that will go on the smoker at around 200-250 later today for about 3 hours.
The cold smoked salmon will be cut thin and placed on a veggie pizza, some will become salmon crostini on a dill spread and some will be saved for crackers and a baked gaaaahlic spread. Should be some good eats!

[billybek]

I made my version of Indian Candy a while back on the BGE. Turned out really well but I would have to go back to see what recipe I used and reduce the salt and increase the sugar in the brine.
Was amazing when finished. Vacuum wrapped and refrigerated, it stored well.

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by billybek

I made my version of Indian Candy a while back on the BGE. Turned out really well but I would have to go back to see what recipe I used and reduce the salt and increase the sugar in the brine.
Was amazing when finished. Vacuum wrapped and refrigerated, it stored well.

The brine I used had equal parts kosher salt/brown sugar. Basically 1 gallon of water, 2 cups Sea Salt or Kosher Salt, 2 cups brown Sugar, 1 tablespoon cracked black pepper and 2 tablespoons of minced garlic. Brought to boil in a pot then simmered for 10 minutes. Cooled in an ice/water bath then put in the freezer to lower temp to 38 degrees. Put salmon in brine for about 16 hours covered. Rinsed salmon and put back in fridge uncovered for about 16 hours. I know I could have sliced and tasted before going on to cold smoke since it is brine cured at this point but I didn't. I wanted to wait until the smoke is infused before tasting. Could end up too salty, could be too sweet, won't know until around 4 or 5 this afternoon.

UPDATE: So far it has been a struggle keeping the apple wood sawdust lit. I tried the 1 minute in the micorwave "hack" to dry the sawdust but that didn't seem to work. I put some of my apple wood smoking chips in the dust at about 1" intervals to see if they'll fire off as the dust smolders toward them. Seems to be working as I'm seeing smoke out the top of the WSM with some regularity now.

[cabmandone]

IMO the cold smoke generator is relatively worthless. I moved things over to my Weber Summit gas grill that has a smoker tray, added some regular smoking chips and lit. Once lit I put the sawdust on top of the chips which started smoking nicely, put a tray of ice in the grill to try and control temps, covered the top outlet of the grill with a wet towel to hold smoke in and things are going in the right direction. Only trouble is, I'm at about 100 degrees according to my digital thermometer where I was running about 90 with the WSM... but lower temps and no smoke doesn't get the job done!