Smoking Skanky Pink Salmon - Part 1

September 02, 2008 at 8:17 am

I have always enjoyed smoking fish. My interest might stem from my Dad being a chef and cooking up all sorts of interesting things as I was growing up. I’l admit I have a great deal to learn and have also not perfected any one recipe. Often my fish tastes a bit salty or the texture is just not right. While I find it frustrating not to get every batch just perfect, you need the trial and error to learn.  Sometimes you hit it just right, it tastes incredible and its gone within the next few days.

One thing to remember is “garbage in, garbage out”.  This holds true in most cases as a prime Sockeye, Coho or King is really hard to screw up.  The meat is of such great quality that it will generally hold and the texture can be enjoyed a variety of ways. Personally I only get so much of these prime fish a year and prefer to enjoy them straight up with a meal and not smoked. There are cases, however, where you can get into a mess of other not-so-quality fish like Pinks or Chum. When I say “not-so quality” I mean those fish where they feed on different things and they may have started spawning so their meat is affected.  There is a point where a fish has stopped eating and is decaying all together.  It is best to stay away from these ones as all you are doing is maybe taking a spawner out of the water. However, some fish like Pink start spawning in the ocean and can still be in pretty good condition once you get them to shore. They may not make great freezer meals for the table later (although eating them fresh sometimes is no problem), but they might work out great canned or smoked.

Smoking salmon is pretty simple in principle. First Nations have been doing it for centuries as a way to preserve and enjoy fish. The problem is that with our fussy palettes and a Superstore just down the street we all have very high expectations. I use some pretty simple recipes but like to look on the internet for tips and techniques. There is a great deal of contradicting information out there so I thought that I would try to shoot a four part Youtube series that may help some people new to smoking visualize what the process looks like.

Again my technique is not perfect and I welcome anyone that has a tried and true recipe they want to share. I hope you enjoy part 1 of the smoking skanky Pink salmon series.

A special thanks to my wife who reluctantly put up with holding the camera and did not mock me too much. 

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