by Dyan Mardlin

Created on: November 19, 2008   Last Updated: December 10, 2011

My favorite snack is a nice piece of smoked fish, ideally salmon. Salmon is a good choice, being delicious, and edible even uncooked.

To smoke a salmon, one must brine the fish first. There are many seasonings one can add to the brine, but I prefer to taste the salmon. A simple brine consists of two cups of water, one cup of salt and one cup of sugar. Stir the mixture until mostly dissolved, and submerge the fish. Once the fish is coated, set it on a rack and refrigerate for three hours, no more.

When the fish is ready the skin will feel tacky to touch, almost sticky. I prefer smoking with hickory chips, but you can use rice, or even corn cobs.Soak your chips in water to allow for a smoke, and not outright burning. Set two pieces of lit charcoal into a pan and cover with the wet chips. The chips will burn slowly and form a lot of smoke. Place fish, already on a rack over the burning chips and cover with either tin foil, loosely or a hotel pan will work nicely. As I mentioned salmon can be eaten raw, but other fish will flake off when it is done. The smoking process only takes an hour or so, depending on the thickness of the fish.

Smoked salmon pairs well with capers, red onions, or roasted red peppers. I have also enjoyed a nice dill sauce over smoked salmon.

Meat is done much the same way, except the brining step. Meat needs to be cured and seasoned, seasonings should pair well with the meat. For example, when smoking poultry, sage is a nice flavor, or rosemary also fares well. I know a lot of cooks are hesitant to use rosemary, as its unique flavor can overpower other more subtle flavors, but I have many times used it on chicken and had outstanding results.

Conversely, when I am using beef, I enjoy salt and pepper, garlic, red pepper, cumin, coriander, celery seed, cayenne pepper, basil, rosemary, and a small amount of lemon juice. Use the seasoning blend as a dry rub, and whatever is left I mix in a small amount of equal parts of soy sauce and beer, to continue marinating the meat as it smokes.

The timing for smoking meat is similar to fish, taking longer for larger cuts of meat. Keep in mind any pork or chicken should reach an internal temperature of 185 degrees, and can also be applied to beef. When you remove your smoked meat allow for it to set awhile, I like to wrap my meat in foil and let it set for around 30 minutes, which allows for it to become more tender. I also like to soak my charcoal when doing meat in alchohol, depending on what I am cooking.

For chicken, tequilla adds a nice taste, and I use good old Jack for doing beef. Pork can get added taste by adding a nice rum, spiced or white is fine, and if you serve a smoked pork roast with a nice tropical salad, use a coconut rum.

Veggies and cheeses also can be smoked relatively easily with no prep done to them whatsoever. The best tomato I ever had was smoked and served over a saffron infused cous cous, absolutly delicious!

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