The choice of fish is crucial to the quality when smoking, because not
every fish is necessarily good for smoking. The protein and fat content
and the individual flavor of the fish will determine how the flavor
develops after smoking. High-fat content is usually helpful as the fish
does not dry out even after smoking. Smoking leaner fish requires
particular sensitivity as the exact combination of preparation and
temperature is crucial.
When smoking fish, use freshly caught or deep-frozen fish where
possible. For all applications, remove the gills and scales and clean the
fish thoroughly.
Before smoking, the fish should either be placed in brine or dry salted.
Flavor the brine with spices such as bay leaves or juniper berries. The
salt serves for cleaning and contributes to the typical distinct flavor. It
produces the distinct saltiness and the characteristic smoked skin.
For dry salting, you can also use modern spice mixes such as basil, lime,
orange, or fresh bay leaves.
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Golden yellow skin from the smoke, and the
meat underneath with a distinct spicy flavor.
Usage examples with fish.
The following table summarises the possibilities for preparing fish.
Methods
Dry salting
Wet salting
Brine
Preparation
Sprinkle and rub the
fish with salt on the
inside and outside and
place it in a tub. Salt
that becomes liquid
must be able to drain
off in this process.
Prepare a 5-8 percent
cooking salt solution.
To do this, dissolve
2-3oz of cooking
salt to 1qt of water.
Prepare enough brine
so the fish can lie
loosely in the solution.
Dissolve as much
salt in the water as is
needed to reach the
degree of saturation.
Depending on the
temperature, the salt
content is 27-33
percent.
Time
The salting time is
1-2 hours.
_
Approx. 2 hours is
enough.
Note
This method does
not guarantee even
salting. A fixed ratio
of salt to fish mass is
used.
The solution may only
be used once (due
to blood and mucus
residues).
The solution may only
be used once (due
to blood and mucus
residues).
Before smoking, rinse out and pat dry the fish.
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