Cold smoking is different from hot smoking: the smoke stays cool, the fish does not cook, and the result is the silky, sliceable salmon you buy at a good deli. It takes planning, a cure and patience, but with a Cold Smoke Generator it is very doable at home. Follow the food safety advice that comes with your fish and from your supplier, and keep everything chilled throughout.
Cure first
Start with a side of fresh salmon, about 1 kg, skin on and pin boned. Make a dry cure: 200 g fine salt, 150 g soft brown sugar, the zest of one lemon and a few crushed juniper berries. Spread half the cure in a dish, lay the salmon on it flesh side down, then cover with the rest. Wrap it and leave it in the fridge for 12 to 18 hours, turning it once. The cure draws out water and firms the flesh, which is what makes cold smoked salmon safe and sliceable.
Rinse the cure off under cold water, then pat the fish dry. Put it on a rack in the fridge, uncovered, for 4 to 6 hours. A glossy, slightly tacky skin forms on the surface, called the pellicle. The smoke sticks to it, so do not skip this step.
Which fish
Salmon is the classic choice, but the same cure and cool smoke work on trout, mackerel and even thick fillets of cod. Choose the freshest fish you can, ask your supplier to pin bone and remove the scales, and keep it on ice until you start the cure. A whole side gives the neatest slices; smaller fillets need less time in the cure, so check them after 10 hours. Weigh the fish after curing as well as before, because a side that has lost plenty of water will slice better and keep longer.
Smoke cool
Set up your smoker or a large lidded box with a Cold Smoke Generator and light it as the instructions describe. You want the temperature inside to stay below 25°C for 4 to 6 hours. If it is a warm day, add a tray of ice, smoke in the early morning or evening, and check the temperature often with a probe. The fish must stay chilled and out of the danger zone, so if you cannot hold it below 25°C, do not smoke it.
Rest and slice
- Wrap the smoked salmon and rest it in the fridge overnight
- Slice thinly on the angle with a long, sharp knife
- Lay the slices on greaseproof paper rather than stacking them
- Eat within 3 to 4 days, or freeze for up to a month
Cold smoked salmon is best served simply: on good bread with butter, in scrambled eggs or with a squeeze of lemon and black pepper. The smoke flavour deepens after a day in the fridge, so leave it overnight before you judge it.
Keep it cold from the moment it comes off the smoke to the moment it goes on the plate. Food safety comes first: follow your supplier's advice on cure times and storage, keep the fish below 4°C once smoked, and never leave it sitting out at room temperature.
