The Greatest Smoked Salmon
Prep
20m
Cook
180m
Total
200m
Bigly says
Pay attention. Smoked salmon. The GREATEST smoked salmon in the history of smoked salmon — and there has been a LOT of smoked salmon, the Vikings smoked salmon, the Scots smoked salmon, the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest perfected smoked salmon thousands of years ago and they don't get nearly enough credit for it, it's a shame, real shame — and this one, this one right here, beats every last one of them. Hands down.
Some people, sad people, they think smoking salmon is hard. It is not hard. It is the OPPOSITE of hard. It is so easy that the other recipe sites have spent years pretending it's hard so they can sell you a course. A COURSE. Forty-nine dollars for a 'masterclass' on something that is salt, sugar, time, and a little smoke — and that's BEFORE the cookie banner with 18 toggles and the newsletter popup and the 'continue reading' button that hides the actual instructions behind your email address. Total embarrassment. I've watched those courses. I've watched them so you don't have to. They are TERRIBLE. The hosts whisper. Why are they whispering. Just talk normally.
And let me tell you about the texture on this. The TEXTURE. Silky, just-set, ruby-pink interior with the lacquered honey-glazed top — people will see it and gasp, audibly gasp, I have heard the gasping, big tough fishermen from Alaska weeping into their flannels, saying 'Bigly, what have you done, I have wasted my whole career on inferior salmon' — and you're going to look at it and know, deep in your bones, that you have arrived. It's not even close. It's a slaughter. Believe me.
Ingredients
- 2 lbsalmon fillet, skin-on(center cut, even thickness, pin bones removed)
- 1 cupbrown sugar
- 1/2 cupkosher salt
- 2 tspblack pepper, coarse ground
- 1 tspgarlic powder
- 2 tbspfresh dill, chopped
- from 1 lemonlemon zest
- 1/4 cuphoney(for the glaze)
- 2 cupsalder or cherry wood chips(soaked 30 minutes if using a charcoal smoker)
Steps
- 1
Run your fingers across the salmon to find any pin bones and pull them out with pliers or tweezers.
- 2
Mix brown sugar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, dill, and lemon zest in a bowl until evenly combined.
- 3
Lay a sheet of plastic wrap on a sheet pan. Sprinkle a thin layer of cure on the plastic. Place the salmon skin-side down on the cure, then pack the remaining cure over the top and sides of the fillet.
- 4
Wrap tightly with the plastic, place a second sheet pan on top, and weight it with a few cans. Refrigerate 8-12 hours.
- 5
Unwrap the salmon and rinse the cure off thoroughly under cold water. Pat very dry.
- 6
Place the salmon on a wire rack set over a sheet pan. Return to the fridge uncovered for 2-4 hours to form a pellicle — a slightly tacky surface that helps smoke adhere.
- 7
Set up your smoker for 180 degrees F with alder or cherry wood. A pellet smoker, electric smoker, or kettle grill with a two-zone setup all work.
- 8
Place the salmon skin-side down on the grate, away from direct heat. Close the lid.
- 9
After 1 hour, brush the top of the salmon lightly with honey. Brush again every 30 minutes.
- 10
Smoke until the internal temperature reaches 140 degrees F at the thickest part — about 2.5 to 3 hours total. The top should be glossy and a deep amber color.
- 11
Transfer to a plate and let rest 10 minutes. Serve warm, or cool completely and refrigerate up to 5 days. Eat on bagels, crackers, salads, or directly off the cutting board with a fork.
One more thing
That is smoked salmon. Real smoked salmon. Not the sad pink plastic-bag salmon at the grocery store — which by the way, have you SEEN those prices, thirty-two dollars for four ounces of mystery fish, the salmon people are LAUGHING at us — but the real, smokehouse-grade, ruby-and-amber, melts-on-a-cracker article. Make it once. You'll never go back. You won't even be tempted. The bag salmon is over for you. It's over. Tremendous.
★ QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ONE? ★
Ask Bigly about The Greatest Smoked Salmon.
Substitutions, what to serve it with, why other chefs are wrong about it. He's got opinions.
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