I've been using the Bradley Digital 6 rack for a couple years now, smoking everything you could imagine. As far as salmon (and pretty much everything else for that matter) goes, be sure to always keep your vent open during the smoke phase to avoid an overpowering smoke flavor.
For an amazing resource of recipes, techniques, help, and discussion, go to bradleysmoker.com and into the forums. The most popular recipe for smoked salmon is credited to a guy called Kummock. It's a good starting point, but remember that smoking is about trial and error as well as personal taste. I like to use a LOT of maple syrup (as well as maple wood for smoke...no more than 1.5-2 hrs of smoke!). Towards the end of the heat phase i brush the pieces with maple syrup and large bits of fresh cracked pepper...doesn't sound like the best combo but it works out great.
Kummock's recipe below...
Step 1: PREPARE FISH
Filet salmon. Leave skin on. REMOVE ALL BONES (Very important for excellence!)
Step 2: UNIFORM STRIPS
Cut meat into uniform strips, 3/8 to 1/2” wide and 3-6” long, OR as long as your smoker racks can handle......the key here is to get uniform thickness cuts for uniform brining and smoking. The length is important only as far as your own packaging preferences. The strips will have a tendency to fall or sag through the larger grid racks.........I've switched to a small grid (1/2") teflon coated rack from
WWW.ChezBubba.com and now have no problem with meat falling through
Step 3: BRINING
Soak in your own brine recipe for 12 hours at refrigerator temps (I use an Igloo type ice chest with about a gallon of ice thrown in). For more complete brining throughout, place a stainless steel or wooden grate over the top of the meat to hold it under the brine. Stir fish a few times during the brining process. The following brine recipe is included to get you started, but you are encouraged to experiment with your own salt/sugar, maple, honey, peppers, seasonings to develop your own. (My apologies to our metricated friends)
1 gallon cold water
1 quart teriyaki OR soy sauce
1 cup pickling salt
2 Lbs brown sugar
2 Tbsp garlic powder
3 Tbsp cayenne pepper
Step 4: GLAZING
Place fish in a single layer on drying racks and ensure that the pieces DON’T touch each other. Dry in a cool, shady place until a hard pellicle forms. Fish will have a tough, shiny coat and will be slightly tacky to the touch. (Winter time tip! Dry 12-36 hours in a cold place such as an unheated garage, but DON’T allow to freeze) In the summer temps, it can typically take 3-4 hours for the fish to “glaze”. A fan can help speed the drying process. DON’T let the fish spoil from warm temps! Turn the fish over 2-3 times during the Glazing process to ensure more complete glazing. It is during the glazing process that you can sprinkle on certain spices (e.g. cayenne pepper) and/or visual enhancers (e.g. parsley flakes).
Step 5: SMOKING
Smoke using the following Bradley Smoking guideline:
100°-120°F for 1-2 hours, then increase to
140° for 2-4 hours, then increase to
175° for 1-2 hours to finish
Use the longer times given for thicker/higher oil content fish. As a general rule, the higher temp you use or the longer you hot smoke, the more the meat cooks the oils out, HOWEVER, the meat becomes dryer/tougher in the process. I've "accidently" left meat (silver salmon) at the 140-150°F range for up to 8 hours and it still turned out great. I personally believe that you'd have to try REAL hard to make a batch of smoke salmon unpalatable by over smoking/cooking. If you get white “boogers” on the meat, you’re cooking too high/too fast.
Candied Salmon Recipe - here it is.
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