Hot-Smoked Salmon

Sweet, salty, smoky and flaky, and much easier than it looks. Most of the time is hands-off brining and drying. The smoke itself takes a couple of hours.

• 2 lb skin-on salmon fillet (one large piece or several of similar thickness)
• ½ cup packed brown sugar
• ¼ cup kosher salt (if using table salt, use about half as much)
• 1 tsp coarse black pepper
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp maple syrup, for glazing (optional)

Wood: alder is the classic. Apple or cherry are great too. Keep it mild.

Instructions

1. Brine. Mix the brown sugar, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Lay the salmon skin side down in a dish and pack the mixture over the flesh. Cover and refrigerate 4–6 hours (up to 8 for very thick fillets). It will release a lot of liquid. That's normal.
2. Rinse. Rinse off all the brine under cold water and pat thoroughly dry.
3. Form the pellicle. Set the salmon on a rack, uncovered, in the fridge for 1–3 hours until the surface feels tacky and looks a little glossy.
4. Start low. Bring your smoker to 180°F. Place the salmon skin side down and smoke for 1 hour.
5. Raise the heat. Increase to 200–225°F. If glazing, brush with maple syrup once or twice in the last 30 minutes.
6. Finish. Smoke until the thickest part reaches 145°F and flakes with a fork, usually 2–4 hours total.
7. Serve. Slide a spatula between the flesh and the skin to lift it off. Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled.

Serving and storage

• Great on bagels with cream cheese, flaked into pasta, or on a salad.
• Refrigerate tightly wrapped up to 5 days, or vacuum-seal and freeze up to 3 months.
• Leftovers make excellent smoked salmon dip.

Want the why behind each step? Read How to Smoke Fish.