Smoking Meat

Sir Humpsalot said:

SWMBO and I just acquired a smoker off of craigslist. Paid $35 for it. It's a horizontal smoker, Char-Grill(?) brand. It's pretty small, but we absolutely needed to buy a grill and when this came up on craigslist I couldn't say no. Now, I know that some people (EdWort) have much fancier setups, but any links or tips you can provide will be appreciated. We don't have a manual for it or anything.

Last night, we just hurriedly tossed some salmon on the smoker for about 4 hours at 200 degrees (plus/minus 50 degrees). Clearly, that was not enough heat, so we wound up finishing it off in the oven for 10 minutes at 350. It turned out a bit dry, but otherwise quite tasty. We were using a bit of charcoal along with maple wood.

Should you always use a pan of water to help keep things moist? Should it be kept in the firebox? Any other tips?

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gonzoflick said:

The best smoked salmon you will ever taste is made like this..with a dry brine.

Mix 3 parts brown sugar and 1 part salt together

Spread salmon fillet on plastic wrap.

Coat top of salmon completely with brine mixture.

Cover with plastic wrap.

Set in fridge for 24 hours

Uncover fillet and wash off brine. Let sit out for an hour to glaze over

Smoke at 200-225 for 2-3 hours. ENJOY

FYI the brine mixture cooks the salmon overnight, so the smoking part just finishes up the cooking and adds the good flavor. I use hickory/apple for my wood

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