Alder smoked salmon as cleared from the name derives it aroma and authenticity from alder wood planks. You can buy these alder wood planks and can also have them from a lumber yard near you. Make sure you tell everyone that helps you that you are cooking salmon using wood planks so you don’t want creosote wood or already treated wood. Another thing you should want to check is that either the plank size fit your smoker or not.
You must check electric smoker reviews before buying one so you can have the appropriate one for your alder smoked salmon. Note that once cooked, it will come out moist and smoky which I am sure you want at first place.
Alder Smoked Salmon Recipe
Total Time: 2 days
Servings: 4
Ingredients
For Brine:
- 1 side of salmon skin on and removed pin bones.
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup kosher salt
For Seasoning
- 2 tbsp. white sugar
- 1 ½ tbsp. kosher salt
- ½ tbsp. fennel seed.
- ½ tbsp. ground ginger
- 1 tbsp. green peppercorns
- ½ tbsp. orange peeled.
For Smoking
- 3 cups alder smoking chips
Directions
- Combine both sugar and salt with little hot water.
- Stir the mixture to dissolve sugar and salt in it.
- Place the salmon on a pan and add the sugar/salt solution.
- Add enough cold water to cover the salmon and mixture and refrigerate overnight.
- Remove the salmon from brine the next day.
- Place the salmon on a cooling rack over a pan to catch any drips.
- Refrigerate the salmon, skin side down and keep uncovered for a day.
- Check the surface of salmon, it will become tacky during this time.
- Combine all the ingredients and cover the top of salmon the next day.
- Add the alder chips and preheat the smoker to 180°F.
- Place the salmon on center rack and smoke for 4 hours.
- Add more wood chips every 45 minutes.
- Salmon is ready.
- Cool the salmon and slice thin.
- Serve the salmon with toasted bagels, capers, red onions, and fresh lemon.
Nutrition Facts
Per serving
207 calories; protein 29.1g; carbohydrates 2.8g; fat 8g; cholesterol 60.6mg; sodium 173.5mg.