Hot Smoked Salmon

5 from 2 votes

You've likely had cold smoked salmon - the most common version - but have you tried hot smoked salmon? This smoked sockeye salmon is amazing!

Prep Time10

Cook Time1 30

Brining and resting time6

Total Time7 40

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Canadian

Diet: Diabetic, Gluten Free

Servings: -6 people

Calories: 462kcal

Equipment

Smoker

Ingredients

4 cups Water
¼ cup Kosher salt
¼ cup Brown Swerve or brown sugar if not keto
1 tablespoon Peppercorns
3 Garlic cloves Pressed
2 Bay Leaves
1 Lemon Sliced into thin slices
1 - 1 ½ lbs Fresh Sockeye Salmon Fillet

Instructions

Measure 2 cups of water into a medium pot, add remaining ingredients (aside from rest of water & salmon!).
Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat, add remaining water, stir to combine. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Carefully remove the skin from the salmon - if it hasn’t already been removed - and cut the salmon into individual portions.
Place salmon pieces into a large freezer bag, cover with brine.
Push out most of the air, seal the bag, and put in the fridge for 4 hours.
Note: I put the bag into a loaf pan, just in case of leakage, etc.
Once the 4 hours are up, remove the salmon from the brine, pat dry with paper towels.
Place salmon on a plate, return to the fridge - uncovered - for 2 hours.
Hot smoke salmon at 200 F for 1 - 1 ½ hours, or until it reaches the desired texture / smoke level.
Serve hot, or cool and chill in an airtight container until use.

Notes

11.5 Grams of carbs per serving come from sugar alcohols, so the recipe is actually 4.5 grams of net carbs - but not really!

The recipe software takes all of the ingredients into account, which gets a bit weird when it comes to a brine.

While the fish absorbs some of the brine, it doesn't absorb, say, every last carb involved with the whole lemon that is factored into the nutritional info!

Nutrition