How to smoke fish at home, the process of cold and hot smoking

Technology such as smoking fish is absolutely available at home. How to do this, you can find out in this article. Any man can make a small smokehouse. This approach can expand the diet of any family.

And if you build a stationary structure, then you can provide smoked fish not only for yourself, but also for your neighbors. The main thing here is that there are useful areas, and the presence of desire will also not be superfluous.

Which fish is suitable for smoking

How complicated the smoking process is, you can find out in the process of smoking. Although many argue that this is not an easy process, you should not tune in to more complexity. First of all, you need to decide which fish is better to smoke. As a rule, there are no special requirements for fish. In other words, you can smoke almost any fish.

Most people who are engaged in this business claim that even pike, catfish, and burbot are suitable for smoking. Those who have not been involved in smoked fish can practice, for example, on pike perch, herring, sterlet, cod or flounder. According to some professionals, you can smoke crucian or perch.

Basically, fatty fish species lend themselves to smoking, as this contributes to a tastier end product. The only thing is that you can’t smoke eel if you have never had to do this, since the wrong approach can make this product dangerous to humans.

Smoker for fish

There are a lot of options for making homemade fish smokers. In addition, designs can be designed for both cold and hot smoking. These processes are similar to each other, although they have certain differences. In this regard, the design is also different, although not significantly. Despite this, it is easier to make a smokehouse for hot smoking. Moreover, you can make such a small structure that you can take it with you for fishing and smoke fish directly near the reservoir. Of course, you can’t accumulate a lot of fish, but in nature, with a beer, it will be enough.

The simplest and most affordable option is a regular stainless steel bucket. The lid should be adjusted to the dimensions of the bucket so that oxygen does not penetrate inside. The height of the camera within 0,5-0,6 meters is enough.

Grids must be cleaned after each process. For such a design, it is necessary to provide stands, 0,3-0,4 meters high. In nature, it is not always possible to find stones of a suitable size, and the tree will burn.

Firewood for smoking

Firewood for smoking or wood chips are very important for the finished product, since it depends on them how tasty the smoked product will be. Chips from juniper or alder are perfect. If this is not possible, then these materials can be replaced with oak, maple, apple, pear or even birch. Branches left after spring pruning of trees are also suitable. Each type of tree gives the fish its own, special flavor. Therefore, everyone will be able to choose exactly the chips that family members will like the most.

Before use, it is better to remove the bark from wood, especially if birch is used. Birch bark contains a high concentration of resins. The tree is crushed to the size of cubes, 2×2 cm in size. It will not be bad if the blanks are chopped into chips or wet thin branches up to 1 cm thick are broken. Moreover, you can use almost any tree, including chestnut, poplar and any fruit trees. But pine is not suitable for smoking fish at all, including other conifers. They have a very high concentration of unpalatable resins that can simply spoil the product and make it unsuitable for food. Although, in some countries, the bones are smoked exclusively on the needles of coniferous trees. Moreover, the product is considered a delicacy. If the fish is wrapped in two layers of gauze, then the bitterness from the smoke can be minimized.

Not only the taste of smoked meats, but also the resulting shade of the product depends on the material used. Mahogany, such as alder, will color the fish golden, oak a dark yellow or even brown, and linden, maple and other species golden yellow. The appearance of the product largely depends on the color. But this can play a key role if the smoked product is traded. And for myself, the main thing is that it is tasty and the product does not turn out to be raw.

Some experts advise using dry wood chips, although most people use wet ones because they produce more smoke. In addition, it is very difficult to maintain the temperature at an optimal level, which can lead to a fire of dry wood chips inside the smoking chamber, especially at the moment it is opened.

To obtain exquisite aromas, materials such as juniper twigs, rosemary, almond shells, and so on should be added to the chips. At the same time, one should not overdo it so as not to completely clog the aroma of the fish itself. Not bad results can be obtained if you add a little bit of vine branches.

The quality of the chips is also important. In any case, it is better to use healthy wood and in no case rotten or affected by fungus.

Fish smoking technology

Particular attention must be paid to the cleanliness of the smokehouse, otherwise the fish will not have a pleasant aroma. As a rule, chips of the same size are placed at the bottom of the smokehouse. Smaller chips can catch fire and burn quickly, spoiling the smoking process.

The process can be simplified if special coals are used instead of wood chips. Before smoking, the smokehouse is heated to a certain temperature, after which a grill with fish is installed and covered with a lid. As soon as the first smoke appears, the countdown of smoking time begins.

Smoking oily fish has its own characteristics. In the process of smoking, fat begins to drain from the fish, which must be removed. If measures are not taken in time, then the fat will dry out and then it will be difficult to get rid of it. To prevent this from happening, foil is placed on a special stand. Fat flows onto this foil, and at the end of smoking, it is simply removed along with the fat. Otherwise, the fish may not be cooked.

The lid of the smokehouse should close the chamber as tightly as possible, otherwise the wood chips may catch fire from the access of oxygen, which is unacceptable.

The smoking process is divided into two stages:

1. One fourth of the time is devoted to drying the fish. At this time, the temperature is maintained at +80ºС-+90ºС.
2. The rest of the time is devoted directly to the smoking process itself. During this period the temperature rises to +100ºС-+120ºС.

There are simple ways to determine the smoking temperature. To do this, put a little water on the lid of the smokehouse. If you hear a characteristic hiss, then the temperature is right. If the water begins to boil, then the temperature must be reduced, otherwise the fish will simply boil. The smoking temperature is controlled by the amount of fuel. If you need to increase the temperature, then the fuel is added, and the fire begins to burn more intensely. If the fire burns strongly, then it can be extinguished with water. To do this, water is poured into a plastic bottle, and a hole is made in the lid. This makes it possible to accurately and quickly control the burning of a fire.

As a rule, the smoking process takes no more than half an hour. Here, much depends on the volume of smoking and the size of the fish carcasses.

The end product of smoking acquires a golden-bronze hue, without any traces of soot or soot. As a result of the correct process, fish meat is easily separated from the skin and bones. This indicates that the fish is cooked correctly. If technological flaws were observed, then the fish meat will be viscous or bitter. If the fish falls apart without much effort, then this means that the fish was overexposed in the smokehouse.

Preparing fish for the smoking stage

To prepare the fish, do the following:

• The fish is cut and disposed of the entrails.
• Then the fish is salted.
• After that, the fish is washed from salt residues and dried, and only then it can be sent to the smokehouse.

gutting fish

The easiest option is to purchase a finished, already cut carcass in the store. Firstly, butchered carcasses are more expensive, and secondly, there is no confidence in high-quality butchering. Therefore, it is better to do this yourself and cut the carcass according to all the rules.

Some anglers refuse to cut carcasses before smoking. This is especially true when the fish is oily. If it is cut, then in the process of smoking the fish will lose most of the fat. As a rule, with small carcass sizes, up to 0,5-0,7 kg, the fish is not cut. For large sizes, cutting is required, as this allows you to cook fish more efficiently. At the same time, the head and scales are preserved, and the carcass can be sewn. First, it will allow some of the fat to remain in the fish, and second, it will allow dirt or debris to get inside the fish.

Individuals of trophy size are cut along the ridge, while part of the head and part of the tail remain. If these two halves do not fit in the chamber, then they can be divided into two more parts.

Salting technology

The fish is salted before smoking and serves two purposes. The first is to give fish meat a certain taste. The second goal is to kill all harmful microorganisms. When smoking in pieces, they are simply rubbed with salt and spices and left for a certain time. When salting whole carcasses of fish, this process is carried out in a completely different way. First you need to prepare a saline solution, taking 80 g of salt per 1 liter of water. At the same time, for each kilogram of the product, up to 1,5 liters of such a saline solution will be required. In this case, the fish is salted for 12 hours.

If you really want to smoke fish while fishing, then it is better to take 300 g of salt for every liter of water. The fish is infused for 4 hours. Before moving the fish to the smokehouse, it is rubbed with any spices. For example, you can grate with pepper or some herbs.

In the process of smoking fish, it is not recommended:

• do not allow a large flame to burn;
• smoke fish of various sizes;
• open the smokehouse until smoke appears;
• open the chamber until the product is ready;
• pours water on the smokehouse.

If you follow the helpful tips, the process will go according to all the rules.

Cold smoking

Cold smoking has its advantages. The product of cold smoking lasts much longer and contains less harmful substances. Unfortunately, this process is somewhat more complicated and takes more time. In addition, for such a smokehouse you need more space. The technology is almost the same, but the fish does not fit on the grate, but is hung by the tail.

Depending on the size of the fish, the process of cold smoking can take from 2 to 7 days. At the end of the smoking process, the fish still remains in the smokehouse for several days. Smoking takes place at a temperature of +40°C.

Hot smoking

This method is very popular, as it takes much less time to cook fish. As a rule, the process of hot smoking takes no more than half an hour or a little more, depending on the size of the carcass. If the fish has a golden brown hue, then it can be eaten. Fish prepared in this way can be stored for no more than 3 days if it is out of the refrigerator.

How to smoke fish without a smoker

This method involves the use of various improvised means for smoking, like a bucket. There are a lot of similar options, and it all depends on the level of your imagination. The main thing is to carefully delve into the technology in order to understand what is needed for this. And you need the following. The smokehouse chamber must be hermetically sealed. The chamber should have a grate on which fish carcasses are placed, and under it, at a distance of 10-20 mm, a pan where fat will collect. Wood chips are laid on the bottom of the chamber, up to 2 cm in a layer. It all depends on the volume of the chamber. In short, there are no difficulties and anyone can handle smoking fish. Most importantly, take this process seriously and follow the helpful advice.