Here is my process. I have hundreds and hundreds of lbs of fish through my little chiefs this way. Infact there are three running at this minute.. wink

I line the bottom tray in the little chiefs with foil to catch the extras wink

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I cut the fillets into three sections before soaking in brine.

I also use tweezers to pull the left over back bones after filleting the fish (this takes a little time but is well worth the effort).



Here is the Salmon Brine

1 cup "Non-Iodized" salt. It is very important that you use this salt only as any other will ruin your fish.

2 gal cold water
1 bottle white wine
6 oz each of garlic and onion powder
4 oz of pickling spice
1 oz each of cinnamon and mace
1 large bottle of Italian seasoning

Combine all ingredients and let stand 1 hour.

Marinate fish in brine for 12 - 24 hours stirring or agitating every 2 hrs or so. I usually go for 24 hours.

Remove fish from brine and rinse brine off thoroughly in cold running water.

Pat dry with a paper towel to dry the top of the meat.

Cover top of Salmon with brown sugar. Just enough to cover all the meat.

Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes to allow the sugar to melt down a little.

Place fish in smoker (do not use a barbeque!). Distribute fish on the racks evenly to make sure there is plenty of space between pieces.

If you want the fish dry add wood every 3 to 4 hours. If you want a lightly smoked fish add wood ever 6 to 8 hours. My fish are in the smoker usually between 12 and 18 hours depending on tempatures outside. I prefer longer cooler temps.