INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup of salt of kosher
  • Fresh black pepper (ground)
  • 1 cup of packed and fresh brown sugar
  • 1 large side of salmon, should be 2.5 to 3 LBS

DIRECTIONS

  1. Remove the bones. First of all, remove all of the pin bones from the salmon picked by you. Now, pick a small sized bowl and then combine the kosher salt, ground black pepper, and brown sugar. Then, lay a large size piece of fresh wrap of plastic on a proper flat surface and it should be at least 6 inches longer as compared to the fillet.
  2. Spread the mixture. Now, spread ½ of the obtained mixture on the top side of the plastic wrap. And then, lay the skin side of fillet down on the top side of the cure properly. Then, top it with additional ½ of the remaining cure spreading it properly and evenly over the top side of the obtained fillet. Thereafter, fold up all of the edges of the plastic and wrap it very tightly.
  3. Place the salmon. Now, properly place the wrapped fillet of salmon in the bottom of a rectangular flat baking dish or pan. Thereafter, place one more similar pan on the top of your fillet. And then, place some cans or something of heavyweight inside the top pan in order to weight its downside. Just make sure that the weight is evenly distributed. And then, transfer the salmon (weighted) to a fridge and cure it for around 8 to 12 hours.

  1. Remove the salmon. Remove it completely from the wrap of plastic and then rinse all of the cure completely. Then, place the side of skin down on a rack of wire atop a sheet tray properly and pat dry. After doing this, keep the sheet tray in a fridge and then allow the obtained salmon to dry throughout the night. This will allow the tacky film also called as pellicle in order to form on the salmon’s surface. The obtained pellicle will help the smoke to adhere to the salmon.
  2. Begin making the Traeger. When it is ready to cook, begin the Traeger as per the grill instructions. Then, set the temperature to the setting of smoke and then preheat it. Close the lid for a time duration of around 5 to 10 minutes. At last, place the skin side of salmon down which should be directly on the grate (grill) and smoke it for a time duration of about 3 to 4 hours. Or smoke it until the internal temperature of the salmon registers a temperature of around 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Now, your dishes are ready, enjoy it until it is warm and chilled.

NOTES

  • In place of kosher salt, you can have a very coarse salt or Morten’s kosher salt, it will also work properly.
  • Try to air dry the fish under a fan, for a time duration of around 2 hours before keeping the salmon in your smoker and then keep smoking it low and slowly for a further duration of around 3 hours before you increase the temperature to 180 degrees to finish cooking.