Hot Smoked Salmon
A 2-lb side dry-cured 8 hours, air-dried 1 hour for the pellicle, and hot-smoked at 180°F over alder for 90 minutes — flaky, glossy, honey-sweet salmon.
smoker Timer
Set for 90 mins @ 180°F (82°C) low smoke
Ingredients
Base recipe calibrated for 8 adults.
Get to the Point
Dry-cure 2 lb salmon side skin-down under 1/4 cup salt + 1/4 cup brown sugar 8 hrs.
Rinse, pat dry, place on rack skin-down; air-dry in fridge 1 hr to form pellicle.
Brush top with 2 tbsp honey; smoke skin-DOWN at 180°F over alder 90 min to 140°F.
Cool 10 min on the rack; peel skin off in one sheet, flake and serve.
Step-by-Step Guided Instructions
In a bowl, mix 1/4 cup kosher salt with 1/4 cup brown sugar. Place a 2-lb skin-on salmon side skin-down on a large sheet pan. Pack the entire cure mixture on top of the flesh in an even layer. Cover with plastic and refrigerate 8 hours.
8 hours is calibrated for 2 lbs. A thicker side needs 10 hours, a thinner one 6. The cure firms and seasons the flesh without turning it into gravlax (which takes 24+ hours).
Rinse the salmon under cold water to remove all the cure. Pat completely dry with paper towels. Place skin-down on a wire rack over a sheet pan. Refrigerate uncovered for 1 hour to form the pellicle — the tacky protein layer that holds smoke.
The pellicle is the whole game. Skip it and smoke slides off the wet fish; form it and the smoke bonds to the surface into that classic smoked-salmon glaze.
Preheat your smoker or pellet grill to 180°F with alder or apple wood. Alder is traditional Pacific Northwest smoked salmon wood; apple is a slightly sweeter alternative.
180°F is 'hot smoke' — cooks the fish through while smoking. Cold smoke (under 90°F) keeps the fish raw and requires curing salt for safety. Do not confuse the two.
Brush the top of the salmon lightly with 2 tbsp warm honey (thinned with 1 tsp water). Sprinkle with 1 tsp coarse black pepper. Place skin-DOWN directly on the smoker grate.
Honey glaze is what gives smoked salmon its glossy amber lacquer. Skip it and the fish looks flat and dull; brush it and it looks like the case at the smokehouse.
Smoke undisturbed at 180°F for 90 minutes until the internal temp at the thickest part reads 140°F. The surface will be tacky and glossy; the flesh will just start to bead sweat.
Salmon over 145°F is a chalky brick. Hot-smoked salmon is best at 140°F medium — flaky but still moist. Use a thermometer, not the clock.
Transfer the whole rack to a counter and cool 10 minutes. Slide a fish spatula under the flesh, above the skin — the skin will stick to the rack and the salmon will lift off in one piece. Serve warm, room temp, or chilled for spread.
The skin peels away perfectly if you left it skin-side down the whole time. Try this with skin-up and you tear the salmon apart pulling skin off in ragged strips.
Save the peeled skin. Lay it back on the wire rack, brush with honey, and smoke another 20 minutes for chef-caliber smoked salmon skin cracklings — the best bar snack you'll ever put out.
Serve smoked salmon flakes on plain buttered toast — no cream cheese, no capers, no onion. The smoke and sweetness are enough flavor for young palates.
- Bagels, cream cheese, capers, and red onion
- Cucumber-dill salad
- Cold crusty bread with butter
Smoked salmon is best cold or room temp — reheating pushes it past medium and it flakes into dry crumbles. Chop leftover into scrambled eggs, fold into pasta with cream, or spread on toast.