Servings: 8
Calories: 699kcal
Equipment
- Smoker. I use a Traeger Grill, but they all work.
- Wood or wood pellets. What is the best wood? Whatever you have on hand. But I'm partial to cherry or hickory.
- Pastry brush, for basting.
- Wire rack, for resting the salmon after curing and developing.
Ingredients
- 6 lbs wild salmon fillets cut into 1 to 1.5 inch strips
- 1.5 cups dark brown sugar
- 1.5 cups kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon scotch optional
- ½ cup maple syrup
Instructions
- First we will make a simple cure for the salmon. Whisk your brown sugar and salt together thoroughly in a glass container that comes with a lid (or can be wrapped with cling wrap or a beeswax cover).1.5 cups dark brown sugar, 1.5 cups kosher salt
- Cut your salmon into strips or chunks. Aim for strips that are about 1 to 1.5 inches wide. Remember that as the salmon smokes and becomes jerkey it will lose a lot of moisture and shrink.6 lbs wild salmon fillets
- Take your strips of salmon and cover them completely in the brown sugar-salt cure, cover your bowl, and place it in the refrigerator. Leave it for a minimum of 12 and no more than 24 hours.1.5 cups dark brown sugar, 1.5 cups kosher salt
- Depending on how much salmon you are turning into jerky, you may need more or less cure. If you are staking salmon strips on top of each other, ensure there is a heavy layer of cure between the strips. Use your judgement.
- After the salmon has finished curing, take it out and rinse it competely in cold water. Pat salmon until completely dry.
- Now you have two options: Take the salmon strips and place them in a single layer on a wire rack over a baking sheet or (tea towels or paper towels work too) to capture excess mointure. Place the salmon, uncovered, in the refrigerator overnight OR place it in front of a fan somewhere cool and shady for 1 - 3 hours.
- This final step gets the surface of your salmon sticky and helps the smoke adhere to it. This is called pellicle. Now we are ready to smoke.
- Preheat your Traeger on the ‘Smoke’ setting for 5 minutes with the lid open. Or preheat whichever pellet or other type of smoker you are using.
- Baste the salmon on the flesh-side with the scotch (if using) with a pastry brush (silicone is my favourite) and place the fillets directly on the grill,skin side down. Close the lid.1 tablespoon scotch
- Set your timer for 1 hour and then baste the salmon with a thick layer of maple syrup. Every hour baste the salmon with more maple syrup.½ cup maple syrup
- Depending on the size of your strips, the smoking will take anywhere from 3.5 hours to 4 hours. Maybe a bit more. You should do a taste test at the 3-hour mark.
- Do NOT let the temperate get above 200/220° Fahrenheit, and if it does place a bowl of ice water inside the smoker.
- You will have successfully made salmon jerky once the flesh looks dry and is stiff while still being slightly pliable and chewy.
Nutrition
Calories: 699kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 68g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 187mg | Sodium: 300mg | Potassium: 1771mg | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 136IU | Calcium: 110mg | Iron: 3mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!