Traeger smoked salmon

Try this delicious and super easy recipe for smoked salmon. This is a hot smoked salmon method that can be used in any electric smoker like Traeger or Masterbuilt.

MyWW green plan 8 points, blue plan 2 points, purple 2 points. Points are per serving, see recipe notes for more information

Summer is probably the best time for outdoor grilling. Smoking season just started but dont worry if it still cold outside, you can successfully use your smoker any time of the year.

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Easy brine method

What is brining? Its the process of placing a cut of meat or fish into the water salt solution, usually overnight. It helps the piece to get juicier and more flavorful.

When you are getting salmon ready for smoking, use salt and brown sugar together in the brine. Add water and let it sit in the fridge overnight or for at least 4 hours. I never smoked salmon without the brine so i don’t know how it will taste. Once done, pat dry fish with paper towels.

I need to get your attention that this is a HOT SMOKED SALMON recipe, not cold smoked. The difference is that when you use a cold smoke method, the fish is not getting really cooked. Its used for lox bagels, in sandwiches and has a completely different texture.

I love to eat this fish as is! Its also great in a sandwich, in salad, in pasta… Its delicious hot or cold.

What type of salmon to use

Always use wild caught if it available in your local store or you can go fishing yourself! If its not in season, you can use a frozen fillet. Today i used a farmed raised Atlantic salmon, which is not the best but that is all i could find in my closest supermarket.

My favorite wood chips

My absolutely favorite is hickory or applewood chips. The smoke flavor doesn’t overwhelm the salmon flavor and just has an incredible aroma. I tried it with Oak wood chips and it also was delicious.

How to store smoked fish

After the smoking process is all done, let the fish cool a little and than slice or flake it. You will probably have some leftovers. Use a plastic or glass container with air tight lid to store it in the fridge for up to 10 days. You can use a zip lock bag to store salmon as well.

Don’t be afraid of freezing your hot smoked salmon! Just place it in the freezer for up to 6 months in the same container mentioned above. Thaw in the fridge overnight.

If you worry about the fish size, don’t! You don’t change the temperature or cooking time depending on the size of your fillet. Salmon has about the same thickness everywhere so it will get cooked evenly even if you will use 4 pounds instead of 2lb.

Traeger and Masterbuilt electric smokers

I love the confidence electric smokers give you. They are affordable and very easy to use even for a beginner. You absolutely can make any smoker recipe even if you never had experience with it.

Masterbuilt is a bit cheaper and more affordable. Works great though! I have a bunch of recipes i made in that smoker:

• Smoked chicken wings
• Smoked brisket

At the same time i adore Traeger smoker. It sits higher on the ground and its more comfortable to work with it. Its more expensive but let you have a better control of the temperature and the amount of smoke that coming form it.