Directions

1. Combine the water, salt and sugar in a saucepan and heat/stir until the salt and sugar are fully dissolved. Allow this to completely cool to room temperature.

2. When cooled to room temperature, pour the brine into a non-reactive container and place in the fridge for a few hours to chill down further.

3. Butterfly the fish and place it completely submerged in the brine for up to 1 hour, depending on the thickness of the fillets.

4. Remove the fish from the brine and soak it in fresh cold water for 15 to 20 minutes to remove some of the saltiness.

5. Get some paper towels and pat the fillets dry. Make sure you remove as much moisture as you can, then place on a rack, skin side down. If you do not intend to smoke it straight away, place the rack in the fridge until a pellicle forms on the surface of the fish (a light tacky feel).

6. Before you smoke – bring your fish to the ambient air temperature and wipe off any visible moisture.

7. Place your fish evenly spaced out on a rack in your bbq/smoker/smoke chamber or alternatively, hang from dowels in your smokehouse.

8. When you’re ready, fill the hopper of your Smokai Smoke Generator with wood chip or quality hardwood BBQ pellets and light it.

9. Hot Smoke as follows:

10. 50°C for 1 hour without smoke

11. Light your Smokai Smoke Generator

12. 60°C for 1 hour with light smoke

13. 70°C for 2-3 hours with heavy smoke

14. NOTE: If you are using a hooded BBQ/Grill for your heat source and low temperatures are difficult for you to achieve, hot smoke for 1 hour at 70-100°C or until the internal temperature of the fish reaches 63°C. A reliable test is to insert a fork into the thickest part of the fish and twist. The flesh should separate (flake) easily.

15. You can eat the fish straight away. IF you can find the self control, it will benefit from an ageing period of 24 hours in the fridge to allow the smoke compounds to permeate the flesh and balance the flavour.