A flavorful brine for salmon, trout, sturgeon or other fish.
Soy Sauce, Brown Sugar and Seasonings for Salmon, Trout and other Fish
Perfect for smoking and grilling. This brine recipe is perfect for enhancing the flavor of your favorite fish before smoking or grilling. The combination of soy sauce, brown sugar, and seasonings creates a savory and slightly sweet profile that complements the natural taste of the fish.
Ingredients
- 8-10 pounds fillets, skin on, rinsed, patted dry, cut into small pieces. A good size is about 3″ x 6″, but smaller or slightly larger is fine. Small trout can be cleaned and smoked whole.
- 8 cups water
- 2 cups soy sauce (Kikkoman is our favorite)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ¾ cup sea salt or kosher salt (Do not use iodized salt. It will impart an unpleasant flavor.)
- 1½ tbsp granulated garlic
Directions
- Mix brining ingredients together in a large bowl.
- Pour mixture over fillets, making sure they are covered, or until they float.
- Cover containers and marinate for about 4 hours in the refrigerator.
- Remove fillets from brine, pat dry with paper towels, and arrange on racks to dry for about an hour – until a glaze forms on the surface of the fish.
- Smoke fish according to your smoker’s directions with alder wood, mesquite, fruit tree or hickory chips. Check occasionally, keeping in mind that air temperature will influence smoking time. Typical smoking times range from 6 to 12 hours. A slightly wet product is best suited for many of the recipes we enjoy and for canning. For straight snacking, a drier product may be preferred.
- Brined 2.5 lb steelhead filet for 4 hours, let dry overnight in fridge. Brushed with a combo of oil and peaty whisky for ~3 hours at smoke setting on trager until temp probe reached 130 degrees.