Fish are most commonly smoked for the flavor and not for preservation. While smoking
does produce a safe, fully cooked product, it is important to remember that smoking does
not make fish immune to spoilage. The safety and quality of smoked fish depends on the
skill, experience, and knowledge of the person doing the smoking.
A Few Things to Keep in Mind
- Though smoking can mask a wide range of off-flavors and defects in the raw fish, these
defects will still be present in the final product. Be aware that if bad fish goes into
the smokehouse, bad fish will come out. Use only high-quality raw fish.
- Problems may be encountered when you try to get uniform salt levels in the fish from
batch to batch. The condition of the fish, its size, its fat content, whether it's frozen
or fresh, and the time of year the fish was caught all influence the rate at which salt
will be taken up. Unless you smoke fish every day or generally smoke only one species of
fish caught about the same time every year, you need to develop some way to determine the
right level of salt for your taste. One way is to take a small piece of the brined fish
and cook and taste it--keeping in mind that smoking will later remove a lot of water and
fat, which will concentrate the salt. It's best to err on the low side--what may taste
just right when the raw brined fish is tasted may be too salty after smoking.
- Smoking does not prevent fish from spoiling. After fish is smoked, it must be kept
refrigerated and eaten within four weeks, or immediately frozen for future use.
Choosing the Fish
Any fish can be smoked, but some species taste better and have a higher quality when
smoked than others.
In Wisconsin, the favorite fish for smoking include salmon, trout, whitefish, chubs,
carp, suckers, buffalo, and catfish. In general, fatty fishes like these will come out
juicier than lean fish species like perch and walleye, which have a drier and firmer
character when smoked. (See the table of fat content to
determine which fish are fatty and which are lean.)
In the final analysis, your personal preference for dry or moist smoked fish will
determine which type of fish you want to smoke.
For complete smoking directions, including building your own smoker, email or call Sea
Grant Publications for a free printed brochure. Email your mailing address to Linda
Campbell at linda@seagrant.wisc.edu or call
608-263-3259.
