Smoking Fish

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.

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