2nd attempt at smoked trout

today i began my second attempt at smoked trout. my first attempt was some time ago, and the results were pretty good.

this time, i used these ingredients:

• 1 cup non-iodized salt
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 5 cups spring water
• 5 cups apple juice
• 1 tablespoon tabasco

i wanted to try mr. mom's dry brine, but i was missing some of the ingredients. i will perhaps try it next time, i hope.

i've got 6 rainbows ranging from 13-19 inches brining right now; will smoke them tomorrow. i filleted them down to the tail, then flipped them over and repeated on the other side, cutting out the middle and leaving the fillets attached at the tail. i did this to make them easy to hang.

right now, i can't decide between alder or maple wood, so maybe i'll mix equal amounts of each and use both.

i'll let you all know how it goes.

next day (maybe 20 hours later), smoked trout with four pans of alder/maple mixed.started at 2pm. smoking time was a little over 8 hours, and the end product was pretty damned good! the brine might have been a little strong, or it might have soaked too long. i liked it, but could see where someone else might think it was a little overpowering. as far as the smoking goes, itseemed to be jsut right, maybe even a little on the light side.

all-in-all, i am satisfied with this attempt, but would like to play around with it a little more. on my next attempt, i will use the same ingredients but cut the salt/sugar in half and will keep the smoking method the same. i might use apple wood, just for the hell of it.

widux - i figured that the applejuice would be worth a try to give it a nice tang. i gotta admit that i did notice it in the final product, and i like the effect it gave. as for the tabasco, i couldn't even taste taht in there, so i need to add a bit more or just delete it from the brine.

good luck!