Making Cold Smoked Salmon “Japanese Style”
Cold smoked salmon is a delicacy enjoyed worldwide, but adding a Japanese twist brings out flavours that elevate this dish to a whole new level.
Today, we’ll walk you through the process of making cold smoked salmon using a Japanese seasoning blend, ensuring the perfect balance of flavour and texture. Whether you're new to smoking fish or a seasoned pro, this guide will provide you with the steps to create delicious cold smoked salmon at home.
Preparing the Salmon
We started with a fresh, beautiful, high-quality side of salmon. It's important to select a piece that will slice evenly and maintain its structure during the curing process. Once we had our salmon, we removed any pin bones and trimmed away the thin and fatty pieces for a cleaner cut.
Curing the fresh salmon
Curing is a crucial step in making cold smoked salmon, as it infuses the fish with flavour while also removing excess moisture. We used a mix of Japanese seasoning, sugar, and coarse sea salt. The cure consisted of the following simple ratio:
- 1 pot of Japanese rub (225g).
- 200g sugar.
- 200g coarse sea salt.
We evenly distributed the cure over the salmon fillet, ensuring the thicker parts were covered with about ½ cm of the cure, while the thinner edges received less to avoid over-curing. The fish was left to cure for approximately 8 hours. During this time, the fish firms up as the salt draws out moisture. Take care to not over cure the fish, as it can become over-firm and too salty.
Note: We used a non-metallic tray to cure the fish to prevent any chemical reactions. A fine layer of the cure was sprinkled on the tray before placing the fish on it.
Cold smoking the Salmon
After curing, the fish was rinsed thoroughly with cold water to remove the cure, and we allowed it to rest overnight in the fridge to form a pellicle. This thin layer is essential as it helps the smoke adhere evenly to the fish.
For cold smoking, we used a Cold Smoke Generator (CSG) filled with maple wood dust, which burns slowly over 6-8 hours, imparting a light, sweet smoke flavour. The fish was placed in our Traeger smoker, but any well-ventilated “box” can work for this process.
Cold smoking is typically done at low temperatures, which can seem a bit unusual in August, but this year the weather up here in Aberdeen has been quite chilly at night. This cooler weather makes it easier to maintain the ideal conditions for cold smoking, as you want the temperature to remain low to prevent the fish from “cooking” or bacteria from developing.
We smoked the salmon for two full rounds using our CSG, totaling about 13 hours. After smoking, it’s essential to let the fish rest in the fridge overnight. The resting period allows the smoke flavour to mellow and balance, ensuring a more enjoyable taste.
Slicing and Serving
Once rested, we sliced the cold smoked salmon thinly and served it on fresh crusty bread. To add a Japanese flair, we made wasabi mayonnaise by blending wasabi paste, mayonnaise, and a splash of lime juice. The salmon was topped with a sprinkle of nori seaweed and Korean chilli flakes for extra flavour and texture.
Side dishes
We complemented the salmon with some refreshing side dishes:
- Julienned Japanese pear and radish matchsticks, sprinkled with black onion seeds.
- Lambs’ lettuce dressed with lime juice.
- Finely mandolined red onion, chives and nori seaweed.
Making cold smoked salmon at home, especially with a Japanese twist, is a rewarding process that results in a flavorful and elegant dish. Whether you’re looking to try cold smoked salmon for the first time or you’re perfecting your technique, this Japanese-style version is sure to impress.
