When the salmon start to run in Alaska, we don’t mess around. It’s time to harvest our dinners for the year, and when we have a good run, we know catching the fish is only part of the operation. Filleting in a way that honors the fish — using every part — and vacuum-sealing and quick-freezing keeps the catch delicious well past the summer. Beyond freezing, there is a time-honored tradition that dates back thousands of years: smoking salmon for preservation.
Smoked salmon remains culturally important among Indigenous peoples across Alaska. Smoking is a way to connect to the fish that have nourished generations and continue to do so. There is harmony in the process of catching, curing, gathering alders along the shoreline, and finally smoking these beautiful wild salmon. For those who haven’t smoked fish before, I thought it would be interesting to share how it’s done around here and perhaps inspire some smoking of your own!
smoking salmon
Growing up in the “bush,” (off the road system in rural Alaska) power was unreliable — I often relied on a generator my mom didn’t want to run. We used kerosene propane lanterns, brought in mostly dry goods that would not spoil, and grew most of our produce. While it’s romantic to spend summers in that way, there were limited ways to preserve our fish without a freezer or fridge. My mother wasn’t the type to spend all day in the kitchen, but she quickly perfected a simplified way of smoking and canning our catch. Smoking salmon was one of the easiest preservation methods. All that’s needed is a short cure (3 parts salt to 2 parts sugar by weight) on the fish for 30 minutes, a rinse, and then into the smoker for a quick hour-long hot smoke. Some prefer a harder (longer) smoke, but I grew up with the quicker method, which is perfect for sandwiches and dips. The smoke itself doesn’t need to be at a perfect temperature, since the fish will cook again in the jar.
dry cure for salmon
After the smoker, the salmon gets packed into canning jars. Then it goes into the pressure canner for 100 minutes at 10 psi (pounds per square inch), and you have delicious smoked salmon that’s shelf-stable for years. This is still how I preserve many of my own salmon, because it requires no freezer space and tastes delicious.
ready for the pressure canner
For those who want to do more traditional smoked salmon, I highly recommend chef and fisherman Hank Shaw’s guide to smoking salmon. This is the method I use, and he outlines the crucial steps to dial in your fish. I start by filleting the fish and trimming out the pin bones. You can pull them with tweezers if you’re uncomfortable trimming and wasting fish, but with a little practice, hardly any fish goes to waste. Next is the brining process, which should cure without making the fish too salty. There are several brining styles: a dry brine (salt and sugar applied to the surface), a wet brine (salt, sugar, and water), and a 100% salt brine (dissolving as much salt as possible in water for less than 10 minutes, depending on the fish size). Each has advantages, but they all aim for moisture retention, reduced white albumin leakage, and better texture and flavor. Brining also helps preserve the fish while it warms up in the smoker.
brining salmon
After brining comes one of the most important steps: creating the pellicle, or the outer crust on the salmon. The pellicle helps retain moisture and keeps the white, gooey albumin from escaping. Keep the fish cool, preferably below 60 degrees, with fans blowing over it. The best smoked salmon I’ve made was when my wife was pregnant and had a false alarm — my salmon sat in the fridge for three days before I could finish the process. That king salmon developed a firm outer crust and taught me how to get the crust just right, with the fridge aiding pellicle formation.
pellicle formation
When your fish looks firm and ready for the smoker, paint the skin side with a neutral oil so it doesn’t stick, then start smoking. Salmon benefits from a slow rise in temperature, so don’t rush it. I love Sitka alder for smoking because it’s mild, abundant, and grows near the streams where salmon spawn. You can choose your wood, but stronger flavors like mesquite can overpower the salmon’s delicate flavor.
in the smoker
There are many smoking techniques to achieve a great smoke. In Western Alaska, where sockeye runs number in the tens of millions of fish, a traditional method is to make salmon strips or jerky. Fillets are cut into thin strips, with a small piece of skin left connected, then hung vertically to slowly smoke and dry over several days. Some people leave them in the smoker at low temperatures and airflow for days to achieve a flexible but dry finish. For a quicker route, start the fish in the smoker and gradually increase the heat until you reach about 135°F internal temperature. If you want it smokier, keep it in the smoke longer; if you don’t want as much smoke, finish in a 175°F oven.
Catching and eating these beautiful fish is a privilege, and preserving and sharing them with friends and family is even better. Good luck trying smoking, and remember it’s a great way to make use of any salmon that has a popped vacuum seal.
Marsh Skeele
Marsh is our original fisherman and helped start Sitka Seafood Market over a decade ago. He grew up fishing with his family outside of Sitka and began his own fishing journey captaining the F/V Loon in 2011. Shortly thereafter at a dinner party sharing his catch, he met friends that figured out how to get his fish to the Midwest and Sitka Seafood Market was born. He loves finding the highest quality ingredients and sharing the stories of their harvest over a dinner party. You can find him fishing with his family in Sitka and searching for the next delicious piece of seafood to share with you.
