Wood For Smoking Fish Nz

Smoking wood plays a role in the flavor and the color of the meat.

Wood for smoking fish nz.

It also forms a bark or crust on the meat. An alternative for salmon is maple wood. Almost any kind of wood will work but you might wish to use woods like alder or fruit woods. Alder has a light flavor that works well with fish and poultry.

You can use whole fish or parts but fillets with the skin still on are better than other cuts. Maple burns hot and quick which is good for smoking fish as they tend to smoke for shorter times. Some woods aren t suitable for smoking and could be harmful eg pine fir spruce redwood cedar cypress elm eucalyptus sassafras sycamore liquid amber and redwood. The only fish worth buying and smoking in my view is salmon as it can be bought for 25 to 30 per kilo while cold smoked salmon sells for 100 a kilo and hot smoked is not much cheaper.

Cedar wood chips are not the same as cooking salmon fillets on specially prepared cedar planks. Cooking salmon on soaked cedar planks allows the salmon fillets to absorb some of the flavors of cedar directly from the salmon planks. Use a fish smoker or set up a gas barbecue for hot smoking as follows. Generally you re ok with trees you eat fruit or nuts from.

The wood often comes as wood chunks wood chips or pellets wood chunks allow a steady slow release of smoke while wood chips and pellets are quicker to smoke. One of the best woods for smoking salmon and other seafood is alder. However fattier fish will absorb more smoke flavor so fish such as salmon and trout are perfect for smoking. Almond give a nutty sweet flavor that is good with all meats.

Almond is similar to pecan. In general mild woods are good for fish and poultry medium fruit woods are best for poultry or pork and strong woods hold up against dark red meat flavors. Put a layer of manuka wood chips in a metal tray and place it over a single burner. Indigenous to the northwestern united states it is the traditional wood for smoking salmon.

Orchard trees or nuts are fine. Alder produces a very mild smoke flavor and doesn t burn too hot which is ideal for salmon.