This month’s Charcutepalooza challenge was all about hot smoking. The apprentice challenge was to hot smoke salmon while the charcuterie challenge was to hot smoke either a pork loin or a pork shoulder.
When I first read smoked salmon I was super excited because I LOVE smoked salmon. After doing some research I learned that the smoked salmon that I like is actually cold-smoked salmon. I didn’t even realize that hot-smoked salmon was a thing. Alas, you live and you learn. Interestingly enough on my last trip to Stratford one of the things that we ate was hot-smoked trout. I enjoyed the idea of it and it made me look forward to hot-smoking some salmon!
I marinated the salmon for about 12 hours in some maple syrup, kosher salt and a few seasonings, nothing fancy at all. I used my wok steamer which I don’t think I had turned up enough because I smoked the fish for about 30 minutes and it still wasn’t cooked. I ended up finishing it off in the oven.
The salmon was great albeit a bit salty. Totally my fault because I forgot to rinse off the marinade/cure prior to smoking. My bad. With that said, it was still delicious! The outside was nicely almost glazed while the inside was still moist. Since the fish wasn’t too thick the smoke flavour was present in every bite. I used hickory wood. I served the salmon on top of a hominy puree (mixed with cilantro and butter) and a raw fennel salad. It all worked really great together.
Next up was hot smoking some pork loin to make Canadian Bacon. Now THIS I was excited for, but then I wasn’t really. I’ve become quite a pro at soaking things in a cure and then smoking them. It was like making bacon but with a pork loin instead of pork belly. While I enjoyed the Canadian Bacon I wasn’t really over the moon about it, maybe because it’s not something that I regularly consume. I mean it was smoky and porky and the texture was good but I’d choose regular bacon over Canadian Bacon any day.
To make things a bit more interesting I decided to make eggs Benedict. I happened to have some farm fresh eggs from my last trip to Stratford that I thought would be perfect in a eggs Benedict. I used this recipe for my Hollandaise sauce which I find is super easy and delicious. It’s Hollandaise without all the fuss while still being pretty close to a regular Hollandaise. To take things to the next level I decided to make my own English muffins. My English muffin making will be a separate post but I must say they weren’t my fave! Luckily they didn’t ruin the eggs benedict.
I’m looking forward to seeing what the next Charcutepalooza challenge is…
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Your Benny looks lovely! I, too, had no clue about the difference between cold and hot smoked salmon (because I don’t eat it maybe but then again, Neil learned something too!) and we will definitely try the cold smoked type sometime. Your pork loin is a totally different shape than ours – wish we had had one that shape to fit into a proper smoker box that I was *this* close to buying instead of the… oh well, you will have to go over to my blog to check out the “smoker” yourself LOL! Will be interested to see your muffin recipe. I made them twice, my first batch were not great, the second batch were fab, by accident!
Gorgeous eggs Benedict! I must definitely make Canadian bacon soon.
And you smoked that Canadian bacon indoors?! It looks gorgeous! If you like something with a little more kick, try the tasso ham. Even easier than Canadian bacon and full of flavor. Also, if you like smoked fish, I recommend mackerel. Too strong for me raw, but wonderfully delicious when smoked.
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Please let me know where I can find details about wok smoking salmon and hot smoking pork. We are the new owners of a smoker and learning how to use it. Thanks!
[…] even chicken. Since I’m not much of a chicken fan I decided to smoke some salmon. I smoked salmon a few months ago using my wok with great results. I did a traditional smoke with wood chips. Knowing that my wood […]
I used the mouth-watering picture of your eggs benedict for my blog post and linked it back to yours. My tummy is totally grumbling now!!
I used the mouth-watering picture of your eggs benedict for my blog post and linked it back to yours with a mention at the bottom.
My tummy is totally grumbling now.