Brine for Smoked Salmon

Prep time: 15 min
Servings: 24
Yield: 24 servings

Description

Salmon brine for smoking, made with lots of citrus flavors. This also works nicely for trout. Brine fish for 12 hours then smoke for a real treat.

Ingredients

1 gallon water
1 cup kosher salt
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 (3 ounce) package dry crab and shrimp seasoning mix
lemon pepper to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 large yellow onion, sliced
4 lemons, sliced and crushed
2 oranges, sliced and crushed
1 lime, sliced and crushed
4 cloves garlic, crushed or to taste
1 dash hot pepper sauce

Directions

1 Pour water into a large bowl or small bucket. If using a pot, use one that does not contain aluminum. Stir in salt, white sugar, brown sugar, seasoning mix, lemon pepper, and black pepper. Add onion, lemons, oranges, lime, garlic, and hot pepper sauce.
2 Soak your salmon in this brine in the refrigerator for 12 to 36 hours.
3 Smoke using your desired method (see tip below).