how to smoke lake trout??

[wormwiggler]

i just got a smoker and was wondering if anyone has tips on smoking lake trout. Temp / time / type of wood / rub?

[Koda]

Tried smoking one once...but I couldnt' keep it lit.

[windflag77]

filet togue, but keep skin on, it is best to smoke the togue skin side down, when done the skin peels right off.use a dry rub/brine for about an hour in the fridge using some olive oil, salt, sugar, black pepper, and garlic powder or whatever you want for spices. take out of fridge and rinse under cool water to get the majority of spices off then pat dry with paper towel. let the fish sit outside or on the counter for atleast a half hour until it looks like it has a glaze over it. Prep the smoker while doing this. you want the temp to be around 195 degrees. apple, alder, or hickory are my favorites for smoking togue. should take 2.5 to 3 hours to smoke. You will love this, i used to fish primarily for salmon and brookies until i got my smoker last year. Now i find myself setting more traps for togue and craving this stuff. I know you will love it too. feel free to pm me with any other questions or let me know how it turned out but i am sure other people might be interested in your questions and results.

[wormwiggler]

thanks i will let you know how it turns out

[cmbb]

WW;  Windflag pretty much nailed it.  Personally, I only use one pan of wood for smoke. Usually just take some of my firewood, rock maple-sugar maple and chip it up etc, to get it in small pieces.. I don't like too much smoke. The following link is a good one to start and you can tailor it to your likes.

You may want to try some with the skin off. Do some with the recipe and get a feel for whats going on. Then experiment, its worth it.

http://www.salmonuniversity.com/rs_htss01_step02.html

[JimP]

quart of gas... 

[flyfsh]

I posted this under another thread.  Give it a try and I can guarantee if u make the mistake of giving some away, their gonna always be bugging u for more.  Only smoking recipe I use on salmoniods now. 

SMOKE EM! and u will be targeting them more often.  Simple recipe. Fillet and cut into desirable portions.  Freezing works fine till u get enough for a batch.  Vacuum seal if possible and u will have no problem keeping for up to a year.  When u have enough for smoker.

Brine

2 cups of brown sugar
1 cup of kosher salt
1 quart of water

Mix brine till looks dissolved and multiply if needed. Soak fillets in brine overnight, at least eight hours, with all pieces covered.  Then put fillets on cookie sheet skin down for 8-12 hrs. so they kinda harden and carmelize over.  Then smoke for 3-4 hours till done and rotate racks half way through smoking. (Cold smoked the ones with just an electric burner and chip pan. Replenish chips every hour.

Good luck!

[wormwiggler]

thanks guys

[grub662]

Prep the fish like windflag describes but skip the spices. Use the brine like flyfsr described but dont soak more than 5 hrs. Rinse and dry fish. Apple and alder work best for me and its local wood. I use the Cabelas 7 in 1 gas smoker. Works for me.

[JimmieDean]

Keep them frozen to the core, after dipping them in K2. The next time the power goes out, light the tails and use them for candles. 

[fishon--fishoff]

Well to smoke a lake trout can be kind of tricky, but the way i have seen those Belfast boys do it is take a papper towell pat it down so its a little dry,than take a waldo county free press papper lay it flat on the table,put your trout on the papper and fold..(Keep your fingers pointed down and squeeze as you roll it up...Licking the papper doesn't help so take some clear varnish and dab it all the way across the paper than press and hold...Once it has  10 minutes to dry grab a torch and enjoy...

[stevek]

It depends on how dry you like it. I fillet mine, cut out the pin bones and cut into large chunks with the skin on. I then salt and pepper the flesh side and smoke ~200 for 4-6 hours. Good for chowder and salads.

[saltyshores]

Others have mentioned how to brine the togue, so I won't repeat that.

I've had the hot-smoked fish and it is good, but we like to cold smoke the togue and other fish. We built what looks similar to a 3'x3'x6' high "outhouse" and made removable shelves inside out of lobster trap wire and put a door on the front. We bought a small single burner hotplate at Rite Aid for about $12 and we run it on medium heat with an 8" diameter cast iron fry pan ful of hardwood shavings from a cabinet maker. With a smokehouse the size of ours, the air temperature never gets very hot, so the fish doesn't cook and dry out like in a hot smoker. Cold smoked togue and other fish is more moist and tastes great, but it takes a lot longer to smoke, maybe 15+ hours or more, dependiing on thickness of the fillets (put them skin side down). Just keep taste-testing them until they taste smoky enough. Good luck if you try this.

[ICEMAN-73]

Ask Chech and Chong! those guys know how to smoke anything, even Labrador.